Cognitive performance is linked to survival in free-living African striped mice.

Proc Biol Sci

School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Braamfontein 2000, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Published: March 2023

Cognition is shaped by evolution and is predicted to increase fitness. However, the link between cognition and fitness in free-living animals is unresolved. We studied the correlates of cognition and survival in a free-living rodent inhabiting an arid environment. We tested 143 striped mice () using a battery of cognitive tests, including: (i) an attention task, (ii) two problem-solving tasks, (iii) a learning and reversal learning task, and (iv) an inhibitory control task. We related cognitive performance with days of survival. Better problem-solving and inhibitory control performance were significant correlates of survival. Surviving males showed greater reversal learning which may be related to sex-specific behavioural and life-history characteristics. Specific cognitive traits and not a composite measure of general intelligence underpins fitness in this free-living rodent population, enhancing our understanding of the evolution of cognition in non-human animals.

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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9993040PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2023.0205DOI Listing

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