Volume 6 Num. 2 - July 2006
Gestural Imitation by a Gorilla: Evidence and Nature of the Capacity [Imitaci?n gestual por un gorila: evidencia y naturaleza de la capacidad]
Volume 6 Num. 2 - July 2006 - Pages 215-231
Authors:
R. W. Byrne and J. E. Tanner
Abstract:
We report the results of an opportunistic experiment on the capacity for gestural imitation in a zoo-housed, female western lowland gorilla (Gorilla g. gorilla). Taking advantage of her temporary disposition to copy humans, we presented 7 non-species-typical gestures, without training or rewards. The gorilla?s behaviour was filmed and subsequently rated for gestural imitation by 20 na?ve coders, controlling for general demeanour by comparing pre- and post-demonstration segments. For several gestures, behaviour that closely matched the demonstration was seen only or more often after demonstration: gestural imitation was therefore reliably detected. Nevertheless, as in previous studies of great ape gestural imitation, none of the gorilla copies was a perfect match. We suggest that gestural imitation in great apes is based on facilitation of rare behaviours in their extensive and often idiosyncratic gestural repertoire (e.g. by mirror neurons), rather than on acquiring novel behaviours by imitation.
Key words:
Gestural Imitation, Facilitation of Idiosyncratic Repertoire, Western Lowland Gorilla
Full Article
More articles in this volume
- [129-132] Darwin lives: Introduction to the Serie on Animal Learning and Cognition [Darwin vive: Introducci?n a la Serie Sobre Aprendizaje y Cognici?n Animal]
- [133-146] On the Nature of Relations Learned in Pavlovian Conditioning [Sobre la Naturaleza de las Relaciones Aprendidas en el Condicionamiento Pavloviano]
- [147-166] Revision of Retrieval Theory of Forgetting: What does Make Information Context-Specific? [Revisi?n de la Teor?a de la Recuperaci?n de la Informaci?n: ?Qu? Convierte a la Informaci?n en Dependiente del Contexto?]
- [167-187] Instructional Ambiguity in the Discrimination of and Memory for the Duration of a Stimulus [Ambig?edad instruccional en la discriminaci?n de y la memoria de la duraci?n de un Est?mulo]
- [189-213] Reward Loss as Psychological Pain [P?rdida de recompensa como dolor psicol?gico]
- [233-248] Individual Response Strategies in List Learning by Orangutans [Estrategias de respuesta individual en el aprendizaje de listas por orangutanes]
- [249-260] Diazepam attenuates Successive Positive Contrast in One-Way Avoidance Learning [El diazepan aten?a el efecto de contraste positivo sucesivo en el aprendizaje de evitaci?n de un sentido]
