Are cognitive abilities under selection by female choice? A comment on Chen et al. (2019)

Andrés Camacho-Alpízar; Andrea S. Griffin; Lauren M. Guillette

doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2020.03.017

Are cognitive abilities under selection by female choice? A comment on Chen et al. (2019)

Andrés Camacho-Alpízar, Andrea S. Griffin, Lauren M. Guillette^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

5 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

A recent paper by Chen et al. (2019, Science, 363 (6423), 166–167) found that female budgerigars, Melopsittacus undulatus, show a preference for males that are successful problem solvers. Is this result sufficient to conclude that mate choice influences the evolution of cognitive abilities? Here, we consider what we currently know about the relationship between problem solving and cognition. We argue that it is premature to conclude, based on these findings, that cognitive abilities have evolved in part through sexual selection by female choice.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	e1-e3
Journal	Animal Behaviour
Volume	165
Early online date	7 Jun 2020
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2020.03.017
Publication status	Published - Jul 2020

Keywords

Cognitive evolution
Mate choice
Problem solving
Sexual selection

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10.1016/j.anbehav.2020.03.017

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title = "Are cognitive abilities under selection by female choice? A comment on Chen et al. (2019)",

abstract = "A recent paper by Chen et al. (2019, Science, 363 (6423), 166–167) found that female budgerigars, Melopsittacus undulatus, show a preference for males that are successful problem solvers. Is this result sufficient to conclude that mate choice influences the evolution of cognitive abilities? Here, we consider what we currently know about the relationship between problem solving and cognition. We argue that it is premature to conclude, based on these findings, that cognitive abilities have evolved in part through sexual selection by female choice.",

keywords = "Cognitive evolution, Mate choice, Problem solving, Sexual selection",

author = "Andr{\'e}s Camacho-Alp{\'i}zar and Griffin, {Andrea S.} and Guillette, {Lauren M.}",

note = "This work was supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada (NSERC), the University of Alberta Faculty of Science Start-Up grant program and the Department of Psychology at the University of Alberta.",

year = "2020",

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AU - Camacho-Alpízar, Andrés

AU - Griffin, Andrea S.

AU - Guillette, Lauren M.

N1 - This work was supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada (NSERC), the University of Alberta Faculty of Science Start-Up grant program and the Department of Psychology at the University of Alberta.

PY - 2020/7

Y1 - 2020/7

N2 - A recent paper by Chen et al. (2019, Science, 363 (6423), 166–167) found that female budgerigars, Melopsittacus undulatus, show a preference for males that are successful problem solvers. Is this result sufficient to conclude that mate choice influences the evolution of cognitive abilities? Here, we consider what we currently know about the relationship between problem solving and cognition. We argue that it is premature to conclude, based on these findings, that cognitive abilities have evolved in part through sexual selection by female choice.

AB - A recent paper by Chen et al. (2019, Science, 363 (6423), 166–167) found that female budgerigars, Melopsittacus undulatus, show a preference for males that are successful problem solvers. Is this result sufficient to conclude that mate choice influences the evolution of cognitive abilities? Here, we consider what we currently know about the relationship between problem solving and cognition. We argue that it is premature to conclude, based on these findings, that cognitive abilities have evolved in part through sexual selection by female choice.

KW - Cognitive evolution

KW - Mate choice

KW - Problem solving

KW - Sexual selection

U2 - 10.1016/j.anbehav.2020.03.017

DO - 10.1016/j.anbehav.2020.03.017

M3 - Article

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SN - 0003-3472

VL - 165

SP - e1-e3

JO - Animal Behaviour

JF - Animal Behaviour

ER -

Are cognitive abilities under selection by female choice? A comment on Chen et al. (2019)

Abstract

Keywords

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