@article {pmid40268688,
year = {2025},
author = {Buniyaadi, A and Prabhat, A and Bhardwaj, SK and Kumar, V},
title = {Role of melatonin in physiological mitigation of sleep disruption in an unnatural temporal environment.},
journal = {Journal of neuroendocrinology},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {e70035},
doi = {10.1111/jne.70035},
pmid = {40268688},
issn = {1365-2826},
support = {//Indian National Science Academy, New Delhi/ ; },
abstract = {Illuminated nights reduce melatonin peak and disrupt sleep. Using this as the basis of the present experimental paradigm, we investigated whether nocturnal melatonin levels were crucial for sleep regulation in a diurnal vertebrate. Acclimated Indian house crows (Corvus splendens) were randomly segregated into three groups of 12 each. For the next 10 days, one group was maintained on 12 L:12 D, as before (LD control); for the other two groups, the absolute darkness was replaced with dim light at night (dLAN; L = ~150 lux, D = ~6 lux). Under dLAN, half an hour before light off time, the LD control and one dLAN group received intraperitoneally 200 μL of vehicle (0.75% physiological saline), while the other dLAN group received a similar 200 μL vehicle but containing melatonin at a dose of 50 μg bird[-1] day[-1]. Under dLAN, exogenous melatonin elevated nocturnal AANAT mRNA and plasma melatonin levels and induced changes in diurnal expressions of clock genes (PER2, CRY1, BMAL1, NPAS2, REVERB) in the pineal gland and hypothalamus, and of genes encoding melatonin receptors (MEL1a, MEL1b) and epigenetic modifiers (HAT1, HDAC2, HDAC4, DNMT3a) in the hypothalamus. Elevated nocturnal melatonin levels bettered sleep with positive effects on the hypothalamic expression of genes associated with nocturnal sleep (cytokine pathway: TLR4, TNFα, IL-1β, NOS1; calcium pathway: CAMK2, SIK3) and awake (ACHM3, EGR1, HOMER1a, OREXIN) states, and with neurogenesis and synaptic plasticity (BDNF, EGR1, CREB). These suggested the role of melatonin in mitigation of the dLAN-induced sleep disruption. Nocturnal melatonin peak levels are a crucial component of the regulatory transcriptional pathways underlying the daily wake-sleep pattern, with far-reaching implications for sleep-related issues in diurnal species including perhaps humans inhabiting an over-lit environment with pervasive light pollution.},
}

@article {pmid40033487,
year = {2025},
author = {Huang, MH and Kuan, YH and Tu, PC and Chan, YE and Su, TP},
title = {Differential involvement of trait impulsivity, fluid intelligence, and executive function in creativity among euthymic patients with bipolar disorder.},
journal = {Journal of the Chinese Medical Association : JCMA},
volume = {88},
number = {4},
pages = {290-297},
doi = {10.1097/JCMA.0000000000001221},
pmid = {40033487},
issn = {1728-7731},
mesh = {Humans ; *Bipolar Disorder/psychology/physiopathology ; Female ; Male ; *Intelligence ; Adult ; *Impulsive Behavior ; *Creativity ; *Executive Function ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Middle Aged ; },
abstract = {BACKGROUND: While anecdotal evidence suggests a link between bipolar disorder and heightened creativity, empirical studies are scarce, and the underlying cognitive mechanisms remain unclear. This study aimed to explore the association between trait impulsivity, executive function, fluid intelligence, and creativity among euthymic patients with bipolar disorder.

METHODS: Euthymic outpatients with bipolar disorder and age- and sex-matched healthy controls were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Creativity was assessed using the Abbreviated Torrance Test for Adults and the Chinese Word Remote Associates Test, which examined divergent thinking and convergent thinking, respectively. Trait impulsivity was measured using the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale, while cognitive flexibility was evaluated using the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test. Fluid intelligence was assessed using Raven's Progressive Matrices. General linear models were used to assess the associations between these cognitive measures.

RESULTS: Fifty-seven euthymic patients with bipolar disorder and 56 controls were recruited. Euthymic patients with bipolar disorder exhibited comparable overall creativity to controls but underperformed in convergent thinking. General linear models confirmed a negative association between trait impulsivity and creativity, primarily observed in patients with bipolar disorder. Cognitive flexibility positively correlated with creativity among patients with bipolar disorder, independent of fluid intelligence.

CONCLUSION: Our study showed that euthymic patients with bipolar disorder do not have heightened creativity. The findings underscore the importance of considering trait impulsivity and cognitive factors in understanding creativity in bipolar disorder.},
}

Humans
*Bipolar Disorder/psychology/physiopathology
Female
Male
*Intelligence
Adult
*Impulsive Behavior
*Creativity
*Executive Function
Cross-Sectional Studies
Middle Aged

@article {pmid40242340,
year = {2025},
author = {Aota, I and Takano, M and Izawa, EI},
title = {Effects of a short-term removal of the dominant male on vocalization in captive groups of large-billed crows (Corvus macrorynchos).},
journal = {Royal Society open science},
volume = {12},
number = {4},
pages = {241458},
pmid = {40242340},
issn = {2054-5703},
abstract = {Dominance hierarchy is widespread among group-living animals as a conflict resolution strategy to avoid the cost and risk of fights among individuals. Dominance signals are well-known mechanisms that allow individuals to assess their opponent's fighting ability without physical contact, thereby maintaining dominance relationships. In fission-fusion societies, where group composition is fluid, dominance status can shift depending on the current group members. In such situations, vocal signals may be particularly useful as dominance signals due to their easy modification by the signaller. In this study, we investigated the relationship between rank-dependent behaviours and rank ascending by temporarily removing individuals from captive groups of large-billed crows (Corvus macrorhynchos). We removed either the first-ranked or third-ranked individuals from the group for 1 day and compared the behaviours of the remaining group members before the removal, during the removal and after the removed individuals rejoined the group. We found that the number of sequential ka calls, which is assumed to be a status signal, increased only during the removal of first-ranked individuals and decreased after they rejoined the group. These results suggest that sequential ka calls serve as dominance signals, and the subordinates flexibly adjust their vocalization depending on the presence of high-ranked individuals.},
}

@article {pmid40242334,
year = {2025},
author = {Husby, M and Slagsvold, T},
title = {The Neophobia Hypothesis: nest decoration in birds may reduce predation by corvids.},
journal = {Royal Society open science},
volume = {12},
number = {4},
pages = {250427},
pmid = {40242334},
issn = {2054-5703},
abstract = {Many birds suffer heavily from nest predation, selecting several behaviours to avoid the risk. Corvids are among the most serious nest predators. However, they are also among the most neophobic of any birds. We suggest that nesting birds may take advantage of this fear by decorating the nest with anthropogenic materials that are novel to the predators (termed the Neophobia Hypothesis). They may also add large, conspicuous feathers that may indicate a site where a bird has recently been killed. In a study in the field, we found that territorial Eurasian magpies Pica pica waited for a longer period to remove eggs from artificial nests decorated with a shiny metal teaspoon, or with large, white feathers compared to adjacent artificial control nests with no decoration. On a landfill, where the birds had become more habituated to forage among anthropogenic material, common ravens Corvus corax also avoided nests decorated with a teaspoon or with feathers. The study supports the hypothesis that birds may suffer less nest predation by corvids if they decorate the nest with anthropogenic material or with large feathers.},
}

@article {pmid39774767,
year = {2025},
author = {Gallo, L and Kim, P and Churchill, I and Rae, C and Voineskos, SH and Thoma, A and Pusic, AL and Cano, SJ and Klassen, AF},
title = {Establishing Convergent Validity of the FACE-Q Aesthetics Module Scales.},
journal = {Aesthetic surgery journal},
volume = {45},
number = {5},
pages = {508-513},
doi = {10.1093/asj/sjaf003},
pmid = {39774767},
issn = {1527-330X},
mesh = {Humans ; Female ; Adult ; Male ; Middle Aged ; *Esthetics ; Reproducibility of Results ; *Face/surgery ; *Cosmetic Techniques ; Young Adult ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Aged ; Patient Satisfaction ; *Patient Reported Outcome Measures ; },
abstract = {BACKGROUND: FACE-Q Aesthetics scales can be used to assess patient-important outcomes following both surgical and nonsurgical facial cosmetic interventions. Convergent validity is the degree to which the scores of one measurement relate to another measuring a similar construct.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to establish the convergent validity of 11 FACE-Q Aesthetics appearance scales vs the MERZ Aesthetics (Raleigh, NC) scales.

METHODS: Data were collected from an online international sample of participants aged ≥20 years, who had presented to a dermatologist or plastic surgeon within the previous 12 months for a minimally invasive facial aesthetic treatment. Participants provided demographic and clinical data and completed 11 FACE-Q Aesthetics scales and 12 MERZ Aesthetics scales. Hypotheses regarding the strength of correlations between these scales were generated a priori. Adequate convergent validity was based on the percentage of correct hypotheses (>75%) and/or correlation ≥0.50 with an instrument measuring a similar construct.

RESULTS: In total, 1259 participants were included in this survey. The mean [standard deviation] age of the participants was 42.6 [11.9] years old, and most were female (72.5%), Caucasian (76.9%), and living in the United States (49.9%) or the United Kingdom (42.9%). FACE-Q Lines Overall, Lower Face and Jawline, Appraisal of Lines-Forehead/Between Eyebrows/Crow's Feet/Lips/Nasolabial Folds/Marionette, and Lips scales demonstrated adequate convergent validity with patient-reported MERZ Aesthetics scales. The FACE-Q Face Overall and Cheeks scales did not show adequate convergent validity.

CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence of convergent validity for FACE-Q Aesthetics appearance scales. Establishing the validity of these scales remains an iterative process and further studies comparing the FACE-Q to other related measurement tools are required to strengthen this evidence.},
}

Humans
Female
Adult
Male
Middle Aged
*Esthetics
Reproducibility of Results
*Face/surgery
*Cosmetic Techniques
Young Adult
Surveys and Questionnaires
Aged
Patient Satisfaction
*Patient Reported Outcome Measures

@article {pmid40223762,
year = {2025},
author = {Grossmann, D and Srivastava, S and Winkler, V and Brenner, S and Gupta, KJ and Paliwal, A and Singh, K and De Allegri, M},
title = {Determinants of outpatient healthcare-seeking behaviors among the rural poor affected by chronic conditions in India: a population-based cross-sectional study in seven states.},
journal = {Global health action},
volume = {18},
number = {1},
pages = {2480413},
doi = {10.1080/16549716.2025.2480413},
pmid = {40223762},
issn = {1654-9880},
mesh = {Humans ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; India/epidemiology ; Male ; Female ; Adult ; Chronic Disease/therapy/epidemiology ; *Patient Acceptance of Health Care/statistics & numerical data ; Middle Aged ; *Rural Population/statistics & numerical data ; Young Adult ; *Ambulatory Care/statistics & numerical data ; Adolescent ; Poverty ; Health Services Accessibility ; Aged ; Insurance, Health ; },
abstract = {BACKGROUND: A rising burden of chronic non-communicable diseases (CNCDs) increases demand for outpatient healthcare. Yet, evidence on preferences and barriers to healthcare services for India's most disadvantaged population, the target of India's largest public health insurance scheme (PM-JAY), is lacking.

OBJECTIVE: We explore determinants of outpatient healthcare-seeking behavior among PM-JAY eligible individuals with CNCDs in rural areas of seven states.

METHODS: Using cross-sectional data from a household survey (conducted between November 2019 and March 2020), we employed multilevel multinomial logistic regression to identify factors associated with seeking care from informal (home treatment, pharmacies, traditional healers), formal public, or formal private providers, compared with no care. Anderson's behavioral model informed the selection of independent variables.

RESULTS: Of 51,820 individuals, 5,061 (9.8%) reported a chronic condition. Despite their disease, 1,168 (23.1%) reported not using regular outpatient care. Another 2,421 individuals (48.0%) used formal private, 922 (18.3%) used formal public, and 535 (10.6%) used informal care. Predictors of formal private care were higher socioeconomic status (RRR = 2.441, 95% CI [1.61, 3.70]) and health insurance coverage (RRR = 1.478, 95% CI [1.12, 1.95]). Residents of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Gujarat were more likely to use formal public care (RRR = 23.915, 95% CI [9.01, 63.44]). Suffering from Major CNCDs or experiencing limitations in daily activities increased the probability of using healthcare across all options.

CONCLUSION: Future research should explore the reasons for non-utilization of chronic care and the preference for private providers. Policies to enhance public healthcare utilization and expand insurance for outpatient care could improve access and reduce health inequities.},
}

Humans
Cross-Sectional Studies
India/epidemiology
Male
Female
Adult
Chronic Disease/therapy/epidemiology
*Patient Acceptance of Health Care/statistics & numerical data
Middle Aged
*Rural Population/statistics & numerical data
Young Adult
*Ambulatory Care/statistics & numerical data
Adolescent
Poverty
Health Services Accessibility
Aged
Insurance, Health

@article {pmid40221436,
year = {2025},
author = {Al-Matarneh, FM},
title = {Integrating hybrid bald eagle crow search algorithm and deep learning for enhanced malicious node detection in secure distributed systems.},
journal = {Scientific reports},
volume = {15},
number = {1},
pages = {12647},
pmid = {40221436},
issn = {2045-2322},
abstract = {A distributed system comprises several independent units, each planned to track its tasks without interconnecting with the rest of them, excluding messaging services. This indicates that a solitary point of failure can reduce a method incapable without caution since no single point can achieve all essential processes. Malicious node recognition is a crucial feature of safeguarding the safety and reliability of distributed methods. Numerous models, ranging from anomaly recognition techniques to machine learning (ML) methods, are used to examine node behaviour and recognize deviances from usual patterns that may designate malicious intent. Advanced cryptographic protocols and intrusion detection devices are often combined to improve the flexibility of these methods against attacks. Moreover, real-time observing and adaptive plans are vital in quickly identifying and answering emerging attacks, contributing to the complete sturdiness of safe distributed methods. This study designs a Hybrid Bald Eagle-Crow Search Algorithm and Deep Learning for Enhanced Malicious Node Detection (HBECSA-DLMND) technique in Secure Distributed Systems. The HBECSA-DLMND technique follows the concept of metaheuristic feature selection with DL-based detection of malicious nodes in distributed systems. To accomplish this, the HBECSA-DLMND technique performs data normalization using the linear scaling normalization (LSN) approach, and the ADASYN approach is employed to handle class imbalance data. Besides, the HBECSA-DLMND method utilizes the HBECSA technique to choose a better subset of features. Meanwhile, the convolutional sparse autoencoder (CSAE) model detects malicious nodes. Finally, the dung beetle optimization (DBO) method is employed for the parameter range of the CSAE method. The experimental evaluation of the HBECSA-DLMND methodology is examined on a benchmark WSN-DS database. The performance validation of the HBECSA-DLMND methodology illustrated a superior accuracy value of 98.99% over existing approaches.},
}

@article {pmid40216860,
year = {2025},
author = {Si, S and Jiang, X and Su, Q and Carin, L},
title = {Detecting implicit biases of large language models with Bayesian hypothesis testing.},
journal = {Scientific reports},
volume = {15},
number = {1},
pages = {12415},
pmid = {40216860},
issn = {2045-2322},
mesh = {Bayes Theorem ; *Language ; Humans ; Bias ; Large Language Models ; },
abstract = {Despite the remarkable performance of large language models (LLMs), such as generative pre-trained Transformers (GPTs), across various tasks, they often perpetuate social biases and stereotypes embedded in their training data. In this paper, we introduce a novel framework that reformulates bias detection in LLMs as a hypothesis testing problem, where the null hypothesis [Formula: see text] represents the absence of implicit bias. Our framework leverages binary-choice questions to measure social bias in both open-source and proprietary LLMs accessible via APIs. We demonstrate the flexibility of our approach by integrating classical statistical methods, such as the exact binomial test, with Bayesian inference using Bayes factors for bias detection and quantification. Extensive experiments are conducted on prominent models, including ChatGPT (GPT-3.5-Turbo), DeepSeek-V3, and Llama-3.1-70B, utilizing publicly available datasets such as BBQ, CrowS-Pairs (in both English and French), and Winogender. While the exact Binomial test fails to distinguish between no evidence of bias and evidence of no bias, our results underscore the advantages of Bayes factors, particularly their capacity to quantify evidence for both competing hypotheses and their robustness to small sample size. Additionally, our experiments reveal that the bias behavior of LLMs is largely consistent across the English and French versions of the CrowS-Pairs dataset, with subtle differences likely arising from variations in social norms across linguistic and cultural contexts.},
}

Bayes Theorem
*Language
Humans
Bias
Large Language Models

@article {pmid40215319,
year = {2025},
author = {Schmidbauer, P and Hahn, M and Nieder, A},
title = {Crows recognize geometric regularity.},
journal = {Science advances},
volume = {11},
number = {15},
pages = {eadt3718},
doi = {10.1126/sciadv.adt3718},
pmid = {40215319},
issn = {2375-2548},
mesh = {*Crows/physiology ; Animals ; Humans ; *Pattern Recognition, Visual/physiology ; },
abstract = {The perception of geometric regularity in shapes, a form of elementary Euclidean geometry, is a fundamental mathematical intuition in humans. We demonstrate this geometric understanding in an animal, the carrion crow. Crows were trained to detect a visually distinct intruder shape among six concurrent arbitrary shapes. The crows were able to immediately apply this intruder concept to quadrilaterals, identifying the one that exhibited differing geometric properties compared to the others in the set. The crows exhibited a geometric regularity effect, showing better performance with shapes featuring right angles, parallel lines, or symmetry over more irregular shapes. This performance advantage did not require learning. Our findings suggest that geometric intuitions are not specific to humans but are deeply rooted in biological evolution.},
}

*Crows/physiology
Animals
Humans
*Pattern Recognition, Visual/physiology

@article {pmid40212605,
year = {2025},
author = {Jiang, X and Liang, W and Zhang, Y},
title = {Host personality and seasonal parasitism risk do not account for egg rejection behavior in the azure-winged magpie.},
journal = {International journal for parasitology. Parasites and wildlife},
volume = {26},
number = {},
pages = {101056},
pmid = {40212605},
issn = {2213-2244},
abstract = {Brood parasitism reduces the reproductive success of hosts and many host birds have evolved a range of anti-parasitism strategies, including egg recognition and egg rejection. Recent studies have shown that host egg rejection behavior can vary according to personality traits and parasitism risk. However, these relationships have not been clearly determined. The aim of this study was to further investigate the influence of seasonal parasitism pressure and host personality traits on egg rejection behavior in the azure-winged magpie (Cyanopica cyanus). Our results showed no significant difference in the proportion of egg rejection between hosts with low (before the arrival of cuckoos) and high (after the arrival of cuckoos) parasitism pressure. In addition, no significant difference was detected in the proportion of egg rejection between bold individuals (shorter flight initiation distance, FID) and shy individuals (longer FID). We hypothesized that the relatively weak effect of the presence or absence of cuckoos on this species could be attributed to their inherently strong egg recognition abilities. Moreover, the quantification of host behavior along a single personality axis (boldness-shyness) may be insufficient to capture behavioral differences that arise from the combined effects of various personality traits. Our study provides novel insights into the influence of seasonal parasitism risk and personality traits on host egg rejection behavior.},
}

@article {pmid40208017,
year = {2025},
author = {Gwee, CY and Metzler, D and Fuchs, J and Wolf, JBW},
title = {Reconciling Gene Tree Discordance and Biogeography in European Crows.},
journal = {Molecular ecology},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {e17764},
doi = {10.1111/mec.17764},
pmid = {40208017},
issn = {1365-294X},
support = {WO 14262-1//Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft/ ; INST 86/2050-1 FUGG//Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft/ ; ERCStG-336536 FuncSpecGen/ERC_/European Research Council/International ; },
abstract = {Reconstructing the evolutionary history of young lineages diverging with gene flow is challenging due to factors like incomplete lineage sorting, introgression, and selection causing gene tree discordance. The European crow hybrid zone between all-black carrion crows and grey-coated hooded crows exemplifies this challenge. Most of the genome in Western and Central European carrion crow populations is near-identical to hooded crows, but differs substantially from their Iberian congeners. A notable exception is a single major-effect colour-locus under sexual selection aligning with the 'species' tree. To understand the underlying evolutionary processes, we reconstructed the biogeographic history of the species complex. During the Pleistocene carrion and hooded crows took refuge in the Iberian Peninsula and the Middle East, respectively. Allele-sharing of all-black Western European populations with likewise black Iberian crows at the colour-locus represents the last trace of carrion crow ancestry, resisting gene flow from expanding hooded crow populations that have homogenised most of the genome. A model of colour-locus introgression from an Iberian ancestor into hooded crow populations near the Pyrenées was significantly less supported. We found no positive relationship between introgression and recombination rate consistent with the absence of genome-wide, polygenic barriers in this young species complex. Overall, this study portrays a scenario where few large-effect loci, subject to divergent sexual selection, resist rampant and asymmetric gene exchange. This study underscores the importance of integrating population demography and biogeography to accurately interpret patterns of gene tree discordance following population divergence.},
}

@article {pmid40204817,
year = {2025},
author = {Bharath, S and Vasuki, A},
title = {Adaptive energy loss optimization in distributed networks using reinforcement learning-enhanced crow search algorithm.},
journal = {Scientific reports},
volume = {15},
number = {1},
pages = {12165},
pmid = {40204817},
issn = {2045-2322},
abstract = {Modern power distribution network incorporates distributed generation (DG) for numerous benefits. However, the incorporation creates numerous challenges in energy management and to handle the challenges it requires advanced optimization techniques for an effective operation of the network. Unlike traditional methods such as Genetic Algorithm (GA), Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), and standard Crow Search Algorithm (CSA), which suffer from premature convergence and limited adaptability to real-time variations, Reinforcement Learning Enhanced Crow Search Algorithm (RL-CSA) which is proposed in this research work solves network reconfiguration optimization problem and minimize energy losses. Unlike conventional heuristic methods, which follow predefined search patterns, RL-CSA dynamically refines its search trajectory based on real-time feedback, ensuring superior convergence speed and global search efficiency. The novel RL-CSA enables real-time adaptability and intelligent optimization for energy loss reduction in distributed networks. The proposed model validation is performed on the IEEE 33 and 69 Bus test systems considering diverse performance metrics such as power loss reduction, voltage stability, execution time, utilization efficiency for DG deployment, and energy cost minimization. Comparative results show that RL-CSA achieves a 78% reduction in energy losses, limiting power loss to 5 kW (IEEE 33-Bus) and 8 kW (IEEE 69-Bus) whereas traditional models converge at higher loss levels. The execution time is optimized to 1.4 s (IEEE 33-Bus) and 1.8 s (IEEE 69-Bus), significantly faster than GA, PSO, and CSA, making RL-CSA more efficient for real-time power distribution applications. By balancing exploration-exploitation using CSA while adapting search parameters through reinforcement learning, RL-CSA ensures scalability, improved DG utilization (98%), and better voltage stability (< 0.005 p.u.), making it a robust and intelligent alternative for modern smart grid optimization.},
}

@article {pmid40195903,
year = {2025},
author = {Yu, F and Yu, C and Guo, S and Wang, X and Li, J and Li, Z},
title = {The risk perception and response of Azure-winged magpies: On the aspect of feeding behaviour and alarm calls.},
journal = {The Journal of animal ecology},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {},
doi = {10.1111/1365-2656.70044},
pmid = {40195903},
issn = {1365-2656},
support = {2022YFC3202104//National Key Research and Development Program of China/ ; BK20211151//Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province, China/ ; },
abstract = {Prey are expected to effectively perceive predation cues, recognise predators and adopt appropriate anti-predator strategies to enhance their chances of survival. Species with high cognitive abilities tend to be better at these processes, while empirical research is still lacking. The role of cognition in avoiding predation requires further investigation, especially in species with complex social structures and communication systems. Azure-winged magpies (Cyanopica cyanus) have demonstrated great talents in cognitive tasks. We conducted model presentation and playback experiments to test their predator detection and information transmission in the wild. We found that magpies exhibited distinct responses according to the model type (pigeon, falcon and cat) and eye condition of models (covered or uncovered). Individuals postponed the visit to the feeder and took less food in response to predator and eye-uncovered models. The cat model was perceived as a higher risk, and magpies would emit alarm calls with a wider bandwidth, a higher frequency of 5%, and a higher frequency of 95%. We also found that the playback of alarm calls could induce different anti-predator behaviours from conspecifics. Our study examined how Azure-winged magpies perceive information and make decisions to avoid predators. It indicates that the alarm calls of Azure-winged magpies function in encoding and sharing information, providing an in-depth understanding of complex vocal communication and risk cognition in birds.},
}

@article {pmid40187177,
year = {2025},
author = {Hu, W and Zhang, X and Shao, J and Wang, Y},
title = {Altruistic behavior in Chinese children with hearing impairment: Associations with power cognition and word comprehension.},
journal = {Acta psychologica},
volume = {255},
number = {},
pages = {104981},
doi = {10.1016/j.actpsy.2025.104981},
pmid = {40187177},
issn = {1873-6297},
abstract = {Altruistic behavior is a crucial manifestation in the socialization process of preschool children with hearing impairment, yet research on this topic among Chinese children remains limited. This study investigated the effects of power cognition and word comprehension on altruistic behavior in preschool-aged children with hearing impairment. A sample of 64 children, including both hearing-impaired and typically developing children, completed altruistic behavior tasks, power cognition tasks, word comprehension tasks, and the Raven's Combined Test. The results revealed that: (1) Children with hearing impairment exhibited significantly lower levels of altruistic behavior compared to typically developing children; (2) Both power cognition and word comprehension were positively correlated with altruistic behavior in children with hearing impairment; (3) Word comprehension mediated the relationship between power cognition and altruistic behavior in children with hearing impairment.},
}

@article {pmid40184381,
year = {2025},
author = {Ong, K and Norris, DR},
title = {Experimental evidence demonstrating how freeze-thaw patterns affect spoilage of perishable cached food.},
journal = {PloS one},
volume = {20},
number = {4},
pages = {e0319043},
doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0319043},
pmid = {40184381},
issn = {1932-6203},
mesh = {Animals ; *Freezing ; *Feeding Behavior/physiology ; *Passeriformes/physiology ; },
abstract = {For the small number of temperate and boreal species that cache perishable food, previous research suggests that increasing freeze-thaw events can have a negative impact on fitness by degrading the quality of cached food. However, there is no experimental evidence that directly links freeze-thaw events to cache quality. To examine how the timing, frequency, duration, and intensity of freeze-thaw events influenced cached food mass loss, a proxy for caloric content, we conducted a series of month-long laboratory experiments by placing simulated caches (raw chicken placed between two pieces of black spruce Picea mariana bark) in programmable freezers. Freeze-thaw treatments were modelled after weather data from Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario, where a population of Canada jays (Perisoreus canadensis), a species that caches perishable food for overwinter survival and to support late-winter breeding, has declined by > 70% since the 1980s. First, we found no evidence that an increased frequency of freeze-thaw events influenced mass loss, suggesting that microstructural damage caused by crystal reformation does not significantly influence cache quality. Instead, our experimental results demonstrated that mass loss was positively influenced by longer individual thaws, which likely reflects increased microbial growth, oxidation, and progressive drip loss. We also found that caches lost more weight when subjected to early freeze-thaw events compared to late freeze-thaw events. Finally, we show that milder freezes led to less mass loss and, unexpectedly, warmer than average thaws post-freeze also led to less mass loss. Our results suggest that longer thaw periods post-freezing and milder freezes cause or lead to significantly increased spoilage of perishable cached food. All of these temperature-related conditions are closely associated with long-term changes in climate and, thus, the effects on cache degradation reported in these experiments should be applicable to species caching perishable food in the wild.},
}

Animals
*Freezing
*Feeding Behavior/physiology
*Passeriformes/physiology

@article {pmid40180641,
year = {2025},
author = {Fielding, MW and Yates, LA and Buettel, JC and Stojanovic, D and Brook, BW},
title = {Carcass use by mesoscavengers varied across modified landscapes in the absence of top carnivores.},
journal = {Oecologia},
volume = {207},
number = {4},
pages = {60},
pmid = {40180641},
issn = {1432-1939},
support = {FL160100101//Australian Research Council/ ; CE170100015//Australian Research Council/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; *Ecosystem ; Carnivora ; *Feeding Behavior ; Raptors ; *Crows/physiology ; Australia ; },
abstract = {The decomposition of carrion is crucial to the functioning and nutrient cycling of ecosystems, and many species use this high-quality resource. However, the availability and reliability of carrion differs across environments. Modified landscapes, such as farms and roads, often produce a high density of carcasses, with disproportionate benefits for generalist mesoscavengers that can tolerate, or are attracted to, human presence. In this study, we placed carcasses strategically across two large islands in southern Australia and used camera traps to investigate how different scavengers locate and use carrion in forested, farmland and roadside habitats. Forest ravens, an avian generalist, were the dominant scavengers across all three habitat types but were three times more likely to discover carcasses deployed in modified landscapes. Raptors were twice as likely to discover and use carcasses in farmland habitats, indicating enhanced scavenging opportunities in these areas. The discovery rate and use of carcasses by feral cats did not differ between habitat types. In this setting, differences in carrion use between diurnal and nocturnal scavengers are potentially due to the absence of top mammalian carnivores (Tasmanian devils and quolls). Diurnal scavengers, such as forest ravens and raptors, followed expected habitat preferences, albeit with greater access to carrion due to increased persistence. However, feral cats demonstrated no preference for carcasses across habitats, likely due to the reduced landscape of fear. Overall, our study underscores the important role of native mammalian carnivores in structuring scavenger communities and further validates the value of trophic rewilding to restore key ecological functions.},
}

Animals
*Ecosystem
Carnivora
*Feeding Behavior
Raptors
*Crows/physiology
Australia

@article {pmid39533155,
year = {2025},
author = {Lara Green, R and Joanne Carrington, S and Shaw, DJ and Kessler, K},
title = {Investigating visual perspective taking and belief reasoning in autistic adults: A pre-registered online study.},
journal = {Autism : the international journal of research and practice},
volume = {29},
number = {4},
pages = {920-933},
doi = {10.1177/13623613241290880},
pmid = {39533155},
issn = {1461-7005},
mesh = {Humans ; Male ; Female ; Adult ; Young Adult ; *Theory of Mind ; *Autistic Disorder/psychology ; Middle Aged ; *Autism Spectrum Disorder/psychology ; Reaction Time ; Adolescent ; *Visual Perception ; },
abstract = {As many autistic individuals report mentalizing difficulties into adulthood, the current pre-registered study investigated potential differences in belief reasoning and/or visual perspective taking between autistic and non-autistic adults. The Seeing-Believing task was administered to 121 gender-balanced participants online (57 with a self- reported diagnosis of an autism spectrum condition and 64 without), as well as Raven's Progressive Matrices (on which the groups did not significantly differ) and the Autism Spectrum Quotient. Non-autistic adults replicated previous findings with this task, revealing slower responses to belief-reasoning than to perspective-taking trials. Autistic adults did not show significantly slower or more error-prone performance during perspective taking and/or belief reasoning. In fact, the autistic group committed significantly fewer mistakes, including fewer altercentric intrusions. The main group difference in response times was a steeper increase with increasing angular disparity between self and other in the autistic group. We discuss our findings in terms of differences in self-other control, but emphasise that our findings cannot be explained in terms of simplistic deficit-based notions of autism and suggest that autistic adults might favour slightly different strategies when judging another's perspective or belief.Lay abstractMany autistic individuals report difficulties in social situations, where they are required to think about what goes on in others' minds. These states of the mind can include how others perceive the world around them, their beliefs, or their desires. While research has shown that autistic children could be delayed in developing their full capacity in this regard, less is known about how adults process others' experiences and beliefs. Here we used a novel task and asked adults to participate online. Participants self-reported whether they had been diagnosed with autism or not and we split them into two groups depending on their response. We also asked participants to fill in a self-report questionnaire about social preferences and habits and we also asked them to conduct a test of their nonverbal reasoning ability. Importantly, the autistic and the non-autistic groups did not differ in their nonverbal reasoning abilities, and on our task, we observed that the autistic group committed fewer mistakes than the non-autistic group. Autistic participants were particularly fast and made fewer mistakes on those responses that overlapped with their own view and belief of reality. In conclusion, our findings do not support a simple view of autism in terms of deficits in either social or more general thinking abilities. Instead, autistic adults might favour slightly different ways of thinking about other's experiences and beliefs that is more firmly linked to their own experience and knowledge.},
}

Humans
Male
Female
Adult
Young Adult
*Theory of Mind
*Autistic Disorder/psychology
Middle Aged
*Autism Spectrum Disorder/psychology
Reaction Time
Adolescent
*Visual Perception

@article {pmid40168984,
year = {2025},
author = {van Hasselt, SJ and Martinez-Gonzalez, D and Mekenkamp, GJ and Vyssotski, AL and Verhulst, S and Beckers, GJL and Rattenborg, NC and Meerlo, P},
title = {Sleep pressure causes birds to trade asymmetric sleep for symmetric sleep.},
journal = {Current biology : CB},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {},
doi = {10.1016/j.cub.2025.03.008},
pmid = {40168984},
issn = {1879-0445},
abstract = {Sleep is a dangerous part of an animal's life.[1][,][2][,][3] Nonetheless, following sleep loss, mammals and birds sleep longer and deeper, as reflected by increased electroencephalogram (EEG) slow-wave activity (SWA; ≈1-5 Hz spectral power) during non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep.[4][,][5] Stimulating a brain region during wakefulness also causes that region to sleep deeper afterwards,[6][,][7][,][8][,][9] indicating that NREM sleep is a local, homeostatically regulated process.[10][,][11] Birds and some marine mammals can keep one eye open during NREM sleep,[12][,][13] a behavior associated with lighter sleep or wakefulness in the hemisphere opposite the open eye-states called asymmetric and unihemispheric NREM sleep, respectively.[13][,][14][,][15][,][16][,][17][,][18][,][19][,][20][,][21][,][22][,][23] Closure of both eyes is associated with symmetric NREM or REM sleep. Birds rely on asymmetric and unihemispheric sleep to stay safe.[17][,][24][,][25] However, as sleeping deeply with only one hemisphere at a time increases the time required for both hemispheres to fulfill their need for NREM sleep, increased sleep pressure might cause birds to engage in symmetric sleep at the expense of asymmetric sleep.[26][,][27] Using high-density EEG recordings of European jackdaws (Coloeus monedula), we investigated intra- and inter-hemispheric asymmetries during normal sleep and following sleep deprivation (SD). The proportion of asymmetric sleep was lower early in the sleep period and following SD-periods of increased sleep pressure. Our findings demonstrate a trade-off between the benefits of sleep and vigilance and indicate that a bird's utilization of asymmetric sleep is constrained by temporal dynamics in their need for sleep.},
}

@article {pmid40040463,
year = {2025},
author = {Llewellyn, M},
title = {Ali Smith's queer autobiocritical aesthetics.},
journal = {Journal of lesbian studies},
volume = {29},
number = {2},
pages = {153-169},
doi = {10.1080/10894160.2025.2461903},
pmid = {40040463},
issn = {1540-3548},
mesh = {Humans ; Female ; *Esthetics/history ; Homosexuality, Female/history ; Sexual and Gender Minorities/history ; },
abstract = {Ali Smith's allusive relationship to the literary and cultural canon is a prominent feature of her writing life. Smith's works offer a rich and diverse perspective on the magpie-like appreciation of cultural mo(ve)ments as accretive and cumulative sites of creative re/construction. But they also provide a sense of the writer as reader, thinker and re-visioner of personalised literary and cultural canons including not only books but paintings, films and music. In this essay, I explore Smith's work through what I term the "autobiocritical" - that is literary texts which serve to play with notions of identity, authorial positioning and critical approaches via an allusive, metafictional and theoretically informed exploration of fiction, form and self-representation. The essay focuses on Smith's Artful (2012) in which I suggest she engages in a complex process of homage and adaptation that is invested in the queering of the acts of reading, re-reading and critical perspective. Smith's subversive approach to the nature of critical analysis when divested of personality, character and readerly interaction presents a degree of cynicism and scepticism about the role of the aesthetic when anaesthetised from the quirks and individualities of character and of reading - that are central to Smith's aesthetic.},
}

Humans
Female
*Esthetics/history
Homosexuality, Female/history
Sexual and Gender Minorities/history

@article {pmid40127088,
year = {2025},
author = {Richman, SN and Tomback, DF and Grevstad, N and Kobobel, D},
title = {Dining with wolves: Are the rewards worth the risks?.},
journal = {PloS one},
volume = {20},
number = {3},
pages = {e0319565},
doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0319565},
pmid = {40127088},
issn = {1932-6203},
mesh = {*Wolves/physiology ; Animals ; *Crows/physiology ; Feeding Behavior ; Reward ; Colorado ; Passeriformes/physiology ; Predatory Behavior ; },
abstract = {Where wild populations of gray wolves (Canis lupus) occur in North America, common ravens (Corvus corax) and, in western regions, black-billed magpies (Pica hudsonia) (Family Corvidae), show up quickly at wolf kills and scavenge carcasses, often feeding near wolves. Ravens and magpies also visit wolf enclosures at gray wolf sanctuaries in Colorado, USA, and attempt to take food from wolves, but there is no information regarding how often they obtain food or are injured or killed. Working at the Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center, Divide, Colorado, we asked whether ravens and magpies associate with gray wolves at feeding time; what proportions of ravens and magpies obtain food per enclosure; whether individual wolves react differently to the birds; and if the birds are harmed by interacting with wolves. We also examined the effects of food type, amount, and air temperature on bird numbers. We counted raven and magpie numbers in wolf enclosures and wolf and bird behaviors during daily feeding tours across 20 visits and within eight wolf enclosures per visit. Wolf reactions within each enclosure were categorized as chasing or ignoring birds or removing food. Cumulatively, across all dates and enclosures, 33% of ravens and 43% of magpies obtained food within each enclosure. Because birds were not individually marked, these percentages could be higher. Individual wolves differed in responses to ravens and magpies but most often ignored bird presence. We found no effect of food type on bird numbers but a trend in reward probability with greater food amount for ravens. There were, however, statistically significant negative relationships between daily maximum and average temperature and raven numbers, and significant positive relationships between daily minimum and average temperature and magpie numbers. We conclude that dining with wolves represented a successful foraging strategy with low risk to ravens and magpies.},
}

*Wolves/physiology
Animals
*Crows/physiology
Feeding Behavior
Reward
Colorado
Passeriformes/physiology
Predatory Behavior

@article {pmid40119198,
year = {2025},
author = {Hahn, LA and Fongaro, E and Rose, J},
title = {Neuronal correlates of endogenous selective attention in the endbrain of crows.},
journal = {Communications biology},
volume = {8},
number = {1},
pages = {470},
pmid = {40119198},
issn = {2399-3642},
support = {Freigeist Fellowship 93299//Volkswagen Foundation (VolkswagenStiftung)/ ; Freigeist Fellowship 93299//Volkswagen Foundation (VolkswagenStiftung)/ ; Freigeist Fellowship 93299//Volkswagen Foundation (VolkswagenStiftung)/ ; Project A19 of the collaborative research center SFB1280 Projektnummer 316803389//Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Foundation)/ ; Project A19 of the collaborative research center SFB1280 Projektnummer 316803389//Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Foundation)/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; *Crows/physiology ; *Attention/physiology ; *Neurons/physiology ; *Memory, Short-Term/physiology ; Male ; Behavior, Animal/physiology ; Cognition/physiology ; },
abstract = {The ability to direct attention and select important information is a cornerstone of adaptive behavior. Directed attention supports adaptive cognitive operations underlying flexible behavior, for example in extinction learning, and was demonstrated behaviorally in both mammals and in birds. The neural foundation of such endogenous attention, however, has been thoroughly investigated only in mammals and is still poorly understood in birds. And despite the similarities at the behavioral level, cognition of birds and mammals evolved in parallel for over 300 million years, resulting in different architectures of the endbrain, most notably the absence of cortical layering in birds. We recorded neuronal signals from the nidopallium caudolaterale, the avian equivalent to mammalian pre-frontal cortex, while crows employed endogenous attention to perform change detection in a working memory task. The neuronal activity profile clearly reflected attentional enhancement of information maintained by working memory. Our results show that top-down endogenous attention is possible without the layered configuration of the mammalian cortex.},
}

Animals
*Crows/physiology
*Attention/physiology
*Neurons/physiology
*Memory, Short-Term/physiology
Male
Behavior, Animal/physiology
Cognition/physiology

@article {pmid40102499,
year = {2025},
author = {Alabduallah, B and Al Dayil, R and Alkharashi, A and Alneil, AA},
title = {Innovative hand pose based sign language recognition using hybrid metaheuristic optimization algorithms with deep learning model for hearing impaired persons.},
journal = {Scientific reports},
volume = {15},
number = {1},
pages = {9320},
pmid = {40102499},
issn = {2045-2322},
support = {KSRG-2024- 238//King Salman Center for Disability Research/ ; },
mesh = {*Sign Language ; Humans ; *Deep Learning ; *Algorithms ; *Gestures ; *Persons with Hearing Disabilities ; Hand/physiology ; },
abstract = {Sign language (SL) is an effective mode of communication, which uses visual-physical methods like hand signals, expressions, and body actions to communicate between the difficulty of hearing and the deaf community, produce opinions, and carry significant conversations. SL recognition (SLR), the procedure of automatically identifying and construing gestures of SL, has gotten considerable attention recently owing to its latent link to the lack of communication between the deaf and the hearing world. Hand gesture detection is its domain, in which computer vision (CV) and artificial intelligence (AI) help deliver non-verbal communication between computers and humans by classifying the significant movements of the human hands. The emergence and constant growth of DL approaches have delivered motivation and momentum for evolving SLR. Therefore, this manuscript presents an Innovative Sign Language Recognition using Hand Pose with Hybrid Metaheuristic Optimization Algorithms in Deep Learning (ISLRHP-HMOADL) technique for Hearing-Impaired Persons. The main objective of the ISLRHP-HMOADL technique focused on hand pose recognition to improve the efficiency and accuracy of sign interpretation for hearing-impaired persons. Initially, the ISLRHP-HMOADL model performs image pre-processing using a wiener filter (WF) to enhance image quality by reducing noise. Furthermore, the fusion of three models, ResNeXt101, VGG19, and vision transformer (ViT), is employed for feature extraction to capture diverse and intricate spatial and contextual details from the images. The bidirectional gated recurrent unit (BiGRU) classifier is implemented for hand pose recognition. To further optimize the performance of the model, the ISLRHP-HMOADL model implements the hybrid crow search-improved grey wolf optimization (CS-IGWO) model for parameter tuning, achieving a finely-tuned configuration that enhances classification accuracy and robustness. A comprehensive experimental study is accomplished under the ASL alphabet dataset to exhibit the improved performance of the ISLRHP-HMOADL model. The comparative results of the ISLRHP-HMOADL model illustrated a superior accuracy value of 99.57% over existing techniques.},
}

*Sign Language
Humans
*Deep Learning
*Algorithms
*Gestures
*Persons with Hearing Disabilities
Hand/physiology

@article {pmid39976791,
year = {2025},
author = {Accinelli, C and Bruno, V and Abbas, HK and Morena, C and Khambhati, VH and Shier, WT},
title = {Microplastic uptake by birds: from observation to development of a novel seed coating to prevent bird predation of corn seeds.},
journal = {Environmental science and pollution research international},
volume = {32},
number = {10},
pages = {6153-6160},
pmid = {39976791},
issn = {1614-7499},
mesh = {*Microplastics/analysis ; Animals ; Environmental Pollutants/analysis ; *Soil Pollutants/analysis ; *Seeds ; Feeding Behavior ; *Herbivory ; Crops, Agricultural ; Composting ; Environmental Monitoring ; },
abstract = {The occurrence of microplastics in soil is an emerging issue that not only impacts soil ecology but also has the potential to affect terrestrial birds foraging in agricultural fields. Foraging birds may unintentionally take up soil-borne microplastics along with soil adhering to crop residues and seeds of cultivated species. Microplastic uptake by foraging terrestrial bird species, including Pica pica (magpie), Corvus cornix (hooded crow), and Columba palumbus (common wood pigeon), studied using camera traps, showed that the risk of MP uptake by these birds microplastics from compostable plastic bags was elevated by 27 and 78% when the microplastic particles were associated with corn seed grits or corn seeds, respectively. When these film fragments were coated with a slurry containing tannic acid, saponin, and juglone, microplastic uptake was significantly reduced. Similarly, coating corn seeds with this repellent slurry reduced seed predation by birds up to 86%, and completely wrapping corn seeds with a repellent plastic film resulted in no observed seed predation by birds. The same results were obtained when the wrapping film was replaced by a seed coating containing hairy cotton fibers which may have triggered a feather fear or repulsion response in the birds. This study demonstrated that covering corn seeds with natural repellents or hairy filaments provided complete protection from bird predation.},
}

*Microplastics/analysis
Animals
Environmental Pollutants/analysis
*Soil Pollutants/analysis
*Seeds
Feeding Behavior
*Herbivory
Crops, Agricultural
Composting
Environmental Monitoring

@article {pmid40084976,
year = {2025},
author = {Heled, E and Levi, O},
title = {The effect of age and fluid intelligence on working memory in different modalities among elderly individuals: a moderated mediation analysis.},
journal = {Neuropsychology, development, and cognition. Section B, Aging, neuropsychology and cognition},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {1-15},
doi = {10.1080/13825585.2025.2474472},
pmid = {40084976},
issn = {1744-4128},
abstract = {Working memory (WM), the capacity to temporarily hold and manipulate information, is evaluated using the span paradigm, which consists of forward and backward recall tasks to assess storage and manipulation, respectively. In accordance with the dedifferentiation theory, which suggests that different cognitive abilities compensate for the decline of others during the aging process, the current study aimed to examine whether fluid intelligence mediates the relationship between forward and backward recall across verbal, visuospatial, and tactile modalities while including age as a moderator. A total of 106 healthy older adults aged 60-89 years underwent the Digit Span, Visuospatial Span, Tactual Span, and Raven Colored Progressive Matrices Test. We found positive correlations between forward and backward recall in all three span tasks. Additionally, the tactile and visuospatial moderated mediation models were significant, whereas the tactile model seemed more robust. However, the verbal model was found to be non-significant. These findings suggest that storage and manipulation are associated across different modalities, but fluid intelligence becomes a more significant factor as age progresses, thus compensating for WM decline. Nevertheless, this pattern varies between modalities, indicating a WM modality-specific differentiation dependent on the cognitive load. Our findings have implications for understanding cognitive aging processes and theoretical frameworks concerning WM.},
}

@article {pmid40079980,
year = {2024},
author = {Burgers, TA and Kamarei, K and Vora, M and Horne, M},
title = {An Automated On-The-Go Unloading System Reduces Harvest Operator Stress Relative to Manual Operation.},
journal = {Journal of agricultural safety and health},
volume = {30},
number = {3},
pages = {89-106},
doi = {10.13031/jash.15992},
pmid = {40079980},
issn = {1074-7583},
mesh = {Humans ; Adult ; *Automation ; *Occupational Stress/prevention & control ; Male ; Workload ; Farmers ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Crop Production/methods ; Young Adult ; },
abstract = {HIGHLIGHTS: Stress was measured in harvest operators who performed on-the-go unloading manually and with an automated system. Automated unloading reduced the average grain cart and combine operator stress rate by 18% and 12%, respectively, compared to manual operation. Harvest operators usually worked more than 9 hours and often worked more than 12hours per workday during harvest. The use of automated unloading systems could positively affect the health of harvest operators.

ABSTRACT: On-the-go unloading improves harvest operational efficiency, but it requires skilled labor because it is challenging and stressful to balance numerous concurrent tasks. Harvest automation reduces workload, stress, and fatigue. The objective of this study was to determine if using a commercially available, automated on-the-go unloading system (Raven Cart Automation[TM], RCA, Raven Industries) would reduce operator stress compared to manual operation. Nine grain cart tractor operators and six combine operators participated in this study. Operators performed their typical harvest operation, except to alternate on-the-go unloading using RCA or operating manually. Skin conductance (electrodermal activity) was measured with an Empatica E4 wristband, and stressful events were quantified. Machine data was collected from the tractor and combine via CAN logs. Over 200 total unload events were analyzed. Grain cart and combine operators using RCA had an 18% (p = 0.022) and 12% (p = 0.18) reduction in stress rate, respectively, compared to operating the grain cart tractor manually. RCA reduced the tractor cross-track error standard deviation by 2.5 cm on straight passes (p < 0.0001). The use of an automated on-the-go unloading system reduces operator stress during harvest and could positively affect the health of operators, especially during the long harvest workdays.},
}

Humans
Adult
*Automation
*Occupational Stress/prevention & control
Male
Workload
Farmers
Female
Middle Aged
Crop Production/methods
Young Adult

@article {pmid40052146,
year = {2025},
author = {Lingstädt, F and Apostel, A and Rose, J},
title = {"Distribution of dominant wavelengths predicts jackdaw (Corvus monedula) color discrimination performance".},
journal = {Frontiers in physiology},
volume = {16},
number = {},
pages = {1543469},
pmid = {40052146},
issn = {1664-042X},
abstract = {Color vision is an important perceptual ability in most species and a crucial capacity underlying any cognitive task working with color stimuli. Birds are known for their outstanding vision and tetrachromacy. Two jackdaws were trained to indicate whether they perceive two colors as same or different. The dominant wavelengths of the experimental colors were assessed to relate the birds' performance to the physical qualities of the stimuli. The results indicate that the differences or similarities in dominant wavelengths of the colors had a strong influence on the behavioral data. Colors related to a reduced discriminatory performance were colors of particularly close wavelengths, whereas differences in saturation or brightness were less relevant. Overall, jackdaws mostly relied on hue to discriminate color pairs, and their behavior strongly reflected the physical composition of the color set. These findings show that when working with color stimuli, not only the perceptual abilities of the particular species, but also the technical aspects concerning the color presentation have to be considered carefully.},
}

@article {pmid40038068,
year = {2025},
author = {Gogola, JV and Joyce, MK and Vijayraghavan, S and Barnum, G and Wildenberg, G},
title = {NSF Workshop Report: Exploring Measurements and Interpretations of Intelligent Behaviors Across Animal Model Systems.},
journal = {The Journal of comparative neurology},
volume = {533},
number = {3},
pages = {e70035},
doi = {10.1002/cne.70035},
pmid = {40038068},
issn = {1096-9861},
support = {//Neuronex: The fabric of the primate neocortex and the origin of mental representations, NSF 2015276/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; Humans ; *Intelligence/physiology ; *Models, Animal ; Behavior, Animal/physiology ; Neurosciences/methods ; Brain/physiology ; },
abstract = {Defining intelligence is a challenging and fraught task, but one that neuroscientists are repeatedly confronted with. A central goal of neuroscience is to understand how phenomena like intelligent behaviors emerge from nervous systems. This requires some determination of what defines intelligence and how to measure it. The challenge is multifaceted. For instance, as we begin to describe and understand the brain in increasingly specific physical terms (e.g., anatomy, cell types, activity patterns), we amplify an ever-growing divide in how we connect measurable properties of the brain to less tangible concepts like intelligence. As our appreciation for evolutionary diversity in neuroscience grows, we are further confronted with whether there can be a unifying theory of intelligence. The National Science Foundation (NSF) NeuroNex consortium recently gathered experts from multiple animal model systems to discuss intelligence across species. We summarize here the different perspectives offered by the consortium, with the goal of promoting thought and debate of this ancient question from a modern perspective, and asking whether defining intelligence is a useful exercise in neuroscience or an ill-posed and distracting question. We present data from the vantage points of humans, macaques, ferrets, crows, octopuses, bees, and flies, highlighting some of the noteworthy capabilities of each species within the context of each species' ecological niche and how these may be challenged by climate change. We also include a remarkable example of convergent evolution between primates and crows in the circuit and molecular basis for working memory in these highly divergent animal species.},
}

Animals
Humans
*Intelligence/physiology
*Models, Animal
Behavior, Animal/physiology
Neurosciences/methods
Brain/physiology

@article {pmid40020660,
year = {2025},
author = {Linderoth, T and Deaner, L and Chen, N and Bowman, R and Boughton, RK and Fitzpatrick, SW},
title = {Translocations spur population growth but fail to prevent genetic erosion in imperiled Florida Scrub-Jays.},
journal = {Current biology : CB},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {},
doi = {10.1016/j.cub.2025.01.058},
pmid = {40020660},
issn = {1879-0445},
abstract = {Land and natural resource use in addition to climate change can restrict populations to degraded and fragmented habitats, catalyzing extinction through the reinforced interplay of small population size and genetic decay. Translocating individuals is a powerful strategy for overcoming direct threats from human development and reconnecting isolated populations but is not without risks.[1] Habitat Management Plan analyses under section 7 of the U.S. Endangered Species Act determined that multiple subpopulations of Federally Threatened Florida Scrub-Jays (Aphelocoma coerulescens, hereafter FSJ) belonging to a metapopulation on Florida's west coast were declining demographic sinks, occupying areas where agriculture and fire suppression had degraded and fragmented the habitat.[2] In order to increase the viability of the overall metapopulation, 51 FSJs from five of these small subpopulations in areas to be mined were translocated throughout 2003-2010 into a larger site of more contiguous, recently restored habitat at the core of the metapopulation, which contained a small resident population.[3] Prior to translocations and for nearly two decades afterward, this core population, referred to as the M4 core region (CR) population, was extensively monitored, yielding a nearly complete pedigree. We used this pedigree, along with temporal genomic analyses and simulations, to show that translocations coupled with habitat restoration generated rapid population growth, but high reproductive skew increased inbreeding and led to genetic erosion. This mechanistic understanding of mixed conservation outcomes highlights the importance of monitoring and the potential need for genetic rescue to offset consequences of reproductive skew following translocations, regardless of demographic recovery.},
}

@article {pmid40019547,
year = {2025},
author = {Vernouillet, A and Huang, N and Kelly, DM},
title = {Pinyon Jays (Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus) and Clark's nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana) can discriminate between pilfering and non-pilfering conspecifics, but not between heterospecifics.},
journal = {Animal cognition},
volume = {28},
number = {1},
pages = {19},
pmid = {40019547},
issn = {1435-9456},
support = {BOF.PDO.2021.0035.01//University of Ghent/ ; RGPIN-2017-04944//Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; *Passeriformes/physiology ; *Feeding Behavior ; Male ; Female ; Social Behavior ; Species Specificity ; Discrimination, Psychological ; },
abstract = {When foraging, individuals often need to assess potential risk from competitors. Within many food-caching (food-storing) species, individuals can modify their caching behavior depending on whether other individuals are present during the caching event. During caching, individuals may interact with not only conspecifics but also heterospecifics. However, the extent to which individual cachers can discriminate between conspecifics and heterospecifics that present a pilfering threat or not, has received little attention. During this study, we examined this issue with food-storing birds, highly social pinyon jays and less social Clark's nutcrackers. Cachers were given a choice to store their seeds in one of two visually distinct trays. Subsequently, one of the trays was given to an individual (either a conspecific or a heterospecific) who pilfered the caches, whereas the other tray was given to an individual (either a conspecific or a heterospecific) who did not pilfer the caches. When the two trays were returned to the cachers, they recached the seeds from the tray given to the pilfering observer individual more so than the tray given to the non-pilfering observer, but only when the pilferer was a conspecific. Our results suggest that the pinyon jays and nutcrackers could distinguish between conspecifics based on their pilfering behavior, but not between heterospecifics. Together, our results reconsider the ability of corvids to discriminate between individuals based on their pilfering risk and the importance of doing so while caching.},
}

Animals
*Passeriformes/physiology
*Feeding Behavior
Male
Female
Social Behavior
Species Specificity
Discrimination, Psychological

@article {pmid40011843,
year = {2025},
author = {Singhal, R and Namdev, R and Kumar, A and Bhagol, A and S, S},
title = {Correlation of fluoride intake with haemoglobin level and intelligence quotient in 8-12 year aged children: an observational study from India.},
journal = {BMC public health},
volume = {25},
number = {1},
pages = {788},
pmid = {40011843},
issn = {1471-2458},
support = {F.N. 5/9/1458/2022-Nut//Indian Council of Medical Research/ ; F.N. 5/9/1458/2022-Nut//Indian Council of Medical Research/ ; },
mesh = {Humans ; Male ; Female ; Child ; *Fluorosis, Dental ; India ; *Hemoglobins/analysis ; *Fluorides/urine/analysis ; *Intelligence Tests ; *Intelligence/drug effects ; Drinking Water/chemistry ; },
abstract = {BACKGROUND: Fluorosis caused by excess intake of fluoride can affects various soft tissues of the body, such as the gastrointestinal tract, blood, brain tissues and thyroid gland apart from dental fluorosis and skeletal fluorosis. Nonskeletal fluorosis is considered reversible if diagnosed early and treated promptly. Therefore, diagnostic methods that can be easily performed even by primary health care workers and depict any ongoing health problems, should be validated. Dental fluorosis, assessment of fluoride in urine and water are tests that fulfill these requirements. To date, no study has correlated haemoglobin (Hb) with dental fluorosis; moreover, studies focusing on intelligence quotient (IQ) had conflicting results and need further research. Hence, study was conducted to determine any relationship among different fluoride assessment parameters (severity of dental fluorosis, fluoride level in urine and drinking water) with IQ status and hemoglobin level of children aged 8-12 years, affected with or without dental fluorosis.

METHODS: A total of 300 children aged 8-12 years were evaluated for dental fluorosis via Dean's index, IQ level via Raven's coloured progressive matrices test, Hb level, and fluoride content in water and urine.

RESULTS: Water fluoride, age and gender were significantly associated with Hb. Intelligence was significantly related to urinary fluoride levels. Presence or absence of dental fluorosis and its severity were not significantly related to IQ or Hb.

CONCLUSIONS: Excess fluoride intake has adverse effects on hematological parameters and children's cognitive neurodevelopment, which were evaluated by current fluoride exposure markers, i.e., water and urinary fluoride. However, dental fluorosis cannot be used as a definitive assessment marker for these conditions, as it is not significantly correlated with these conditions.},
}

Humans
Male
Female
Child
*Fluorosis, Dental
India
*Hemoglobins/analysis
*Fluorides/urine/analysis
*Intelligence Tests
*Intelligence/drug effects
Drinking Water/chemistry

@article {pmid40003498,
year = {2025},
author = {Grant, TJ},
title = {COVID-19 as a Mirror: Reflecting the Pandemic of Racism and the Historical Roots of Health Inequities.},
journal = {International journal of environmental research and public health},
volume = {22},
number = {2},
pages = {},
doi = {10.3390/ijerph22020273},
pmid = {40003498},
issn = {1660-4601},
mesh = {*COVID-19/epidemiology/ethnology ; Humans ; *Racism/history ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Pandemics/history ; United States/epidemiology ; Health Inequities ; History, 20th Century ; Social Determinants of Health ; Black or African American ; History, 21st Century ; Health Status Disparities ; White ; },
abstract = {Historically, the attribution of biology to race has shaped societies and manifested in innumerable disparities and irreparable harm, especially in communities of color. From the earliest days of the United States to the present day, the dehumanization and "othering" of African Americans have caused deep racial inequities that have been perpetuated and embedded in American culture. The early months of the COVID-19 pandemic underscored the deep racial inequalities in the US, especially in health outcomes for communities of color. Structural racism has played a critical role in exacerbating disparities, with Black, Hispanic, Latinx, and Indigenous populations experiencing higher rates of severe disease and mortality. The interconnectedness of racism with the social determinants of health, concomitant with higher rates of chronic illnesses like diabetes and hypertension, increases vulnerability to severe COVID-19. Health disparities are compounded by implicit biases in the medical field, a lack of diversity among healthcare providers, and historical medical mistrust among marginalized groups. Underrepresentation in the medical field, biomedical sciences, and academia hinders efforts to address health disparities effectively. This essay seeks to raise awareness of how the concepts of race and racism have resulted in racial hierarchies that perpetuate systems of oppression and impede efforts toward racial and health equity. Specifically, this essay covers time periods in American history, including slavery, the Jim Crow Era, the Civil Rights Movement, and the COVID-19 pandemic, and discusses how addressing race and racism and the achievement of racial health equity require targeted efforts to increase diversity in healthcare and biomedical fields, improve cultural competence, and foster trust between medical professionals and communities of color.},
}

*COVID-19/epidemiology/ethnology
Humans
*Racism/history
SARS-CoV-2
Pandemics/history
United States/epidemiology
Health Inequities
History, 20th Century
Social Determinants of Health
Black or African American
History, 21st Century
Health Status Disparities
White

@article {pmid39172397,
year = {2025},
author = {Gomes-Ng, S and Gray, Q and Cowie, S},
title = {Pigeons' (Columba livia) intertemporal choice in binary-choice and patch-leaving contexts.},
journal = {Journal of comparative psychology (Washington, D.C. : 1983)},
volume = {139},
number = {1},
pages = {26-41},
doi = {10.1037/com0000387},
pmid = {39172397},
issn = {1939-2087},
support = {//Auckland University of Technology/ ; },
mesh = {*Columbidae ; Animals ; *Choice Behavior/physiology ; *Reinforcement, Psychology ; Behavior, Animal/physiology ; Delay Discounting/physiology ; Conditioning, Operant ; },
abstract = {Typical approaches to study self-control present subjects with a simultaneous choice between a larger-later (LL) reinforcer and a smaller-sooner (SS) reinforcer. In contrast, in patch-leaving tasks, subjects choose between staying at a patch for an SS (or LL) reinforcer and leaving for an LL (or SS) reinforcer. Previous studies show that blue jays, monkeys, humans, and rats prefer the SS reinforcer in binary-choice tasks, whereas the same subjects prefer the LL reinforcer in equivalent patch-leaving tasks. The current study systematically replicated this research using pigeons. Six pigeons responded in a binary-choice task and in two patch-leaving tasks in which staying led to an LL (Patch-L) or SS (Patch-S) reinforcer. Across conditions, the SS reinforcer delay varied from 5 to 55 s; the LL reinforcer delay was always 60 s. In binary-choice conditions, subjects preferred the SS reinforcer. In Patch-L and Patch-S conditions, subjects preferred the LL and SS reinforcer, respectively, reflecting a bias to stay at the patch. This bias persisted when the stay response was more effortful and when the delays to both reinforcers were equal. This may reflect a species-specific win-stay bias and the differential consequences of staying (which led to a stimulus signaling food) versus leaving (which led to a stimulus never associated with food). Thus, we propose a conditioned-reinforcement account of intertemporal choice in patch-leaving contexts. We suggest several avenues for further investigations of the mechanisms underlying intertemporal choice in different contexts and question the economic equivalence of the operant and patch-leaving procedures. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).},
}

*Columbidae
Animals
*Choice Behavior/physiology
*Reinforcement, Psychology
Behavior, Animal/physiology
Delay Discounting/physiology
Conditioning, Operant

@article {pmid39985626,
year = {2025},
author = {Daw, F and Beheim, BA and Wascher, CAF},
title = {Evolutionary drivers of caching behaviour in corvids.},
journal = {Animal cognition},
volume = {28},
number = {1},
pages = {17},
pmid = {39985626},
issn = {1435-9456},
mesh = {Animals ; *Biological Evolution ; *Feeding Behavior ; Ecosystem ; },
abstract = {Caching has recurrently evolved across a range of animal taxa to withstand fluctuations in food availability and in the context of intraspecific competition. It is widespread in the corvid family, which exhibit considerable interspecific variation in their behavioural and morphological adaptations to caching. However, the evolutionary drivers responsible for this diversity have seldom been explored. The present study systematically reviews the literature on caching behaviour in corvids globally to determine (1) which food caching strategies species have adopted (specialist, generalist or non-cacher) and (2) whether ecological factors affect the occurrence of different strategies, namely (a) climate breadth, (b) trophic niche, (c) habitat breadth, (d) centroid latitude, (e) centroid longitude, (f) breeding system, and (g) body mass. In addition, the ancestral states of caching are reconstructed to assess the evolutionary trajectory of each strategy. Caching strategies were identified in 63 species from 16 genera (out of 128 corvid species and 22 genera). Ancestral state analysis suggested specialist caching as the ancestral state in corvids. Type of caching is associated with distance from equator and by average body mass, with generalist caching concentrated around the equatorial zone and among heavier corvids, while specialist caching occurring more commonly in smaller species found farther from the equator. Although specialist caching most likely was the ancestral state in corvids, both specialist and generalist caching evolved several times independently in the family of corvids. Our results show caching to be widespread in corvids and affected by body size and latitude but ecological factors such as topic niche and habitat breadth and breeding system, not to be strong drivers shaping caching behaviour.},
}

Animals
*Biological Evolution
*Feeding Behavior
Ecosystem

@article {pmid39979404,
year = {2025},
author = {Clark, FE and Burdass, J and Kavanagh, A and King, A},
title = {Palaeognath birds innovate to solve a novel foraging problem.},
journal = {Scientific reports},
volume = {15},
number = {1},
pages = {4512},
pmid = {39979404},
issn = {2045-2322},
mesh = {Animals ; *Feeding Behavior/physiology ; *Palaeognathae/physiology ; Problem Solving ; Cognition ; Birds/physiology/classification ; Behavior, Animal/physiology ; },
abstract = {The ability to innovate implies flexible cognition, and is used as a broad metric of intelligence. Innovation in birds has been intensively studied in the larger and more taxonomically diverse Neognathae clade (particularly crows and parrots) and overlooked in the smaller and more ancestral Palaeognathae clade. The current study provides the first known evidence of technical innovation in palaeognath birds. We tested the ability of nine individuals of three species to move a hole towards a chamber to access a food reward. This problem was different to traditional innovation puzzle-boxes where an obstacle is moved away from a food chamber. Three emus and one rhea produced a wheel-turning innovation, moving the hole in the most efficient direction (closer to the nearest food item) in 90% of cases. One rhea dismantled the task twice by removing the central bolt, which we suggest is a second type of innovation, and it did not persist once they innovated the wheel turning solution. Ostriches did not innovate. We classify innovation in palaeognaths as low level/simplistic, relying on general exploration and asocial trial and error learning. Our research suggests that technical innovation may have evolved far earlier in birds than previously thought, and palaeognath birds are a compelling taxonomic group for further cognitive research.},
}

Animals
*Feeding Behavior/physiology
*Palaeognathae/physiology
Problem Solving
Cognition
Birds/physiology/classification
Behavior, Animal/physiology

@article {pmid39978703,
year = {2025},
author = {Plinio, SD and Perrucci, MG and Ferrara, G and Sergi, MR and Tommasi, M and Martino, M and Saggino, A and Ebisch, SJ},
title = {Intrinsic Brain Mapping of Cognitive Abilities: A Multiple-Dataset Study on Intelligence and its Components.},
journal = {NeuroImage},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {121094},
doi = {10.1016/j.neuroimage.2025.121094},
pmid = {39978703},
issn = {1095-9572},
abstract = {This study investigates how functional brain network features contribute to general intelligence and its cognitive components by analyzing three independent cohorts of healthy participants. Cognitive scores were derived from 1) the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-IV), 2) the Raven Standard Progressive Matrices (RPM), and 3) the NIH and Penn cognitive batteries from the Human Connectome Project. Factor analysis on the NIH and Penn cognitive batteries yielded latent variables that closely resembled the content of the WAIS-IV indices and RPM. We employed graph theory and a multi-resolution network analysis by varying the modularity parameter (γ) to investigate hierarchical brain-behavior relationships across different scales of brain organization. Brain-behavior associations were quantified using multi-level robust regression analyses to accommodate variability and confounds at the subject-level, node-level, and resolution-level. Our findings reveal consistent brain-behavior relationships across the datasets. Nodal efficiency in fronto-parietal sensorimotor regions consistently played a pivotal role in fluid reasoning, whereas efficiency in visual networks was linked to executive functions and memory. A broad, low-resolution 'task-positive' network emerged as predictive of full-scale IQ scores, indicating a hierarchical brain-behavior coding. Conversely, increased cross-network connections involving default mode and subcortical-limbic networks were associated with reductions in both general and specific cognitive performance. These outcomes highlight the relevance of network efficiency and integration, as well as of the hierarchical organization in supporting specific aspects of intelligence, while recognizing the inherent complexity of these relationships. Our multi-resolution network approach offers new insights into the interplay between multilayer network properties and the structure of cognitive abilities, advancing the understanding of the neural substrates of the intelligence construct.},
}

@article {pmid39961427,
year = {2025},
author = {Yatsuda, C and Izawa, EI},
title = {Sex difference of LiCl-induced feeding suppression and, autonomic and HPA axis responses in crows.},
journal = {Physiology & behavior},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {114846},
doi = {10.1016/j.physbeh.2025.114846},
pmid = {39961427},
issn = {1873-507X},
abstract = {Visceral sensation is crucial for feeding, emotion, and decision making in humans and non-human animals. Visceral discomforting stimulation activates stress-coping systems, such as the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and hypothalamus-pit-adrenal (HPA) axis, with varied responses and thresholds between sexes. Despite these systems working together during visceral discomfort, ANS and HPA have been separately investigated with few studies examining the co-occurrence of the ANS and HPA responses to visceral stimulations. The basic profiles of the ANS and HPA responses to visceral discomfort and sex differences in birds are poorly elucidated. This study investigated the effects of visceral stimulation via intraperitoneal injection of lithium chloride (LiCl) on feeding behavior, ANS and HPA activities, and sex differences in crows. We identified the LiCl dose that suppressed the intake of a preferred food and compared the LiCl-induced feeding suppression between sexes. Changes in heart rate variability (HRV), as a proxy of sympathetic and parasympathetic activities, and serum corticosterone (CORT) levels by LiCl injection were compared. Feeding suppression occurred at higher LiCl doses in males than in females. HRV analysis revealed that LiCl injection reduced HR and increased parasympathetic activity; however, it did not change sympathetic activity, with no sex differences in any variables. In contrast, LiCl injections at lower doses increased serum CORT levels more in males than in females. Our findings provide the first evidence of sex-specific response profiles to feeding suppression and ANS and HPA activities associated with LiCl-induced visceral discomfort in birds.},
}

@article {pmid39957524,
year = {2025},
author = {Barrón-Martínez, JB and Salvador-Cruz, J},
title = {Executive function abilities in Mexican people with Down syndrome during the COVID-19 pandemic.},
journal = {Journal of intellectual & developmental disability},
volume = {50},
number = {1},
pages = {116-126},
doi = {10.3109/13668250.2024.2410846},
pmid = {39957524},
issn = {1469-9532},
mesh = {Humans ; *Down Syndrome/psychology ; *COVID-19/psychology/epidemiology ; *Executive Function/physiology ; Mexico ; Male ; Female ; Adult ; Adolescent ; Young Adult ; Child ; Neuropsychological Tests ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Memory, Short-Term/physiology ; North American People ; },
abstract = {BACKGROUND: The aim was to explore the executive function profile of a group of Mexican people with Down syndrome (DS) aged 12-30 years during the COVID-19 pandemic.

AIM: To analyse the relationships between mental, chronological age and eight domains of executive function.

METHOD: Participants were 42 people with DS with a chronological age (CA) of 12-30 years and a mean nonverbal mental age (MA) of 7 years. MA was evaluated with Raven's Progressive Matrices test and executive function with the Behaviour Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF-2); both were administered online.

RESULTS: The Monitor, Emotional Control, Initiative, and Organisation of Materials scales showed strengths, while Working Memory, Plan/Organise, Shift, and Inhibit scales showed weaknesses. CA correlated negatively with seven of the eight executive domains. Chronologically older participants showed less impairment in skills such as inhibition, emotional control, working memory, and monitoring. Nonverbal MA correlated negatively with two domains: emotional control and monitoring.

CONCLUSION: Participants' executive profile during the COVID-19 pandemic was consistent with that reported in studies prior to the pandemic.},
}

Humans
*Down Syndrome/psychology
*COVID-19/psychology/epidemiology
*Executive Function/physiology
Mexico
Male
Female
Adult
Adolescent
Young Adult
Child
Neuropsychological Tests
SARS-CoV-2
Memory, Short-Term/physiology
North American People

@article {pmid39943112,
year = {2025},
author = {Yakhlef, V and Magalhães-Sant'Ana, M and Pereira, AL and Azevedo, A},
title = {A Global Survey on the Perception of Conservationists Regarding Animal Consciousness.},
journal = {Animals : an open access journal from MDPI},
volume = {15},
number = {3},
pages = {},
doi = {10.3390/ani15030341},
pmid = {39943112},
issn = {2076-2615},
abstract = {Human perceptions of animal consciousness have evolved over time, influencing how they are treated. This study aimed to assess perceptions of animal consciousness in people working in conservation. An online survey of 87 participants evaluated their perceptions of animals' capabilities across 10 dimensions of consciousness, including self-consciousness, learning, and reasoning. The sum of the answers to the questions was validated as a "perception index" using a principal component analysis. Next, its variation according to taxonomic, demographic, professional factors, and the duration, type, and frequency of interaction with animals was assessed with generalized linear models and stepwise model selection. Participants' perceptions varied with taxonomic class and the level of education, with mammals obtaining higher indexes than birds (-0.14; 95% confidence interval [CI] -0.24, -0.03, p < 0.01) or reptiles (-0.41; 95% CI -0.55, -0.27, p < 0.01), and respondents holding a PhD exhibiting higher perception indexes than those with BScs (-0.19; 95% CI -0.32, -0.06, p < 0.01) or lower education (-0.18; 95% CI -0.32, -0.03, p = 0.01). The attribution of consciousness followed a phylogenetic pattern, but several exceptions (e.g., the octopus and raven) were noted on a finer scale supporting a multifactorial influence on the perception of animal consciousness that emerges upon a baseline phylogenetic pattern. Finally, the results suggest that conservationists are influenced by culture and scientific knowledge, as much as their personal experiences, when evaluating animals' perceptions, highlighting the need for further research on the convergence between perception, belief, and evidence.},
}

@article {pmid39455458,
year = {2025},
author = {Yue, Q and Cao, Z and Li, R and Wang, Y and Rui, S and Zhang, T and Liu, L},
title = {"Folding Fan Flap": A Novel and Dependable Surgical Technique for Crow's Feet Correction by Z-Plasty of Orbicularis Oculi Muscle.},
journal = {Aesthetic plastic surgery},
volume = {49},
number = {2},
pages = {484-489},
pmid = {39455458},
issn = {1432-5241},
support = {2021-I2M-1-052//Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Innovation Funds for Medical Sciences/ ; },
mesh = {Humans ; Female ; Male ; Adult ; *Surgical Flaps/transplantation ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Treatment Outcome ; Patient Satisfaction/statistics & numerical data ; Blepharoplasty/methods ; Esthetics ; Oculomotor Muscles/surgery ; Cohort Studies ; Eyelids/surgery ; Facial Muscles/surgery ; Follow-Up Studies ; Risk Assessment ; },
abstract = {OBJECTIVE: The challenge of crow's feet surgical correction is to minimize the complication caused by orbicularis oculi muscle (OOM) resection while ensuring the operative effect. This study aims to propose a novel technique to solve this problem and evaluate its efficacy.

METHODS: From January 2022 to April 2024, all patients who received "Folding fan flap" in our institution were included. The outer third of the OOM below the lateral canthus was dissected and received Z-plasty to exchange width for length and reconstruct the muscle dynamics in a non-circular direction. Preoperative and postoperative smiling crow's feet were assessed by two independent physicians using the Lemperle wrinkle scale. At least six months after surgery, patient satisfaction with wrinkle correction, naturalness of facial expression, and local flattening was subjectively evaluated on a five-point scale. Complications including hematomas, incomplete eyelid closure, facial stiffness, and forehead numbness were recorded.

RESULTS: A total of 32 patients (63 sides) were included with a mean follow-up of 13.9 ± 5.2 months. Postoperative assessments showed a significant reduction in Lemperle's score from 4.8 ± 0.4 to 1.5 ± 0.5 (P=0.000). Regarding the satisfaction of surgical outcomes and the naturalness of facial expressions, thirty patients (93.8%) were very satisfied. There were no severe complications such as hematomas and incomplete eyelid closure.

CONCLUSION: Preliminary clinical studies demonstrated the efficacy of this technique in ensuring outcomes while preserving normal dynamic expressions. By Z-plasty of the outer circle of OOM, the muscle dynamic was successfully modified rather than eradicated.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE IV: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .},
}

Humans
Female
Male
Adult
*Surgical Flaps/transplantation
Middle Aged
Retrospective Studies
Treatment Outcome
Patient Satisfaction/statistics & numerical data
Blepharoplasty/methods
Esthetics
Oculomotor Muscles/surgery
Cohort Studies
Eyelids/surgery
Facial Muscles/surgery
Follow-Up Studies
Risk Assessment

@article {pmid39928177,
year = {2025},
author = {Zhang, R and Guo, R and Xin, Y and Jiang, Q and Qiu, J},
title = {A bibliometric analysis of immune response in oral cancer.},
journal = {Discover oncology},
volume = {16},
number = {1},
pages = {146},
pmid = {39928177},
issn = {2730-6011},
support = {20232BAB216073, 20242BAB25514//Jiangxi Natural Science Foundation/ ; GZY-KJS-2023-028//Key Projects of Jiangxi Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine/ ; 82260194, 82403716//National Natural Science Foundation of China/ ; },
abstract = {BACKGROUND: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), a type of oral cancer, has a high mortality rate and unfavorable outcomes. Its tumor microenvironment (TME) is intricate and adaptable, with research frequently focusing on the immune reaction. Scholars are exploring ways to enhance survival by bolstering the immune response within the TME. However, a comprehensive trend analysis is lacking. Bibliometric analysis can address this by visualizing research patterns. This study aimed to map these trends in OSCC immunology from 2003 to 2023.

METHODS: An immunology-focused search on OSCC was executed within the Web of Science Core Collection, spanning 2003 to 2023. Despite its narrow focus, the search offers a telling glimpse of current researches in this domain. Bibliometric analysis was performed using VOSviewer, Citespace, Scimago Graphica, and R software.

RESULTS: From 2003 to 2023, the field has published 805 publications, predominantly from China and the United States. The most valuable contributing author is Friedman Jay, topping co-citation counts. The journal Oral Oncology is the leading journal with the highest publication volume. An analysis of keyword bursts indicated that research into nivolumab and chemotherapy is a prevalent area of interest within the clinical community. These findings suggest that neoadjuvant immunotherapy represents a promising avenue for future therapeutic development.

CONCLUSIONS: This study presented a summary of the current trends and research frontiers in the field of immunological aspects of OSCC. This summary can serve as a valuable reference and a source of new insights into this area of research.},
}

@article {pmid39921575,
year = {2025},
author = {Moll, FW and Kersten, Y and Erdle, S and Nieder, A},
title = {Exploring Anatomical Links Between the Crow's Nidopallium Caudolaterale and Its Song System.},
journal = {The Journal of comparative neurology},
volume = {533},
number = {2},
pages = {e70028},
pmid = {39921575},
issn = {1096-9861},
mesh = {Animals ; *Vocalization, Animal/physiology ; *Crows/anatomy & histology/physiology ; *Neural Pathways/anatomy & histology/physiology ; *Telencephalon/anatomy & histology/physiology/cytology ; Male ; Neurons/physiology/cytology ; },
abstract = {Crows are corvid songbirds that exhibit remarkable cognitive control, including their ability to vocalize on command. The activity of single neurons from the crow's associative telencephalic structure nidopallium caudolaterale (NCL) is correlated with the execution of this vocal and many non-vocal behaviors. However, whether anatomical connections directly link the crow NCL to its "song system" remains unclear. To address this, we used fluorescent tracers along with histological staining methods to characterize the connectivity of the crow's NCL in relation to its song system. Consistent with previous findings in other songbirds, we found that the NCL sends dense projections into the dorsal intermediate arcopallium (AID) directly adjacent to the song system's telencephalic motor output, the robust nucleus of the arcopallium (RA). Similarly, we demonstrate dense NCL projections into the striatum engulfing the basal ganglia song nucleus "area X." Both of these descending projections mirror the projections of the nidopallial song nucleus HVC (proper name) into RA and area X, with extremely sparse NCL fibers extending into area X. Furthermore, we characterized the distribution of cells projecting from the lateral part of the magnocellular nucleus of the anterior nidopallium (MAN) to NCL. Notably, a separate medial population of MAN cells projects to HVC. These two sets of connections-MAN to NCL and MAN to HVC-run in parallel but do not overlap. Taken together, our findings support the hypothesis that the NCL is part of a "general motor system" that parallels the song system but exhibits only minimal monosynaptic interconnections with it.},
}

Animals
*Vocalization, Animal/physiology
*Crows/anatomy & histology/physiology
*Neural Pathways/anatomy & histology/physiology
*Telencephalon/anatomy & histology/physiology/cytology
Male
Neurons/physiology/cytology

@article {pmid39911412,
year = {2025},
author = {Tomita, KM and Matsuyama, H},
title = {Cleaning Interactions Between Crows and Sika Deer: Implications for Tick-Borne Disease Management.},
journal = {Ecology and evolution},
volume = {15},
number = {2},
pages = {e70845},
pmid = {39911412},
issn = {2045-7758},
abstract = {Cleaning interactions between mammals and birds have been widely observed worldwide. Here, we report cleaning interactions between sika deer and crows in Japan, based on a field observations using camera traps and online research. Online research was performed on social media platforms such as X (formerly Twitter), YouTube, and personal blogs. We finally collected 27 cases of cleaning associations between sika deer and crows. Crows associated with male more than female deer and mainly pecked their heads or necks, suggesting that crows remove Ixodid ticks from the deer's surface. Given that ticks on sika deer are vectors of several zoonotic pathogens such as Rickettsia and Borrelia spp., further studies should be conducted to examine the roles of crows as biocontrol agents of ticks and tick-borne diseases.},
}

@article {pmid39904394,
year = {2025},
author = {Hahn, LG and Hooper, R and McIvor, GE and Thornton, A},
title = {Pair-bond strength is consistent and related to partner responsiveness in a wild corvid.},
journal = {Proceedings. Biological sciences},
volume = {292},
number = {2040},
pages = {20242729},
pmid = {39904394},
issn = {1471-2954},
support = {/BB_/Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council/United Kingdom ; //Leverhulme Trust/ ; //Natural Environment Research Council/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; *Crows/physiology ; *Pair Bond ; Female ; Male ; Social Behavior ; Cognition ; },
abstract = {The need to maintain strong social bonds is widely thought to be a key driver of cognitive evolution. Cognitive abilities to track and respond to information about social partners may be favoured by selection if they vary within populations and confer fitness benefits. Here we evaluate four key assumptions of this argument in wild jackdaws (Corvus monedula), corvids whose long-term pair bonds exemplify one of the putative social drivers of cognitive evolution in birds. Combining observational and experimental behavioural data with long-term breeding records, we found support for three assumptions: (i) pair-bond strength varies across the population, (ii) is consistent within pairs over time and (iii) is positively associated with partner responsiveness, a measure of socio-cognitive performance. However, (iv) we did not find clear evidence that stronger pair bonds lead to better fitness outcomes. Strongly bonded pairs were better able to adjust hatching synchrony to environmental conditions but they did not fledge more or higher quality offspring. Together, these findings suggest that maintaining strong pair bonds is linked to socio-cognitive performance and may facilitate effective coordination between partners. However, they also imply that these benefits are insufficient to explain how selection acts on social cognition. We argue that evaluating how animals navigate trade-offs between investing in long-term relationships versus optimizing interactions in their wider social networks will be a crucial avenue for future research.},
}

Animals
*Crows/physiology
*Pair Bond
Female
Male
Social Behavior
Cognition

@article {pmid39876722,
year = {2025},
author = {Hahner, L and Nieder, A},
title = {Volitional spatial attention is lateralized in crows.},
journal = {Proceedings. Biological sciences},
volume = {292},
number = {2039},
pages = {20242540},
pmid = {39876722},
issn = {1471-2954},
support = {//Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; *Crows/physiology ; *Attention ; *Cues ; *Functional Laterality/physiology ; Space Perception/physiology ; Visual Fields/physiology ; Male ; Reaction Time ; Female ; Volition/physiology ; Visual Perception ; },
abstract = {Like humans and many other animal species, birds exhibit left-right asymmetries in certain behaviours due to differences in hemispheric brain functions. While the lateralization of sensory and motor functions is well established in birds, the potential lateralization of high-level executive control functions, such as volitional attention, remains unknown. Here, we demonstrate that carrion crows exhibit more pronounced volitional (endogenous) attention for stimuli monocularly viewed with the left eye and thus in the left visual hemifield. We trained four crows on Posner-like spatial cueing tasks using informative cues to evaluate their volitional top-down attention. The crows detected cued targets using either the left or right eye. As a measure of volitional attention, we calculated reaction time differences for detecting targets that were correctly (validly) and incorrectly (invalidly) cued, separately for the left and right visual hemifields. We found that cued targets were detected more quickly and efficiently in the left visual field compared with the right visual field. Because the left-eye system of the crow's brain processes information primarily from the left visual hemifield, these findings suggest that crows, like humans, exhibit superior executive control of attention in the left-eye/right hemisphere system of their brains.},
}

Animals
*Crows/physiology
*Attention
*Cues
*Functional Laterality/physiology
Space Perception/physiology
Visual Fields/physiology
Male
Reaction Time
Female
Volition/physiology
Visual Perception

@article {pmid39875490,
year = {2025},
author = {Zheng, M and Wan, W and Fang, Z},
title = {Abstract visual reasoning based on algebraic methods.},
journal = {Scientific reports},
volume = {15},
number = {1},
pages = {3482},
pmid = {39875490},
issn = {2045-2322},
support = {2020AAA0109300//Ministry of Science and Technology/ ; 2020AAA0109300//Ministry of Science and Technology/ ; },
abstract = {Extracting high-order abstract patterns from complex high-dimensional data forms the foundation of human cognitive abilities. Abstract visual reasoning involves identifying abstract patterns embedded within composite images, considered a core competency of machine intelligence. Traditional neuro-symbolic methods often infer unknown objects through data fitting, without fully exploring the abstract patterns within composite images and the sequential sensitivity of visual sequences. This paper constructs a relation model with object-centric inductive biases, learning end-to-end multi-granular rule embeddings at different levels. Through a gating fusion module, the model incrementally integrates explicit representations of objects and abstract relationships. The model incorporates a relational bottleneck method from information theory, separating the input perceptual information from the embeddings of abstract representations, thereby restricting and differentiating feature processing to encourage relational comparisons and induce the extraction of abstract patterns. Furthermore, this paper bridges algebraic operations and machine reasoning through the relational bottleneck method, extracting common patterns of multi-visual objects by identifying invariant sequences within the relational bottleneck matrix. Experimental results on the I-RAVEN dataset demonstrate a total accuracy of 96.8%, surpassing state-of-the-art baseline methods and exceeding human performance at 84.4%.},
}

@article {pmid39850750,
year = {2025},
author = {Chen, Y and Xu, Y and Wang, J and Chen, T and Liu, B and Chen, P and Lu, C},
title = {The Eurasian Magpie Preys on the Nests of Vinous-throated Parrotbills in Invasive Smooth Cordgrass.},
journal = {Ecology and evolution},
volume = {15},
number = {1},
pages = {e70905},
pmid = {39850750},
issn = {2045-7758},
abstract = {Native animals worldwide are experiencing long-term coexistence with invasive plants, leading to diverse behavioral changes. Invasive plants may create new habitat structures that affect the distribution or behavior of prey, which in turn might attract predators to these novel habitats, thereby altering predator-prey dynamics within the ecosystem. However, this phenomenon is rarely reported. Our previous research found that in the Yellow Sea wetlands of China, the native bird species, the vinous-throated parrotbill (Sinosuthora webbiana), has adapted to breeding in the invasive smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) by increasing its nesting height. Here, our observations indicate that in cordgrass habitats, the main nest predator of parrotbills was the Eurasian magpie (Pica pica), accounting for 75% of predation events. In contrast, in native habitats, the primary predators were mammals and snakes, accounting for 83% of predation events, with no nests being predated by magpies. We believe that changes in the breeding and nesting behavior of parrotbills may have attracted magpie predation in cordgrass habitats. Our findings may provide an empirical case of how behavioral changes induced by invasive plants can lead to dynamic shifts in predation relationships. We advocate for further research into this intriguing phenomenon, as it could enhance our understanding of changes in interspecific relationships and their ecological consequences within the context of biological invasions.},
}

@article {pmid39839126,
year = {2024},
author = {Liu, B and Sun, H and Zhao, Q and Li, L and Tian, R and Lui, S and Zhu, H},
title = {Plastic but not progressive changes in cognitive function and hippocampal volume in an adolescent with bipolar disorder: a case report.},
journal = {Frontiers in psychiatry},
volume = {15},
number = {},
pages = {1507333},
pmid = {39839126},
issn = {1664-0640},
abstract = {Bipolar disorder (BD) is a prevalent mood disorder characterized by alternating episodes of depression and mania, often accompanied by varying degrees of cognitive impairment. Cognitive impairments often serve as indicators of a bleak prognosis or the likelihood of progressing to dementia. Additionally, some studies suggest that individuals diagnosed with BD may undergo a decline in hippocampal volume. However, the potential for reversibility of these changes, particularly in adolescents, remains unclear. We present an intriguing case involving an 18-year-old male student who experiences concurrent occurrences of both BD and mild cognitive impairment (MCI), accompanied by a subtle reduction in hippocampal volume. Initially, the individual exhibited impaired general cognitive function, as indicated by an IQ score of 80 on the Standard Raven's Progressive Matrices test, and demonstrated slightly reduced bilateral hippocampal volume compared to the normative reference, as determined through quantitative structural magnetic resonance imaging (qsMRI). The deposition profiles of amyloid beta (Aβ) peptide in the brain were not identified with 18F-AV45 PET/MRI. Following six months of combined psychopharmacological treatment and cognitive behavioral therapy, the individual's psychopathological symptoms improved significantly, leading to a restoration of his IQ score to 116 and normalization of hippocampal volume. This case suggests that the hippocampal volume reduction and cognitive impairment seen in some adolescents with BD may demonstrate greater plasticity compared to neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). These findings highlight the potential importance of early intervention in young BD patients with cognitive impairments.},
}

@article {pmid39799780,
year = {2025},
author = {van Schijndel, TJP and Jansen, BRJ},
title = {Integrating lines of research on children's curiosity-driven learning.},
journal = {Journal of experimental child psychology},
volume = {252},
number = {},
pages = {106168},
doi = {10.1016/j.jecp.2024.106168},
pmid = {39799780},
issn = {1096-0457},
mesh = {Humans ; Child ; Male ; Female ; *Exploratory Behavior ; *Mental Recall ; *Learning ; *Intelligence/physiology ; Attention ; },
abstract = {Epistemic curiosity is considered indispensable in children's learning, but previous empirical research on children's curiosity-driven learning has been fragmented; separate research lines tend to focus on single learning outcomes. Therefore, this study aimed at integrating different research lines by adapting an existing paradigm to investigate not only the relation between children's state curiosity and their memory performance but also their desire to explore. In addition, this study examined a possible mechanism through which curiosity affects recall: increased attentional processes. Last, this study investigated the role of intelligence and perceived prior knowledge in the relation between curiosity and recall. We applied a within-participants design in which the Trivia task (N = 32) and Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices were administered to 10- to 12-year-olds. In the Trivia task, participants learn answers to trivia questions for which they have high and low curiosity, and subsequently recall is tested. Main findings include that children memorized trivia facts better when they were in a high-curious state rather than a low-curious state, and this positive relation may increase with intelligence. Importantly, the relation between curiosity and recall still held when taking into account perceived prior knowledge. Curiosity was positively related not only to recall but also to children's desire to further explore the concerning topic. Given that in some educational contexts promoting curiosity is not considered a priority and children express little school-related curiosity, an important value of this study for educational practice lies in the reinforcement of the notion of curiosity being a main driver of children's learning.},
}

Humans
Child
Male
Female
*Exploratory Behavior
*Mental Recall
*Learning
*Intelligence/physiology
Attention

@article {pmid39790721,
year = {2025},
author = {Marie Montenegro, V and Mateo-Tomás, P and Schneider, J and Dent, DH and Crowther, T and Bello, C},
title = {Linking Functional Traits To Trophic Roles In Scavenger Assemblages.},
journal = {Ecology and evolution},
volume = {15},
number = {1},
pages = {e70485},
pmid = {39790721},
issn = {2045-7758},
abstract = {Scavenging is a widespread feeding strategy involving a diversity of taxa from different trophic levels, from apex predators to obligate scavengers. Scavenger species play a crucial role in ecosystem functioning by removing carcasses, recycling nutrients and preventing disease spread. Understanding the trophic roles of scavenger species can help identify specialized species with unique roles and species that may be more vulnerable to ecological changes. To identify species with specialized roles, we studied three scavenger networks (one in north temperate Spain and two in central-south Mediterranean Spain) that comprised 25 scavenger species (65% birds and 35% mammals), consuming carcasses of four wild ungulate species. We characterized the trophic role of a species by combining four species-level network metrics (normalized degree, specialization, closeness, and betweenness centrality) into a single centrality metric, quantifying how scavenger species interact with carcass species within their ecological network. Higher centrality indicates the species feeds on a greater variety of carcasses and may contribute more to carrion consumption than species with lower centrality, which have more peripheral and specialized roles. The griffon vulture (Gyps fulvus) and the azure-winged magpie (Cyanopica cyanus) had the highest centrality. In contrast, the red kite (Milvus milvus) in the northern site had the lowest centrality, and the Egyptian vulture (Neophron percnopterus) was among the most peripheral species for all three networks. In general, scavengers with large home ranges and nocturnal or crepuscular activity patterns tended to have more central roles, whereas species that forage silently tended to have more peripheral roles. Changes in species' centrality between sites and the high centrality of species with large home ranges suggest that management strategies in one location can have implications that extend beyond, highlighting the need to implement coordinated transboundary protection efforts to ensure the resilience and functionality of scavenger networks and derived ecosystem services.},
}

@article {pmid39779656,
year = {2025},
author = {Worsfold, E and Clayton, NS and Cheke, LG},
title = {Revisiting episodic-like memory in scrub jays: Is there more we can still learn from what-where-when caching behaviour?.},
journal = {Learning & behavior},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {},
pmid = {39779656},
issn = {1543-4508},
abstract = {Professor Nicola Clayton is perhaps best known for her work on food-caching scrub jays. Her seminal 1998 paper, together with Anthony Dickinson, showed that scrub jays could remember what food they had cached, where and how long ago, suggesting memory ability that is 'episodic-like' in nature. Here, we present data from a previously unpublished study that sought to replicate and extend these findings. The results replicate previous findings and address potential alternative explanations for earlier results. We argue that the controlled behavioural analyses introduced in this study have the potential to add nuance to our understanding of memory in scrub jay cache retrieval, and to inspire new studies exploring this phenomenon, about which we still have so much to learn.},
}

@article {pmid39754886,
year = {2025},
author = {Liao, DA and Moll, FW and Nieder, A},
title = {Bridging the fields of cognition and birdsong with corvids.},
journal = {Current opinion in neurobiology},
volume = {90},
number = {},
pages = {102965},
doi = {10.1016/j.conb.2024.102965},
pmid = {39754886},
issn = {1873-6882},
abstract = {Corvids, readily adaptable across social and ecological contexts, successfully inhabit almost the entire world. They are seen as highly intelligent birds, and current research examines their cognitive abilities. Despite being songbirds with a complete 'song system', corvids have historically received less attention in studies of song production, learning, and perception compared to non-corvid songbirds. However, recent neurobiological studies have demonstrated that songbird vocal production and its neuronal representations are regularly influenced by environmental and cognitive factors. This opinion article discusses the literature on 'corvid song' before introducing other flexible vocal behaviors of corvids in both the wild and controlled laboratory studies. We suggest corvids with their flexible vocal control as promising model species to study the links between brain networks for cognition and vocalization. Studying corvid vocal flexibility and associated cognitive processes in both ecological and lab settings offers complementary insights, crucial for bridging the fields of cognition and birdsong.},
}

@article {pmid39747186,
year = {2025},
author = {Bapat, A and Kempf, AE and Friry, S and Boucherie, PH and Bugnyar, T},
title = {Patterns of object play behaviour and its functional implications in free-flying common ravens.},
journal = {Scientific reports},
volume = {15},
number = {1},
pages = {137},
pmid = {39747186},
issn = {2045-2322},
support = {P33960//Austrian Science Fund/ ; P33960//Austrian Science Fund/ ; P33960//Austrian Science Fund/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; *Crows/physiology ; *Behavior, Animal/physiology ; Female ; Male ; *Social Behavior ; Play and Playthings/psychology ; Austria ; },
abstract = {Object play has been proposed to provide individuals with information about their environment, facilitating foraging skills and tool use. In species where object play co-occurs with locomotor or social play, it may have additional functional implications, such as facilitating the evaluation of peers or forming social bonds. For instance, ravens judge others' competitiveness via play caching and engage in social play by exchanging objects. However, most raven studies were conducted on a restricted number of individuals and under controlled captive settings. To validate these findings and to gauge the functional scope of object play under field conditions, we investigated the patterns and characteristics of object play in individually marked free-flying ravens in the Austrian Alps. Using two large data sets, we show a decrease in object play with age and a preference for playing longer with novel objects, supporting findings from captivity. We also find adults occasionally playing with objects and no difference in the duration of social or non-social object play bouts across age classes. Taken together, our findings are in line with the assumption that raven object play likely has more than one function and serves to gain information about the individual's physical and social environment.},
}

Animals
*Crows/physiology
*Behavior, Animal/physiology
Female
Male
*Social Behavior
Play and Playthings/psychology
Austria

@article {pmid39738289,
year = {2024},
author = {Lanszki, J and Molnár, TG and Erős, T and Ónodi, G and Lanszki, Z and Purger, JJ},
title = {Testing how environmental variables affect the survival of freshwater turtle nests and hatchlings using artificial nests and dummy hatchlings.},
journal = {Scientific reports},
volume = {14},
number = {1},
pages = {31713},
pmid = {39738289},
issn = {2045-2322},
support = {RRF-2.3.1-21-2022-00014//Hungarian National Multidisciplinary Laboratory for Climate Change/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; *Turtles/physiology ; *Nesting Behavior/physiology ; *Predatory Behavior/physiology ; *Ecosystem ; Fresh Water ; Reproduction/physiology ; Wetlands ; Female ; },
abstract = {The European pond turtle (Emys orbicularis) is a wide-ranging, long-living freshwater species with low reproductive success, mainly due to high predation pressure. We studied how habitat variables and predator communities in near-natural marshes affect the survival of turtle eggs and hatchlings. We followed the survival of artificial turtle nests placed in marshes along Lake Balaton (Hungary) in May and June as well as hatchlings (dummies) exposed in September. We found that the fewest nests remained intact in the least disturbed, most extensive area with the largest turtle population without predator control. Hatchlings, compared to nests had a significantly higher probability of survival. The density of carnivore dens indicated the negative influence on the number of exposure days, while marsh vegetation coverage was unrelated. The role of carnivores, especially the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) in the predation of nests was more significant, while predation by corvids (Corvidae) and wild boar (Sus scrofa) increased for the hatchlings. Predation by mammals increased with the limited availability of dry terrestrial surfaces suitable for laying eggs and with distance to water. Our multifactorial analyses highlight the need for targeted conservation efforts to improve the reproductive success of turtles in these ecologically sensitive environments.},
}

Animals
*Turtles/physiology
*Nesting Behavior/physiology
*Predatory Behavior/physiology
*Ecosystem
Fresh Water
Reproduction/physiology
Wetlands
Female

@article {pmid39730262,
year = {2025},
author = {Danek, A},
title = {The 1888 dissertation of a female medical student, Ueber Character-Veränderungen des Menschen in Folge von Laesionen des Stirnhirns (On character changes of man as a consequence of lesions of the frontal lobe).},
journal = {Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior},
volume = {182},
number = {},
pages = {217-227},
doi = {10.1016/j.cortex.2024.11.008},
pmid = {39730262},
issn = {1973-8102},
mesh = {Humans ; Female ; History, 19th Century ; *Frontal Lobe ; Academic Dissertations as Topic ; Brain Injuries ; Switzerland ; },
abstract = {A case of brain injury with a transient syndrome of mainly disinhibited behaviour (Franz Binz) was the subject of the 1888 medical dissertation of Leonore Welt (∗1859 Chernivtsi, Ukraine; †1944 Geneva, Switzerland) which came to be discussed quite controversially. Although Binz was never fully forgotten, the similar "American crow-bar case" (Phineas Gage) attracted more interest. Welt's study, in contrast, provides not only well-illustrated neuropathological findings but also more detailed clinical data. Here, the clinical report and sections of its analysis are translated from the German original. Through comparison with similar cases, Welt proposed the straight gyrus (gyrus rectus) as the main area responsible. The transient nature of the behavioural alteration was taken as indicating a peculiar disease process at that location. She stressed that disinhibited behaviour suggests fronto-orbital lesions, but that the conclusion is not to be reversed. She had noted the absence of symptoms in the majority of similarly situated injuries: normal behaviour thus being no proof of an intact fronto-orbital region. Along with two sisters, Rosa Welt-Straus (1856-1938) and Sara Welt-Kakels (1860-1943), Leonore Gourfein-Welt was among the first females from then Austria to graduate in medicine - against considerable resistance. After her thesis work, she turned to practising ophthalmology in Geneva.},
}

Humans
Female
History, 19th Century
*Frontal Lobe
Academic Dissertations as Topic
Brain Injuries
Switzerland

@article {pmid39703216,
year = {2024},
author = {Wolff, LM and Stevens, JR},
title = {Less activity means improved welfare? How pair housing influences pinyon jay (Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus) behaviour.},
journal = {Animal welfare (South Mimms, England)},
volume = {33},
number = {},
pages = {e49},
pmid = {39703216},
issn = {2054-1538},
abstract = {The activity level and specific behaviours exhibited by captive animals are crucial indicators of welfare. Stereotypies, or repetitive behaviours that have no apparent function or goal, are performed by animals experiencing poor conditions in their environment and indicate welfare concerns. Changes in the housing environment in particular may have critical influences on behaviour and welfare. Here, we measured behavioural changes in a captive pinyon jay (Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus) population (n = 10) associated with a shift from single to pair housing. Using automated video processing, we show that pair housing greatly reduced overall activity levels in these birds. The stark reduction in activity was surprising, as we expected that social housing would increase interactions between birds, thus increasing activity levels. Upon further analysis, however, we found that stereotypic behaviours, such as beak scraping, jumping, pecking, and route tracing decreased after pair housing, whereas the positive welfare behaviours of perching and preening increased. Our results indicate that pair housing may reduce overall activity in pinyon jays; however, this reduction is primarily in stereotypic behaviours.},
}

@article {pmid39696032,
year = {2024},
author = {Mahjubi, K and Effatpanah, M and Parsaei, M and Mojtahedi, SY and Izadi, A and Tavakolizadeh, R},
title = {Association of anthropometric parameters with intelligence quotient in early school-aged children: a cross-sectional study in Iran.},
journal = {BMC pediatrics},
volume = {24},
number = {1},
pages = {809},
pmid = {39696032},
issn = {1471-2431},
mesh = {Humans ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Female ; Male ; Child ; Iran ; *Intelligence/physiology ; *Anthropometry ; Intelligence Tests ; Body Mass Index ; Waist Circumference ; Body Weight ; Linear Models ; Body Height ; },
abstract = {BACKGROUND: While the link between body growth indices in the first three years of life and neurodevelopment is well established, the relationship between these indicators and intelligence levels in later stages is not well understood. This study aimed to investigate the association between various anthropometric indices and Intelligence Quotient in early school-aged children.

METHODS: This cross-sectional study recruited healthy students aged 7 to 8 years from four primary schools in Tehran, Iran. Measurements included body weight, height, body mass index, arm circumference, waist circumference, and hip circumference. Intelligence Quotient was assessed using the Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices Test, with scores standardized by age according to the Raven's manual. Separate univariate linear regression analyses evaluated the association between each anthropometric index and children's Intelligence Quotient scores. Multivariate linear regression analyses were then performed to adjust for potential confounding factors, including the child's sex, age, and parental education levels.

RESULTS: A cohort of 160 children (80 females), with a mean age of 7.5 ± 0.6 years, was included in the study. The participants exhibited the following mean anthropometric values: weight 27.7 ± 6.5 kg, height 1.2 ± 0.1 m, body mass index 17.9 ± 3.4 kg/m[2], arm circumference 20.7 ± 2.8 cm, waist circumference 56.4 ± 6.4 cm, and hip circumference 68.1 ± 6.6 cm. Their mean Intelligence Quotient score was 106 ± 16.6. In the univariate analysis, children's weight was not significantly associated with Intelligence Quotient score (P-value = 0.153, β = 0.288 [-0.108, 0.684]), while height was negatively associated (P-value = 0.048, β = -31.685 [-63.142, -0.228]) and body mass index showed a positive association (P-value = 0.001, β = 1.265 [0.524, 2.006]). Abdominal circumference was not significantly associated with Intelligence Quotient (P-value = 0.913, β = 0.051 [-0.870, 0.972]), but both waist circumference (P-value = 0.007, β = 0.542 [0.147, 0.937]) and hip circumference (P-value = 0.013, β = 0.484 [0.102, 0.866]) demonstrated significant positive associations with Intelligence Quotient. However, none of the anthropometric indices maintained statistically significant associations with Intelligence Quotient after adjusting for potential confounders (P-values > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: This study indicated no strong relationship between various body measurements and intelligence levels in school-aged children after adjusting the analyses for confounders. This suggests that intelligence in these children may be largely shaped by genetic and sociodemographic factors, with minimal influence from physical growth patterns.},
}

Humans
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Male
Child
Iran
*Intelligence/physiology
*Anthropometry
Intelligence Tests
Body Mass Index
Waist Circumference
Body Weight
Linear Models
Body Height

@article {pmid39691435,
year = {2024},
author = {Zuo, T and Wang, J and Liu, J and Liu, J and Zhou, Q and Hou, J},
title = {Recognition of Predator Type and Risk Level in Azure-Winged Magpies (Cyanopica cyanus) Through Visual and Auditory Cues.},
journal = {Ecology and evolution},
volume = {14},
number = {12},
pages = {e70749},
pmid = {39691435},
issn = {2045-7758},
abstract = {Predation events are an important key factor determining the survival and reproduction of prey species. To cope, prey species have evolved various anti-predator strategies, including mechanisms for accurate predator identification and distinguishing predator types and risk levels. Birds rely on visual, auditory, and olfactory cues to perceive and categorize predators. However, previous studies have focused on single sensory modalities and have largely been conducted during breeding seasons. Thus, analyses of the accuracy and differences in predator recognition cues, especially during non-breeding periods, are needed. In this study, predator recognition in Azure-winged Magpies (Cyanopica cyanus) was evaluated during the non-breeding season. We examined responses to two predators, Common Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) and Domestic Cat (Felis catus), and two non-predators, Oriental Magpie (Pica serica) and Oriental Turtle Dove (Streptopelia orientalis). Using specimens and playback experiment, the ability of Azure-winged magpies to identify threats through both visual and auditory cues was evaluated. The results showed that Azure-winged Magpies can identify predator types through both visual and auditory cues, accurately distinguish threat levels, and adjust their foraging behavior accordingly. Notably, they exhibited the strongest anti-predator response to Domestic Cats (frequently encountered under natural conditions), as evidenced by longer observation times, shorter foraging duration, and quicker flight responses. The results indicate that Azure-winged Magpies can correctly identify predator types and threat levels through both visual and auditory cues and exhibit stronger anti-predator behaviors with increasing apparent threat levels.},
}

@article {pmid39685698,
year = {2024},
author = {Trinczer, IL and Shalev, L},
title = {Computerised Attention Functions Training Versus Computerised Executive Functions Training for Children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Randomised Controlled Trial.},
journal = {Journal of clinical medicine},
volume = {13},
number = {23},
pages = {},
pmid = {39685698},
issn = {2077-0383},
support = {//Tel Aviv University Argentinian's Friends/ ; //The Minducate Learning Innovation Research and Entrepreneurship Center/ ; },
abstract = {Background: Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a prevalent neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by deficits in attention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. Current treatments, such as stimulant medication and behavioural therapy, ameliorate symptoms but do not address the core cognitive dysfunctions. This study aimed to investigate the effects of two computerised neurocognitive training programs, attention functions training and executive functions training, in children with ADHD. Methods: Eighty children with ADHD (ages 8-13) were randomly assigned to one of three groups: Attention functions training (AFT), targeting sustained, selective-spatial, orienting, and executive attention; executive functions training (EFT), focusing on working memory, cognitive flexibility, and problem solving; or a passive control group. Training sessions were administered in small groups twice a week for nine weeks. Participants underwent comprehensive assessments of attention (Continuous Performance Test, Conjunctive Visual Search Task), executive functions (Corsi Block-Tapping Tasks), nonverbal reasoning (Raven's Colored Progressive Matrices), parent-rated behavioural symptoms, and arithmetic performance at baseline, post-intervention, and follow-up. Results: The AFT group demonstrated significant improvements in sustained and selective-spatial attention, nonverbal reasoning, inattentive symptoms, and arithmetic performance, and most improvements persisted at follow-up. The EFT group showed gains in nonverbal reasoning and inattentive symptoms, although no improvements were documented in working memory or in parent ratings of executive functions. Conclusions: The AFT program that addressed core attentional functions in children with ADHD produced robust cognitive and behavioural benefits, whereas the EFT program yielded behavioural benefits and a limited improvement in executive functions. Future research should explore different training protocols for broader gains in executive functions. These findings support the potential of theory-driven, structured neurocognitive training targeting basic cognitive functions as an effective small-group intervention for ADHD.},
}

@article {pmid39678049,
year = {2024},
author = {Bildiren, A and Fırat, T and Kavruk, SZ},
title = {The Validity and Reliability Study of TONI-3 Test for 4-17 Aged Children.},
journal = {Noro psikiyatri arsivi},
volume = {61},
number = {4},
pages = {358-362},
pmid = {39678049},
issn = {1300-0667},
abstract = {INTRODUCTION: Since there are not enough scales to evaluate the cognitive performance of adolescents in Türkiye, the aim of this study is to conduct a reliability and validity study of the Test of Nonverbal Intelligence-3 (TONI-3) for individuals aged between 14 and 17.

METHODS: A total of 566 children between the ages of 14-17 were included in the study. A form of TONI-3 test was administered to all participants. Test-retest and parallel form application were made for reliability analyses, and Raven Standard Progressive Matrices Test (RSPM) and Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test (NNAT-I) tests were applied for validity analyses.

RESULTS: It has been found that the TONI-3 Test has a high reliability with an average reliability coefficient of 0.92. It was determined that there was a high, positive and significant relationship between Form A and Form B of the TONI-3 Test (r=0.76, p<0.01). The correlation coefficient between the scores was found to be 0.83 between the first application of the TONI-3 test and the test repeated after 4 weeks. A high, positive and significant correlation was found between TONI-3 Test, RSPM Test and NNAT-I (r=0.69, p<0.01; r=0.81, p<0.01).

CONCLUSION: This study revealed evidence of the reliability and validity of the TONI-3 test between the ages of 14-17. This is the first study of the TONI-3 test in this age group. It is thought that clinicians can practically evaluate cognitive abilities in children who are clinically referred to or determined to have behavior disorders at school through this test.},
}

@article {pmid39666895,
year = {2025},
author = {Marsja, E and Holmer, E and Stenbäck, V and Micula, A and Tirado, C and Danielsson, H and Rönnberg, J},
title = {Fluid Intelligence Partially Mediates the Effect of Working Memory on Speech Recognition in Noise.},
journal = {Journal of speech, language, and hearing research : JSLHR},
volume = {68},
number = {1},
pages = {399-410},
doi = {10.1044/2024_JSLHR-24-00465},
pmid = {39666895},
issn = {1558-9102},
mesh = {Humans ; *Memory, Short-Term/physiology ; *Intelligence/physiology ; Male ; *Noise ; Female ; *Speech Perception/physiology ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; Longitudinal Studies ; Hearing Aids ; Adult ; },
abstract = {PURPOSE: Although the existing literature has explored the link between cognitive functioning and speech recognition in noise, the specific role of fluid intelligence still needs to be studied. Given the established association between working memory capacity (WMC) and fluid intelligence and the predictive power of WMC for speech recognition in noise, we aimed to elucidate the mediating role of fluid intelligence.

METHOD: We used data from the n200 study, a longitudinal investigation into aging, hearing ability, and cognitive functioning. We analyzed two age-matched samples: participants with hearing aids and a group with normal hearing. WMC was assessed using the Reading Span task, and fluid intelligence was measured with Raven's Progressive Matrices. Speech recognition in noise was evaluated using Hagerman sentences presented to target 80% speech-reception thresholds in four-talker babble. Data were analyzed using mediation analysis to examine fluid intelligence as a mediator between WMC and speech recognition in noise.

RESULTS: We found a partial mediating effect of fluid intelligence on the relationship between WMC and speech recognition in noise, and that hearing status did not moderate this effect. In other words, WMC and fluid intelligence were related, and fluid intelligence partially explained the influence of WMC on speech recognition in noise.

CONCLUSIONS: This study shows the importance of fluid intelligence in speech recognition in noise, regardless of hearing status. Future research should use other advanced statistical techniques and explore various speech recognition tests and background maskers to deepen our understanding of the interplay between WMC and fluid intelligence in speech recognition.},
}

Humans
*Memory, Short-Term/physiology
*Intelligence/physiology
Male
*Noise
Female
*Speech Perception/physiology
Middle Aged
Aged
Longitudinal Studies
Hearing Aids
Adult

@article {pmid39646984,
year = {2024},
author = {Salinas-Velasco, HV and Valdez-Mondragón, A and Bueno-Villegas, J},
title = {A new species of the spider genus Mexentypesa Raven (Araneae: Nemesiidae) from Hidalgo, Mexico and taxonomic comments on M. chiapas Raven.},
journal = {Zootaxa},
volume = {5453},
number = {2},
pages = {233-244},
doi = {10.11646/zootaxa.5453.2.4},
pmid = {39646984},
issn = {1175-5334},
mesh = {Animals ; *Spiders/classification/anatomy & histology ; Mexico ; Male ; Female ; *Animal Distribution ; Animal Structures/anatomy & histology/growth & development ; Body Size ; Organ Size ; Ecosystem ; },
abstract = {A new species of the enigmatic spider genus Mexentypesa (Raven, 1987) from a cloud forest in Hidalgo state, Mexico is described: M. hidalguensis sp. nov. The description of the species is based on both male and female adult specimens. This discovery increases the diversity of the genus to two species: Mexentypesa chiapas (Raven, 1987) and the new species described herein. Additionally, Aptostichus sabinae syn. nov. (=M. chiapas), which was previously described as a different species, is formally synonymized.},
}

Animals
*Spiders/classification/anatomy & histology
Mexico
Male
Female
*Animal Distribution
Animal Structures/anatomy & histology/growth & development
Body Size
Organ Size
Ecosystem

@article {pmid39645881,
year = {2024},
author = {Scherz, MD and Rudolph, J and Rakotondratsima, M and Ratsoavina, FM and Crottini, A and Andreone, F and Glaw, F and Vences, M},
title = {Molecular systematics of the subgenus Gephyromantis (Phylacomantis) with description of a new subspecies.},
journal = {Zootaxa},
volume = {5446},
number = {2},
pages = {205-220},
doi = {10.11646/zootaxa.5446.2.3},
pmid = {39645881},
issn = {1175-5334},
mesh = {Animals ; Madagascar ; *Phylogeny ; *Animal Distribution ; Female ; *Anura/anatomy & histology/genetics/classification ; Male ; Animal Structures/anatomy & histology/growth & development ; Body Size ; Organ Size ; Genetic Variation ; },
abstract = {The mantellid subgenus Phylacomantis (genus Gephyromantis) currently contains four species of frogs distributed in the South (G. corvus, G. kintana), West (G. atsingy), North East, North, and Sambirano regions (G. pseudoasper) in Madagascar. We assess the molecular systematics of these amphibians based on extended sampling and analysis of multiple nuclear-encoded and mitochondrial genes. We confirm the delimitation of the four known species, which form monophyletic groups in a mitochondrial tree and separate phylogroups without haplotype sharing in haplotype networks of four nuclear markers. Newly included samples of G. pseudoasper from the North and North East regions confirm a comparatively low genetic variation of this species across its range, with pairwise genetic distance in the 16S gene not exceeding 1.4%. On the contrary, newly collected specimens from three sites in the North East and North West of the island strongly differed from all other Phylacomantis, with genetic distances exceeding 4.8% for the16S gene. Mitochondrial and nuclear markers strongly suggest them to be sister to G. corvus from the South. Due to haplotype sharing in two nuclear genes, absence of detectable morphological differences, and lack of data on bioacoustic differentiation, we describe these populations as a new subspecies, G. corvus bakilana ssp. nov., emphasizing that this taxon may be elevated to species status in the future pending new data. This biogeographic pattern, with apparently disjunct sister lineages in the South vs. North West of Madagascar, is rare among Malagasy anurans and calls for increased exploration of the remaining humid forest fragments in the North West and West of the island.},
}

Animals
Madagascar
*Phylogeny
*Animal Distribution
Female
*Anura/anatomy & histology/genetics/classification
Male
Animal Structures/anatomy & histology/growth & development
Body Size
Organ Size
Genetic Variation

@article {pmid39644715,
year = {2024},
author = {Hirao, AJ and Aoyama, M and Sugita, S},
title = {During the breeding season, lymphocytes assemble into ellipse-shaped clusters in the uropygial gland of the jungle crow Corvus macrorhynchos.},
journal = {Morphologie : bulletin de l'Association des anatomistes},
volume = {109},
number = {364},
pages = {100924},
doi = {10.1016/j.morpho.2024.100924},
pmid = {39644715},
issn = {1286-0115},
abstract = {BACKGROUND: Recent studies indicate that the uropygial gland produces intraspecific chemosensory cues. The jungle crow Corvus macrorhynchos, which is a type of passerine, exhibits extreme morphological variation in the gonadal gland during the breeding season. Because the uropygial gland of the jungle crow sometimes exhibits morphological changes during the breeding season, we attempted to clarify the morphological changes in the uropygial gland of the jungle crow according to development and season.

METHODS: Captured birds were divided into three age groups according to the color of their upper palate: <1 year, 1-2 years, and >2 years old. Paraffin sections of the uropygial gland were stained with hematoxylin and eosin, Elastica van Gieson, Giemsa, and a proliferating cell nuclear antigen antibody.

RESULTS: Sexual dimorphism was not seen in the morphology of the uropygial gland in the jungle crow. However, changes due to growth and season were identified. During the breeding season in birds>2 years old, lymphocytes formed ellipse-shaped clusters around the glandular cavity. These clusters were invaded by collagen fibers from spherical cells.

CONCLUSIONS: Collagen fibers, which develop from spherical cells, seem to be related to lymphoid cluster migration. Ellipse-shaped lymphoid clusters may play a crucial role in reproductive behavior during the breeding season.},
}

@article {pmid39638926,
year = {2024},
author = {Lois-Milevicich, J and Rat-Fischer, L and de la Colina, MA and Gómez, RO and Reboreda, JC and Kacelnik, A},
title = {Mechanical problem solving by plush-crested jays: are tools special after all?.},
journal = {Animal cognition},
volume = {27},
number = {1},
pages = {82},
pmid = {39638926},
issn = {1435-9456},
support = {UBACyT 20020170100521BA//Universidad de Buenos Aires/ ; PICT 2015-1628//Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; *Problem Solving ; Male ; Tool Use Behavior ; Female ; Passeriformes/physiology ; },
abstract = {Tool use is taxonomically associated with high behavioural flexibility and innovativeness, and its prevalence is greater in primates and some bird species. This association, however, is not known to be causally determinant of tool-related competence since flexibility and innovativeness are often observed in the absence of tool use and vice versa. For this reason, it is interesting to explore whether animals that can be loosely categorized as outstanding, or 'intelligent' physical problem solvers, are also remarkable using tools innovatively, rather than tool use presenting special constraints. We investigate this problem using plush-crested jays (Cyanocorax chrysops), a corvid new to cognitive research that shows highly flexible and inquisitive behaviour in the wild and has not been reported to use tools. We tested jays in two tasks of apparent similar manipulative complexity and incentive, one involving a tool (T) and the other not (NT). In the NT task birds had to open a box with a transparent lid blocked by a latch to get a reward, whereas in the T task, they had to use a rake to pull out the reward from the box. Eight out of nine subjects succeeded in the NT task, whereas none of them learned to solve the T task. This is consistent with tool use involving dedicated competencies, rather than just high problem-solving proficiency.},
}

Animals
*Problem Solving
Male
Tool Use Behavior
Female
Passeriformes/physiology

@article {pmid39614750,
year = {2024},
author = {George, DN and Dwyer, DM and Haselgrove, M and Le Pelley, ME},
title = {Apparent statistical inference in crows may reflect simple reinforcement learning.},
journal = {Quarterly journal of experimental psychology (2006)},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {17470218241305622},
doi = {10.1177/17470218241305622},
pmid = {39614750},
issn = {1747-0226},
abstract = {Johnston et al. report results which they argue demonstrate that crows engage in statistical inference during decision-making. They trained two crows to associate a set of stimuli with different reward probabilities (from 10% to 90%) before choice tests between pairs of stimuli. Across most pairwise combinations, and in a control task in which the number of rewards was equated between probabilities, both crows preferred the stimulus associated with higher reward probability. The magnitude of this preference was affected by the absolute difference between the two probabilities, although (contrary to a claim made by Johnston et al. 2023) preference did not reflect the ratio of prior probabilities independently of absolute differences. Johnston et al. argue that preference for the stimulus with the higher reward probability is "the signature of true statistical inference" (p. 3238), implemented by an analogue magnitude system that represents the reward probability associated with each stimulus. Here, we show that a simple reinforcement learning model, with no explicit representation of reward probabilities, reproduces the critical features of crows' performance-and indeed better accounts for the observed empirical findings than the concept of statistical inference based on analogue magnitude representations, because it correctly predicts the absence of a ratio effect that would reflect magnitudes when absolute distance is controlled. Contrary to Johnston et al.'s claims, these patterns of behaviour do not necessitate retrieval of calculated reward probabilities from long-term memory and dynamic application of this information across contexts, or (more specifically) require the involvement of an analogue magnitude system in representing abstract probabilities.},
}

@article {pmid39593442,
year = {2024},
author = {Roodbarani, M and Tagharrobi, Z and Sharifi, K and Sooki, Z and Zare, M},
title = {Influence of Brain Gym on children's behavioral problems with autism spectrum disorder: A randomized controlled clinical trial.},
journal = {Journal of bodywork and movement therapies},
volume = {40},
number = {},
pages = {1248-1254},
doi = {10.1016/j.jbmt.2024.07.048},
pmid = {39593442},
issn = {1532-9283},
mesh = {Humans ; *Autism Spectrum Disorder ; Male ; Female ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Iran ; Exercise Therapy/methods ; Stereotyped Behavior/physiology ; Communication ; Social Interaction ; },
abstract = {INTRODUCTION: Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) present with a variety of behavioral problems. The aim of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of Brain Gym (BG) on the behavioral problems of children with ASD in Iran.

METHODS: This clinical trial was conducted on 36 children with ASD at Kashan and Arak in 2019. Samples were selected using the block randomization method and assigned to the intervention and control groups. The intervention group received ten sessions of BG according to Dennison's protocol. There was no intervention in the control group. The stereotyped behavior, communication, and social interactions of the behavioral problems were assessed at the beginning (T0), the end of the intervention (T1), and two months later (T2). The data were collected using the Demographics, Rutter, GARS-2, and Raven scales. Data from 33 children were analyzed via per-protocol and intention-to-treat analysis using repeated measures analysis of variance.

RESULTS: The two groups did not differ significantly in demographic variables. The results showed a significant interaction effect of time and intervention on the severity of behavioral problems (p < 0.0001). There was a significant difference in the severity of behavioral disorders between the two groups at T1 and T2 (p < 0.05). A within-group analysis revealed a significant difference in the severity of the behavioral disorder at the three time points between the BG and control groups (p < 0.0001).

CONCLUSION: BG can alleviate the behavioral problems of children with ASD. This intervention is recommended as a complementary treatment for affected families with children with ASD.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: IRCT20100211003329N5.

DATE OF REGISTRATION: 2020-07-16.},
}

Humans
*Autism Spectrum Disorder
Male
Female
Child
Child, Preschool
Iran
Exercise Therapy/methods
Stereotyped Behavior/physiology
Communication
Social Interaction

@article {pmid39585881,
year = {2024},
author = {Landini, A and Segovia, M and Palma, M and Nayga, RM},
title = {Food for thought: The impact of short term fasting on cognitive ability.},
journal = {PloS one},
volume = {19},
number = {11},
pages = {e0312811},
pmid = {39585881},
issn = {1932-6203},
mesh = {Humans ; *Fasting/physiology ; *Cognition/physiology ; Male ; Female ; Adult ; Young Adult ; Decision Making ; Time Factors ; Adolescent ; },
abstract = {Growing evidence suggests that resource scarcity can severely impede individuals' cognitive capacity, resulting in sub-optimal decision making. Few experimental studies investigate whether food deprivation as a form of resource scarcity influences decisions in other non-hunger related domains. We examine the effect of short term fasting on cognitive capacity by exogenously manipulating individuals' fasting time in a laboratory experiment. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three treatments: 1) 3-hour fast; 2) 12-hour fast; and 3) control, in which participants were not required to fast and consumed a protein shake upon arriving to the lab. Following the manipulation, participants completed the Raven's Progressive Matrices test which measures cognitive function. Although we find null treatment effects on cognitive ability, our results provide evidence that short term fasting does not directly inhibit cognition.},
}

Humans
*Fasting/physiology
*Cognition/physiology
Male
Female
Adult
Young Adult
Decision Making
Time Factors
Adolescent

@article {pmid39579366,
year = {2024},
author = {Fochesatto, CF and Brand, C and Cristi-Montero, C and da Costa, BGG and Dias, AF and Gaya, ACA and Gaya, AR},
title = {Getting up for brain health: Association of sedentary behavior breaks with cognition and mental health in children.},
journal = {Applied neuropsychology. Child},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {1-8},
doi = {10.1080/21622965.2024.2432342},
pmid = {39579366},
issn = {2162-2973},
abstract = {Children spend most of their waking hours sedentary and reducing this behavior has been challenging. Interrupting prolonged episodes of sedentary behavior with active breaks can provide mental and cognitive health benefits. Considering the multifactorial nature of these health aspects, this study aimed to verify the role of body mass index (BMI), cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), and moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in the relationship between the break in sedentary time with cognitive and mental health in children. This is a cross-sectional study with 129 children (62 boys), aged between 6 and 11 years (mean 8.73 ± 1.53) from a public school in southern Brazil. For the assessment of fluid intelligence, psychologists applied Raven's Colored Progressive Matrices test. Mental health was measured using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Sedentary breaks were measured using accelerometers, and CRF was determined using the 6-min walk test. Generalized linear regression analyses were used to verify associations of sedentary breaks with fluid intelligence and mental health, according to children's BMI, CRF, and MVPA. All models were adjusted for sex, age, somatic maturation, and total time of accelerometer use. Our results indicated that sedentary breaks were associated with fluid intelligence in overweight/obese (β = 0.108; p = 0.021) and physically inactive children (β = 0.083; p = 0.010). Regarding mental health, no association was identified with sedentary breaks. In conclusion, sedentary breaks should be encouraged for the benefits of fluid intelligence, especially in children who do not meet physical activity recommendations and are overweight.},
}

@article {pmid39522295,
year = {2024},
author = {Musálek, M and Malambo, C and Chrudimský, J and Kokštejn, J and Bačáková, R and Vokounová, Š},
title = {Strength-agility and fine motor are differently associated with non-verbal intelligence in dependency to sex and age in school children: Structural equation modelling multigroup approach.},
journal = {Acta psychologica},
volume = {251},
number = {},
pages = {104546},
doi = {10.1016/j.actpsy.2024.104546},
pmid = {39522295},
issn = {1873-6297},
mesh = {Humans ; Male ; Female ; Child ; *Intelligence/physiology ; *Motor Skills/physiology ; Sex Factors ; Age Factors ; Child Development/physiology ; Latent Class Analysis ; Czech Republic ; },
abstract = {BACKGROUND: In today's digital age, demanding to interpret vast quantities of visual information with speed and accuracy, nonverbal Intelligence has become increasingly crucial for children, as it plays a key role in cognitive development and learning. While motor proficiency has been positively linked to various cognitive functions in children, its relationship with nonverbal Intelligence remains an open question. This study, therefore, explored the structural associations between motor proficiency and nonverbal Intelligence in school-aged children (6 to 11 years), focusing on potential age and sex-specific patterns.

METHODS: Data were obtained from 396 children aged 6 to 11 (214 boys, 182 girls; mean age 8.9 years ±1.3) divided into younger children 6-8 years and older Children 9-11 years. Motor proficiency was assessed using the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency, Second Edition (BOT-2), and non-verbal Intelligence was evaluated with the Raven Progressive Matrices (RPM). We conducted multigroup structural modelling with non-verbal Intelligence as a dependent latent variable.

RESULTS: The BOT-2 and RPM models demonstrated an acceptable fit in Czech children. Strength-agility and Fine motor control emerged as the strongest predictors of nonverbal intelligence level assessed by five sets of RPM. Age-specific analyses revealed that the Strength-agility construct was consistently a significant predictor of nonverbal intelligence level in both age categories. However, in older children, also Fine motor control was significantly linked to nonverbal intelligence level. Sex-specific differences were also observed in the structural modelling results, indicating significant predictor non-invariance based on participants' sex. In girls, both Fine motor control and the Strength-agility constructs were significant predictors of nonverbal Intelligence level, showing stronger associations with nonverbal Intelligence than boys. For boys, only the Strength-agility construct was a significant predictor of RPM performance.

CONCLUSION: This study reveals a nuanced age- and sex-specific relationship between children's motor proficiency and nonverbal Intelligence. The findings underscore the need for targeted physical interventions, particularly those emphasising fine motor and strength-agility exercises, to ensure equitable opportunities for motor skill development. Such interventions may enhance physical abilities and support cognitive development in an increasingly digital world.},
}

Humans
Male
Female
Child
*Intelligence/physiology
*Motor Skills/physiology
Sex Factors
Age Factors
Child Development/physiology
Latent Class Analysis
Czech Republic

@article {pmid39520985,
year = {2024},
author = {Urban, L and Becker, R and Ochs, A and Sicks, F and Brecht, M and Kaufmann, LV},
title = {Water-hose tool use and showering behavior by Asian elephants.},
journal = {Current biology : CB},
volume = {34},
number = {23},
pages = {5602-5606.e1},
doi = {10.1016/j.cub.2024.10.017},
pmid = {39520985},
issn = {1879-0445},
mesh = {Animals ; *Elephants/physiology ; Female ; *Tool Use Behavior ; Water ; Animals, Zoo/physiology ; },
abstract = {Since Jane Goodall's famous observations of stick tool use by chimpanzees,[1] animal tool use has been observed in numerous species, including many primates, dolphins, and birds. Some animals, such as New Caledonian crows, even craft tools.[2][,][3] Elephants frequently use tools[4][,][5] and also modify them.[6] We studied water-hose tool use in Asian zoo elephants. Flexibility, extension, and water flow make hoses exceptionally complex tools. Individual elephants differed markedly in their water-hose handling. Female elephant Mary displayed sophisticated hose-showering behaviors. She showed lateralized hose handling, systematically showered her body, and coordinated the trunk-held water hose with limb behaviors. Mary usually grasped the hose behind the tip, using it as a stiff shower head. To reach her back, however, she grasped the hose further from the tip and swung it on her back, using hose flexibility and ballistics. Aggressive interactions between Mary and the younger female elephant, Anchali, ensued around Mary's showering time. At some point, Anchali started pulling the water hose toward herself, lifting and kinking it, then regrasping and compressing the kink. This kink-and-clamp behavior disrupted water flow and was repeated in several sessions as a strict sequence of maneuvers. The efficacy of water flow disruption increased over time. In control experiments with multiple hoses, it was not clear whether Anchali specifically targeted Mary's showering hose. We also observed Anchali pressing down on the water hose, performing an on-hose trunk stand, which also disrupted water flow. We conclude that elephants show sophisticated hose tool use and manipulation. VIDEO ABSTRACT.},
}

Animals
*Elephants/physiology
Female
*Tool Use Behavior
Water
Animals, Zoo/physiology

@article {pmid39475969,
year = {2024},
author = {Liu, J and Zhou, F and Yan, H and Liang, W},
title = {Breeding stages affect egg recognition in azure-winged magpies (Cyanopica cyanus).},
journal = {Animal cognition},
volume = {27},
number = {1},
pages = {71},
pmid = {39475969},
issn = {1435-9456},
support = {No. 32160242//National Natural Science Foundation of China/ ; Nos. 31970427 and 32270526//National Natural Science Foundation of China/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; *Ovum ; Female ; *Recognition, Psychology ; Passeriformes/physiology ; China ; },
abstract = {Egg rejection often involves a cognitive process of recognizing foreign eggs, which can vary not only between species or among different individuals of the same species, but also within the same individual during different breeding stages, leading to markedly different responses to parasitic eggs. We conducted a comparative study in Wuhan, Hubei, and Fusong, Jilin, China, on the recognition and rejection behavior of azure-winged magpies (Cyanopica cyanus) at different breeding stages (pre-egg-laying, one-host-egg, multi-host-egg and early incubation stages). In the Fusong population, there was a significant difference in the rejection rate of model eggs by azure-winged magpies at different stages of the egg-laying period. During the one-host-egg stage, the rejection rate (63.6%) was significantly lower than that during the pre-egg-laying stage (85.7%) and the multi-host-egg stage (100%). The population of azure-winged magpies in Wuhan exhibited a 100% rejection rate towards model eggs during the pre-egg-laying stage. Furthermore, during the incubation stage, azure-winged magpies were able to accurately recognize and reject foreign eggs even when those were in majority. This indicates that azure-winged magpies employ a template-based recognition mechanism rather than relying on discordance mechanism for recognition after the onset of incubation. This study suggests that while azure-winged magpies can truly recognize their own eggs, different breeding stages still influence their rejection response towards parasitic eggs, especially during the pre-egg-laying and egg laying stages.},
}

Animals
*Ovum
Female
*Recognition, Psychology
Passeriformes/physiology
China

@article {pmid39474474,
year = {2024},
author = {Helmstetter, NA and Conway, CJ and Roberts, S and Adams, JR and Makela, PD and Waits, LP},
title = {Predator-specific mortality of sage-grouse nests based on predator DNA on eggshells.},
journal = {Ecology and evolution},
volume = {14},
number = {10},
pages = {e70213},
pmid = {39474474},
issn = {2045-7758},
abstract = {Greater sage-grouse (hereafter sage-grouse; Centrocercus urophasianus) populations have declined across their range. Increased nest predation as a result of anthropogenic land use is one mechanism proposed to explain these declines. However, sage-grouse contend with a diverse suite of nest predators that vary in functional traits (e.g., search tactics or hunting mode) and abundance. Consequently, generalizing about factors influencing nest fate is challenging. Identifying the explicit predator species responsible for nest predation events is, therefore, critical to understanding causal mechanisms linking land use to patterns of sage-grouse nest success. Cattle grazing is often assumed to adversely affect sage-grouse recruitment by reducing grass height (and hence cover), thereby facilitating nest detection by predators. However, recent evidence found little support for the hypothesized effect of grazing on nest fate at the pasture scale. Rather, nest success appears to be similar on pastures grazed at varying intensities. One possible explanation for the lack of observed effect involves a localized response by one or more nest predators. The presence of cattle may cause a temporary reduction in predator density and/or use within a pasture (the cattle avoidance hypothesis). The cattle avoidance hypothesis predicts a decreased probability of at least one sage-grouse nest predator predating sage-grouse nests in pastures with livestock relative to pastures without livestock present during the nesting season. To test the cattle avoidance hypothesis, we collected predator DNA from eggshells from predated nests and used genetic methods to identify the sage-grouse nest predator(s) responsible for the predation event. We evaluated the influence of habitat and grazing on predator-specific nest predation. We evaluated the efficacy of our genetic method by deploying artificial nests with trail cameras and compared the results of our genetic method to the species captured via trail camera. Our molecular methods identified at least one nest predator captured predating artificial nests via trail camera for 33 of 35 (94%) artificial nests. We detected nest predators via our molecular analysis at 76 of 114 (67%) predated sage-grouse nests. The primary predators detected at sage-grouse nests were coyotes (Canis latrans) and corvids (Corvidea). Grazing did not influence the probability of nest predation by either coyotes or corvids. Sagebrush canopy cover was negatively associated with the probability a coyote predated a nest, distance to water was positively associated with the probability a corvid predated a nest, and average minimum temperature was negatively associated with the probability that either a coyote or a corvid predated a nest. Our study provides a framework for implementing an effective, non-invasive method for identifying sage-grouse nest predators that can be used to better understand how management actions at local and regional scales may impact an important component of sage-grouse recruitment.},
}

@article {pmid39465599,
year = {2024},
author = {Coombs, S and Trestman, M},
title = {A multi-trait embodied framework for the evolution of brains and cognition across animal phyla.},
journal = {The Behavioral and brain sciences},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {1-52},
doi = {10.1017/S0140525X24000335},
pmid = {39465599},
issn = {1469-1825},
abstract = {Among non-human animals, crows, octopuses and honeybees are well-known for their complex brains and cognitive abilities. Widening the lens from the idiosyncratic abilities of exemplars like these to those of animals across the phylogenetic spectrum begins to reveal the ancient evolutionary process by which complex brains and cognition first arose in different lineages. The distribution of 35 phenotypic traits in 17 metazoan lineages reveals that brain and cognitive complexity in only three lineages (vertebrates, cephalopod mollusks, and euarthropods) can be attributed to the pivotal role played by body, sensory, brain and motor traits in active visual sensing and visuomotor skills. Together, these pivotal traits enabled animals to transition from largely reactive to more proactive behaviors, and from slow and two-dimensional motion to more rapid and complex three-dimensional motion. Among pivotal traits, high-resolution eyes and laminated visual regions of the brain stand out because they increased the processing demands on and the computational power of the brain by several orders of magnitude. The independent acquisition of pivotal traits in cognitively complex (CC) lineages can be explained as the completion of several multi-trait transitions over the course of evolutionary history, each resulting in an increasing level of complexity that arises from a distinct combination of traits. Whereas combined pivotal traits represent the highest level of complexity in CC lineages, combined traits at lower levels characterize many non-CC lineages, suggesting that certain body, sensory and brain traits may have been linked (the trait-linkage hypothesis) during the evolution of both CC and non-CC lineages.},
}

@article {pmid39463687,
year = {2024},
author = {Yuan, K and Yang, S and Liu, J and Liang, W},
title = {Responses of birds to observers holding popguns: Hunting history influences escape behavior of urban birds.},
journal = {Current zoology},
volume = {70},
number = {5},
pages = {631-636},
pmid = {39463687},
issn = {1674-5507},
abstract = {Human activities affect bird behavior both directly and indirectly. Birds constantly regulate their behavior in response to human disturbance. Gun hunting, a major directional disturbance, puts enormous selection pressure on birds. In China, gun bans have been in place for nearly 30 years, and little hunting using guns occurs in modern cities. However, little attention has been paid to whether a history of hunting still affects the behavioral adaptations of urban birds. In this study, we compared the flight initiation distance (FID) of the Eurasian tree sparrow Passer montanus, Azure-winged magpie Cyanopica cyanus, Common hoopoe Upupa epops and Eurasian magpie Pica pica in the presence of observers with or without popguns. The Eurasian tree sparrow, Azure-winged magpie, and Eurasian magpie effectively recognized the difference between the observers, and perceived the armed observer as a greater threat, exhibiting earlier escape behavior, but this phenomenon was not found in the Common hoopoe. The different expressions in FID of experimental bird species in China cities may be affected by the different levels of recognition of hunting pressure due to different hunting histories.},
}

@article {pmid39460872,
year = {2025},
author = {Govindharaj, V and Herald Victor, MBB and Garber, PA and Parthasarathy, TN},
title = {Nest raiding by bonnet macaques (Macaca radiata) and the response of nest guarding birds in a suburban habitat.},
journal = {Primates; journal of primatology},
volume = {66},
number = {1},
pages = {41-45},
pmid = {39460872},
issn = {1610-7365},
support = {PU/AD-3/URF-Extension/025191/23F85502/204//Periyar University/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; *Nesting Behavior ; *Ecosystem ; Female ; India ; *Macaca radiata/physiology ; Predatory Behavior ; Male ; Crows/physiology ; Birds/physiology ; },
abstract = {In many primate species, nest raiding is a form of opportunistic foraging behavior designed to acquire protein-rich eggs and nestlings. In urban environments, this is a significant cause of nest failure in birds. Here, we describe nest raiding and egg predation in bonnet macaques (Macaca radiata) inhabiting a suburban area of Salem, Tamil Nadu, India. During nest raiding, large-billed crows (Corvus macrorhynchos) and house crows (Corvus splendens), actively defended their nest from the macaques. When several macaque foragers jointly raided the nest, they were successful in obtaining and consuming the eggs. In contrast, when a solitary macaque attempted to raid the nest, it was unsuccessful. Bird size appeared to play an important role in nest defense. Small birds, such as the scaly breasted munia (Lonchura punctulata) and the purple sunbird (Cinnyris asiaticus) were not able to protect their nests from lone bonnet macaques. These observations indicate that in urban landscapes, bonnet macaques are egg predators of many bird species. When macaques coordinate their actions and forage in small subgroups, they were more successful in preying on the eggs of larger-bodied bird species.},
}

Animals
*Nesting Behavior
*Ecosystem
Female
India
*Macaca radiata/physiology
Predatory Behavior
Male
Crows/physiology
Birds/physiology

@article {pmid39447325,
year = {2024},
author = {Kruger, RF and Pédra, MMG and Fonseca, LDS and Morales, DF and Rodrigues, GD and Marinho, MAT},
title = {The impact of burnt carcass on the occurrence probability of Chrysomya albiceps and Lucilia ochricornis (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in southern Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.},
journal = {Forensic science international},
volume = {365},
number = {},
pages = {112249},
doi = {10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112249},
pmid = {39447325},
issn = {1872-6283},
mesh = {Animals ; *Calliphoridae/growth & development ; *Forensic Entomology ; *Postmortem Changes ; Brazil ; Swine ; *Feeding Behavior ; Models, Animal ; Fires ; Linear Models ; Diptera ; },
abstract = {We evaluated the impact of burnt carcasses on the probability of finding Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedemann, 1819) and Lucilia ochricornis (Wiedemann, 1830) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), and the time it took for them to arrive at the experimental carcasss. These species are biological indicators of the postmortem interval (PMI) in forensic scenarios. Using stillborn pig carcasses, this study analysed how different degrees of burning affect the level of attraction and colonisation by these species. Experimental models were subjected to level 2 (CG2) and 4 (CG4) burning according to the Crow-Glassman (CG) scale, ranging from fresh to skeletonization. Generalised Linear Models (GLM) with a Binomial distribution were used to evaluate the influence of decomposition time and experimental treatment on the probability of occurrence of each species. Additionally, survival analyses with the Weibull distribution were used to investigate how long it takes until the arrival of the first fly species in each experimental group. The results indicate that burning affects the probability of occurrence and colonisation time of the studied fly species. Although both species were affected by high degrees of burning, Lucilia ochricornis was more heavily affected than Chrysomya albiceps. This pattern was reflected in the time it took for the first occurrence of each fly species. In both cases, it took longer for flies to arrive at carcasses that had been more severely burnt. In the case of C. albiceps, the longest mean time until a fly was detected (Weibull, α = 79.9 h) happened in the CG4 group, followed by the CG2 group (α = 65.6 h) and the control group (α = 51.5 h). In contrast, for L. ochricornis, the longest mean first occurrence time (α = 85.4 h) was in CG2 group, followed by the Control (α = 49.1 h) and CG4 (α = 54.4 h) groups. This study emphasises the importance of considering whether or not a carcass was burnt and its degree of burning in forensic investigations, given that this variable can influence the accuracy of PMI estimation in crime scenes.},
}

Animals
*Calliphoridae/growth & development
*Forensic Entomology
*Postmortem Changes
Brazil
Swine
*Feeding Behavior
Models, Animal
Fires
Linear Models
Diptera

@article {pmid39437743,
year = {2024},
author = {Taylor, AH and Johnston, M},
title = {How do animals understand the physical world?.},
journal = {Current biology : CB},
volume = {34},
number = {20},
pages = {R996-R999},
doi = {10.1016/j.cub.2024.07.005},
pmid = {39437743},
issn = {1879-0445},
mesh = {Animals ; *Behavior, Animal/physiology ; *Cognition/physiology ; Environment ; },
abstract = {The natural world is full of examples of animals interacting with their physical environment in surprising ways: capuchin monkeys crack open nuts with rocks; dolphins use sponges as 'gloves' on their rostra when searching for prey on the sea floor; and New Caledonian crows manufacture stick tools to pull grubs from logs (Figure 1). Deeper into the phylogenetic tree we continue to see interesting examples of behaviors of this kind, such as octopuses using coconut shells for protection, tuskfish breaking open cockles by hitting them against coral heads, and bees learning to pull string to gain out-of-reach food. These sophisticated behavioral interactions with their physical environment suggest that animals might have a deep understanding of their physical world at a cognitive level. In this primer, we review the performances of a variety of species when faced with tasks that probe their understanding of their physical world.},
}

Animals
*Behavior, Animal/physiology
*Cognition/physiology
Environment

@article {pmid39419984,
year = {2024},
author = {Lengyel, K and Rudra, M and Berghof, TVL and Leitão, A and Frankl-Vilches, C and Dittrich, F and Duda, D and Klinger, R and Schleibinger, S and Sid, H and Trost, L and Vikkula, H and Schusser, B and Gahr, M},
title = {Unveiling the critical role of androgen receptor signaling in avian sexual development.},
journal = {Nature communications},
volume = {15},
number = {1},
pages = {8970},
pmid = {39419984},
issn = {2041-1723},
mesh = {Animals ; *Receptors, Androgen/metabolism/genetics ; Male ; Female ; *Signal Transduction ; *Chickens/metabolism ; *Testosterone/metabolism ; *Sexual Development ; Sexual Behavior, Animal/physiology ; Fertility ; },
abstract = {Gonadal hormone activities mediated by androgen and estrogen receptors, along with cell-autonomous mechanisms arising from the absence of sex-chromosome dosage compensation, are key factors in avian sexual development. In this study, we generate androgen receptor (AR) knockout chickens (AR[-/-]) to explore the role of androgen signaling in avian sexual development. Despite developing sex-typical gonads and gonadal hormone production, AR[-/-] males and females are infertile. While few somatic sex-specific traits persist (body size, spurs, and tail feathers), crucial sexual attributes such as comb, wattles and sexual behaviors remain underdeveloped in both sexes. Testosterone treatment of young AR[-/-] males fails to induce crow behavior, comb development, or regression of the bursa of Fabricius, which are testosterone-dependent phenotypes. These findings highlight the significance of androgen receptor mechanisms in fertility and sex-specific traits in chickens, challenging the concept of a default sex in birds and emphasizing the dominance of androgen signaling in avian sexual development.},
}

Animals
*Receptors, Androgen/metabolism/genetics
Male
Female
*Signal Transduction
*Chickens/metabolism
*Testosterone/metabolism
*Sexual Development
Sexual Behavior, Animal/physiology
Fertility

@article {pmid39409738,
year = {2024},
author = {Skoracki, M and Nielsen, ÓK and Sikora, B},
title = {Corvisyringophilus, a New Genus in the Family Syringophilidae (Acariformes: Prostigmata) and Its Phylogenetic Position among Primitive Genera.},
journal = {Animals : an open access journal from MDPI},
volume = {14},
number = {19},
pages = {},
pmid = {39409738},
issn = {2076-2615},
support = {UAM ID-UB 094/07/POB1/0013 (to M.S.)//Excellence Initiative Program "Mobility" of the UAM Research University/ ; UAM UD-UB 094/07/POB1/0012 (to B.S.)//Excellence Initiative Program "Mobility" of the UAM Research University/ ; },
abstract = {Syringophilidae is one of the most species-rich families in the superfamily Cheyletoidea, comprising approximately 420 species across 62 genera and two subfamilies. In this paper, we propose a new genus, Corvisyringophilus, and a new species, C. krummi gen. n. et sp. n., found in the wing covert quills of the Common Raven, Corvus corax Linnaeus, in Iceland. Corvisyringophilus is placed among the primitive genera of syringophilid mites, which possess the full complement of idiosomal and leg setae. Phylogenetic analysis based on morphological characters suggests that this genus forms a sister clade to Blaszakia Skoracki & Sikora, 2008, and Charadriphilus Bochkov & Mironov, 1998, which inhabit birds of the orders Musophagiformes and Charadriiformes, respectively. The study proposes that the current distribution patterns of quill mites, based on their morphological characteristics, may result from multiple host switching followed by co-speciation events, highlighting the complex evolutionary dynamics within this family.},
}

@article {pmid39406878,
year = {2024},
author = {Lequitte-Charransol, P and Robert, A and Jiguet, F},
title = {Increased adult movements and decreased juvenile apparent survival of urban crows during COVID-19 lockdowns.},
journal = {Scientific reports},
volume = {14},
number = {1},
pages = {24135},
pmid = {39406878},
issn = {2045-2322},
support = {ESOD//Ministère de l'Écologie, du Développement Durable et de l'Énergie/ ; },
mesh = {*Crows/physiology ; Animals ; *COVID-19/epidemiology/mortality/prevention & control ; Humans ; SARS-CoV-2/isolation & purification ; Quarantine ; Paris/epidemiology ; Urban Population ; Population Dynamics ; Cities/epidemiology ; },
abstract = {The increasing abundance of animal species thriving in urban environments is a source of conflicts with managers and users of public spaces. Although opportunistic urban species often use resources originating from human food leftovers, the potential impact of a reduction in these resources on their demography is hard to quantify. The COVID-19 epidemic, which led many countries to set up lockdowns, gave us the opportunity to estimate the impact of a drastic reduction in such food resources and human activities on the demography of an urban bird population. Based on 7 years (2015-2021) of capture-mark-recapture of carrion crows (Corvus corone) in the city of Paris, France, we used multi-state models to examine the intra-annual (3-month time steps) apparent survival and movement patterns of crows during and outside COVID-19 lockdowns. We showed that the apparent survival of juvenile carrion crows decreased down during lockdown, while adult movements increased during this period, with more adult crows moving out of the urban district. Lockdown modified the demography of this urban crow population, suggesting that the reduction in food resources was sufficient to affect fitness and reduce carrying capacity.},
}

*Crows/physiology
Animals
*COVID-19/epidemiology/mortality/prevention & control
Humans
SARS-CoV-2/isolation & purification
Quarantine
Paris/epidemiology
Urban Population
Population Dynamics
Cities/epidemiology

@article {pmid39355196,
year = {2024},
author = {Agarwalla, S and Chandra, B and Kundu, GK},
title = {Influence of Age and Gender on Emotional Intelligence, Intelligence Quotient, Anxiety, and Behavior of Children in a Dental Setup.},
journal = {International journal of clinical pediatric dentistry},
volume = {17},
number = {5},
pages = {518-523},
pmid = {39355196},
issn = {0974-7052},
abstract = {BACKGROUND: Children's age is a significant predictor factor for their panic and conduct intraoperatively. A child's developmental stage influences their ability to handle stress in dental operations, and it seems that younger children are more anxious and have a better capacity to cope with dental procedures. Age and gender are said to have a significant influence on emotional quotient (EQ) and intelligence quotient (IQ), but the data regarding this is extremely sparse in the dental literature.

AIM: To find the impact of age and gender on EQ, IQ, panic, and conduct of children in an oral care setup.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 57 female and 50 male (total 107) children were considered participants aged 7-12 years. The study was executed in two sessions in the pediatric dentistry department. In the first session, "Bar-On emotional quotient inventory: youth version (Bar-On EQ-i: YV)" and the "Raven's colored progressive matrices (RCPM)" tests were administered to evaluate the EQ and IQ of the children, and a clinical psychologist supervised and guided the whole procedure. In the second appointment, anxiety was recorded using the "faces version of the modified child's dental anxiety scale (MCDAS(f))," whereas behavior was recorded with the "sound, eye, and motor (SEM) scale." Interpretation of data was done by statistical methods.

RESULTS: The difference in IQ scores between the groups aged 7-9 and 10-12 years was not statistically significant. There was a statistically notable difference (p-value of 0.006) in the RCPM IQ scores among male and female participants, where female participants scored better. There was a statistically insignificant variation in total EQ scores between male and female participants. Based on age and gender, a statistically insignificant variation was noted in the anxiety scores (MCDAS(f)) among participants. A statistically notable difference (p-value of 0.018) was seen between the SEM scores of the 7-9 and 10-12 years age-groups. SEM scores of male and female participants showed no significant difference.

CONCLUSION: There was no influence of age on the IQ and EQ scores of the participants. A gender difference was found in relation to the IQ scores and the intrapersonal and stress management subscales of EQ. Based on age and gender, there was a statistically nonsignificant difference between the anxiety scores (MCDAS(f)) of the participants. A statistically notable variation was seen between the SEM scores for behavior of the 7-9 and 10-12 years age-groups. Statistically insignificant variation was noted between the SEM scores of both genders.

HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Agarwalla S, Chandra B, Kundu GK. Influence of Age and Gender on Emotional Intelligence, Intelligence Quotient, Anxiety, and Behavior of Children in a Dental Setup. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2024;17(5):518-523.},
}

@article {pmid39328063,
year = {2024},
author = {Romero, FG and Beaudry, FEG and Hovmand Warner, E and Nguyen, TN and Fitzpatrick, JW and Chen, N},
title = {A new high-quality genome assembly and annotation for the threatened Florida Scrub-Jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens).},
journal = {G3 (Bethesda, Md.)},
volume = {14},
number = {12},
pages = {},
pmid = {39328063},
issn = {2160-1836},
support = {R35 GM133412/GM/NIGMS NIH HHS/United States ; },
abstract = {The Florida Scrub-Jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens), a Federally Threatened, cooperatively-breeding bird, is an emerging model system in evolutionary biology and ecology. Extensive individual-based monitoring and genetic sampling for decades has yielded a wealth of data, allowing for the detailed study of social behavior, demography, and population genetics of this natural population. Here, we report a linkage map and a chromosome-level genome assembly and annotation for a female Florida Scrub-Jay made with long-read sequencing technology, chromatin conformation data, and the linkage map. We constructed a linkage map comprising 4,468 SNPs that had 34 linkage groups and a total sex-averaged autosomal genetic map length of 2446.78 cM. The new genome assembly is 1.33 Gb in length, consisting of 33 complete or near-complete autosomes and the sex chromosomes (ZW). This highly contiguous assembly has an NG50 of 68 Mb and a Benchmarking Universal Single-Copy Orthologs (BUSCO) completeness score of 97.1% with respect to the Aves database. The annotated gene set has a BUSCO transcriptome completeness score of 95.5% and 17,964 identified protein-coding genes, 92.5% of which have associated functional annotations. This new, high-quality genome assembly and linkage map of the Florida Scrub-Jay provides valuable tools for future research into the evolutionary dynamics of small, natural populations of conservation concern.},
}

@article {pmid39307930,
year = {2024},
author = {Micula, A and Holmer, E and Ning, R and Danielsson, H},
title = {Relationships Between Hearing Status, Cognitive Abilities, and Reliance on Visual and Contextual Cues.},
journal = {Ear and hearing},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {},
pmid = {39307930},
issn = {1538-4667},
abstract = {OBJECTIVES: Visual and contextual cues facilitate speech recognition in suboptimal listening conditions (e.g., background noise, hearing loss, hearing aid signal processing). Moreover, successful speech recognition in challenging listening conditions is linked to cognitive abilities such as working memory and fluid intelligence. However, it is unclear which cognitive abilities facilitate the use of visual and contextual cues in individuals with normal hearing and hearing aid users. The first aim was to investigate whether individuals with hearing aid users rely on visual and contextual cues to a higher degree than individuals with normal hearing in a speech-in-noise recognition task. The second aim was to investigate whether working memory and fluid intelligence are associated with the use of visual and contextual cues in these groups.

DESIGN: Groups of participants with normal hearing and hearing aid users with bilateral, symmetrical mild to severe sensorineural hearing loss were included (n = 169 per group). The Samuelsson and Rönnberg task was administered to measure speech recognition in speech-shaped noise. The task consists of an equal number of sentences administered in the auditory and audiovisual modalities, as well as without and with contextual cues (visually presented word preceding the sentence, e.g.,: "Restaurant"). The signal to noise ratio was individually set to 1 dB below the level obtained for 50% correct speech recognition in the hearing-in-noise test administered in the auditory modality. The Reading Span test was used to measure working memory capacity and the Raven test was used to measure fluid intelligence. The data were analyzed using linear mixed-effects modeling.

RESULTS: Both groups exhibited significantly higher speech recognition performance when visual and contextual cues were available. Although the hearing aid users performed significantly worse compared to those with normal hearing in the auditory modality, both groups reached similar performance levels in the audiovisual modality. In addition, a significant positive relationship was found between the Raven test score and speech recognition performance only for the hearing aid users in the audiovisual modality. There was no significant relationship between Reading Span test score and performance.

CONCLUSIONS: Both participants with normal hearing and hearing aid users benefitted from contextual cues, regardless of cognitive abilities. The hearing aid users relied on visual cues to compensate for the perceptual difficulties, reaching a similar performance level as the participants with normal hearing when visual cues were available, despite worse performance in the auditory modality. It is important to note that the hearing aid users who had higher fluid intelligence were able to capitalize on visual cues more successfully than those with poorer fluid intelligence, resulting in better speech-in-noise recognition performance.},
}

@article {pmid39257567,
year = {2024},
author = {Ham, JR and Pellis, SM and Pellis, VC},
title = {Oppositions, joints, and targets: the attractors that are the glue of social interactions.},
journal = {Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience},
volume = {18},
number = {},
pages = {1451283},
pmid = {39257567},
issn = {1662-5153},
abstract = {Social interactions are often analyzed by scoring segments of predefined behavior and then statistically assessing numerical and sequential patterns to identify the structure of the encounters. However, this approach can miss the dynamics of the animals' relationship over the course of the encounter, one that often involves invariant bonds, say a nose-to-nose orientation, with many different movements performed by both partners acting to counteract each other's attempts to break or maintain the relationship. Moreover, these invariant bonds can switch from one configuration to another during an interaction, leading from one stable configuration to another. It is this stepwise sequence of configurational stabilities that lead to functional outcomes, such as mating, aggression, or predation. By focusing on the sequence of invariant relational configurations, the deep structure of interactions can be discerned. This deep structure can then be used to differentiate between compensatory movements, no matter how seemingly stereotyped they may appear, from movement patterns which are restricted to a particular form when more than one option is available. A dynamic perspective requires suitable tools for analysis, and such tools are highlighted as needed in describing particular interactions.},
}

@article {pmid39253095,
year = {2024},
author = {d' Isa, R and Parsons, MH and Chrzanowski, M and Bebas, P and Stryjek, R},
title = {Catch me if you can: free-living mice show a highly flexible dodging behaviour suggestive of intentional tactical deception.},
journal = {Royal Society open science},
volume = {11},
number = {7},
pages = {231692},
pmid = {39253095},
issn = {2054-5703},
abstract = {Intentional tactical deception, the employment of a tactic to intentionally deceive another animal, is a complex behaviour based on higher-order cognition, that has rarely been documented outside of primates and corvids. New laboratory-to-field assays, however, provide the opportunity to investigate such behaviour among free-living mice. In the present study, we placed laboratory-style test chambers with a single entrance near a forest outside Warsaw, where we observed the social interactions of two territorial murids, black-striped and yellow-necked mice, under food competition for seven months. Notably, among the social interactions, we video-recorded 21 instances of deceptive pursuer evasion. In the most obvious cases, an individual inside the chamber, to avoid an incoming mouse, hid by the chamber opening (the only means to enter or exit), paused until the pursuer entered and passed by, and then exploited the distraction of the back-turned pursuer by fleeing through the opening in a direction opposite to the one the pursuer came from. This deceptive dodging is the first evidence of a behaviour suggestive of intentional tactical deception among mice. As such, this deceptive behaviour may be of interest not only for rodent psychology but also, more generally, for the fields of non-human intentionality and theory of mind.},
}

@article {pmid39252993,
year = {2024},
author = {Prinja, S and Dixit, J and Nimesh, R and Garg, B and Khurana, R and Paliwal, A and Aggarwal, AK},
title = {Impact of health benefit package policy interventions on service utilisation under government-funded health insurance in Punjab, India: analysis of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY).},
journal = {The Lancet regional health. Southeast Asia},
volume = {28},
number = {},
pages = {100462},
pmid = {39252993},
issn = {2772-3682},
abstract = {BACKGROUND: The design of health benefits package (HBP), and its associated payment and pricing system, is central to the performance of government-funded health insurance programmes. We evaluated the impact of revision in HBP within India's Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY) on provider behaviour, manifesting in terms of utilisation of services.

METHODS: We analysed the data on 1.35 million hospitalisation claims submitted by all the 886 (222 government and 664 private) empanelled hospitals in state of Punjab, from August 2019 to December 2022, to assess the change in utilisation from HBP 1.0 to HBP 2.0. The packages were stratified based on the nature of revision introduced in HBP 2.0, i.e., change in nomenclature, construct, price, or a combination of these. Data from National Health System Cost Database on cost of each of the packages was used to determine the cost-price differential for each package during HBP 1.0 and 2.0 respectively. A dose-response relationship was also evaluated, based on the multiplicity of revision type undertaken, or based on extent of price correction done. Change in the number of monthly claims, and the number of monthly claims per package was computed for each package category using an appropriate seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average (SARIMA) time series model.

FINDINGS: Overall, we found that the HBP revision led to a positive impact on utilisation of services. While changes in HBP nomenclature and construct had a positive effect, incorporating price corrections further accentuated the impact. The pricing reforms highly impacted those packages which were originally significantly under-priced. However, we did not find statistically significant dose-response relationship based on extent of price correction. Thirdly, the overall impact of HBP revision was similar in public and private hospitals.

INTERPRETATION: Our paper demonstrates the significant positive impact of PM-JAY HBP revisions on utilisation. HBP revisions need to be undertaken with the anticipation of its long-term intended effects.

FUNDING: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).},
}

@article {pmid39228068,
year = {2024},
author = {Forbes, SL and Huculak, M and Watson, CJ},
title = {Taphonomic impact of vertebrate scavengers on degradation and dispersal of remains, southeastern British Columbia.},
journal = {Journal of forensic sciences},
volume = {69},
number = {6},
pages = {1985-1995},
doi = {10.1111/1556-4029.15620},
pmid = {39228068},
issn = {1556-4029},
support = {C150-2017-12//The Canada 150 Research Chairs/ ; RGPIN/6098/2019//Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; British Columbia ; Swine ; *Feeding Behavior ; Postmortem Changes ; Body Remains ; Forensic Anthropology ; Seasons ; Ursidae ; },
abstract = {Vertebrate scavengers represent important taphonomic agents that can act on a body, particularly when in an outdoor environment. Understanding the effects of these agents will direct how and where to search for human remains and influence the likelihood of discovery in a particular region. The current study aimed to identify the taphonomic impact of scavenger guilds in the peri-urban and rural regions of southeastern British Columbia. Vertebrate scavenger activity on pig carcasses was recorded remotely using trail cameras and analyzed to determine temporal scavenging profiles. Both the peri-urban and rural environments produced comparable scavenger guilds, namely: turkey vultures, American crows/northern ravens (classified as "corvids"), American black bears, and coyotes. Although the two locations had different study lengths due to variable degrees of scavenging, for the period that was common to both locations (summer to early fall), the black bear was the most frequent scavenger followed by coyote. However, the dispersal of remains by the mammalian scavengers was distinctly different between sites. Only 12%-33% of skeletal elements were recovered at the rural sites compared to 80%-90% recovered at the peri-urban sites, even though the latter sites had a longer study timeframe. The extended timeframe of the peri-urban sites confirmed that certain scavengers (e.g., turkey vultures and black bears) are only seasonally active in this region. These findings demonstrate the variability of scavenger behavior and the need to assign caution and local ecological knowledge when predicting scavenger trends. Such taphonomic information is relevant for human remains searches in regions with comparable scavenger guilds.},
}

Animals
British Columbia
Swine
*Feeding Behavior
Postmortem Changes
Body Remains
Forensic Anthropology
Seasons
Ursidae

@article {pmid39227504,
year = {2024},
author = {Cornero, FM and Clayton, NS},
title = {Object permanence in rooks (Corvus frugilegus): Individual differences and behavioral considerations.},
journal = {Learning & behavior},
volume = {},
number = {},
pages = {},
pmid = {39227504},
issn = {1543-4508},
abstract = {Piagetian object permanence (OP) refers to the ability to know that an object continues to exist when out of sight: In humans, it develops in six stages. Species of great apes, other mammals, and birds (parrots, corvids, and pigeons) have been shown to possess partial or full OP, which is a prerequisite for more complex physical cognition abilities they may possess. In birds, the greatest variation is in Stage 6 (invisible displacements) and in "A-not-B" errors-incorrectly persevering in searching an empty location rewarded previously. Caching abilities have been invoked as holding explanatory power over results in corvids, for which this error is sometimes completely absent. The rook (Corvus frugilegus), a cognitively advanced, social, caching corvid, has not yet been studied for OP. This study applies tasks of one OP scale commonly adapted for nonhuman animals, Uzgiris and Hunt's Scale 1, as well as later-conceived tasks 16 and S, to a sample of adult, captive rooks. One rook demonstrated full OP (Stage 6b, multiple invisible displacements), whereas other individuals varied, attaining between Stages 5a (single visible displacements) and 6a (single invisible displacements). Like some corvids, a few made transient "A-not-B" errors. Behavioral considerations potentially underlying observed individual variation in results in rooks, including dominance, neophobia, past experiences, and individual idiosyncrasies, are examined. Rooks, like other corvids, possess well-developed OP abilities, and these results support the idea that exertion of executive control is required to avoid "A-not-B" errors, rather than caching abilities or developmental age, as previously suggested.},
}

@article {pmid39224166,
year = {2024},
author = {Stone, MM and Afriandi, H and Suwanda, FN and Andono, A and Mahmud, R and Khairani, OK and Clark, AB and Webster, M and McGowan, K and Radcliffe, RW},
title = {Symbiosis between the Javan rhinoceros and slender-billed crow: A novel inferred cleaning mutualism.},
journal = {Ecology and evolution},
volume = {14},
number = {9},
pages = {e70224},
pmid = {39224166},
issn = {2045-7758},
abstract = {Over the past century, the Javan rhinoceroses' (Rhinoceros sondaicus) secluded nature and low population size have led to a gap in knowledge of their ecology. With fewer than 80 individuals surviving in a single population in West Java, Indonesia, the Javan rhinoceros is one of the most critically endangered mammals in the world. As part of a pilot bioacoustics study of the Javan rhinoceros in 2019, we systematically reviewed camera trap footage from the core Javan rhinoceros range in Ujung Kulon National Park (UKNP). In doing so, we discovered a previously unknown interaction between the Javan rhinoceros and the slender-billed crow (Corvus enca), in which the crow finds and eats ectoparasites from the rhinoceros (Figure 1). We describe this interaction and suggest that it may represent a cleaning mutualism with benefits for both the crow and the rhinoceros.},
}

@article {pmid39215030,
year = {2024},
author = {Malik, S and Patro, SGK and Mahanty, C and Lasisi, A and Al-Sareji, OJ},
title = {Hybrid raven roosting intelligence framework for enhancing efficiency in data clustering.},
journal = {Scientific reports},
volume = {14},
number = {1},
pages = {20163},
pmid = {39215030},
issn = {2045-2322},
abstract = {The field of data exploration relies heavily on clustering techniques to organize vast datasets into meaningful subgroups, offering valuable insights across various domains. Traditional clustering algorithms face limitations in terms of performance, often getting stuck in local minima and struggling with complex datasets of varying shapes and densities. They also require prior knowledge of the number of clusters, which can be a drawback in real-world scenarios. In response to these challenges, we propose the "hybrid raven roosting intelligence framework" (HRIF) algorithm. HRIF draws inspiration from the dynamic behaviors of roosting ravens and computational intelligence. What distinguishes HRIF is its effective capacity to adeptly navigate the clustering landscape, evading local optima and converging toward optimal solutions. An essential enhancement in HRIF is the incorporation of the Gaussian mutation operator, which adds stochasticity to improve exploration and mitigate the risk of local minima. This research presents the development and evaluation of HRIF, showcasing its unique fusion of nature-inspired optimization techniques and computational intelligence. Extensive experiments with diverse benchmark datasets demonstrate HRIF's competitive performance, particularly its capability to handle complex data and avoid local minima, resulting in accurate clustering outcomes. HRIF's adaptability to challenging datasets and its potential to enhance clustering efficiency and solution quality position it as a promising solution in the world of data exploration.},
}

@article {pmid39195074,
year = {2025},
author = {Rasouli, N and Malakouti, SK and Bayat, M and Mahjoubnavaz, F and Fallahinia, N and Khosrowabadi, R},
title = {Frontal Activity of Recent Suicide Attempters: EEG spectrum Power Performing Raven Task.},
journal = {Clinical EEG and neuroscience},
volume = {56},
number = {2},
pages = {140-149},
doi = {10.1177/15500594241273125},
pmid = {39195074},
issn = {2169-5202},
mesh = {Humans ; Male ; *Suicide, Attempted/psychology ; Female ; *Electroencephalography/methods ; Adult ; *Depressive Disorder, Major/physiopathology/psychology ; *Frontal Lobe/physiopathology ; Case-Control Studies ; Problem Solving/physiology ; Young Adult ; Executive Function/physiology ; Prefrontal Cortex/physiopathology ; Neuropsychological Tests ; Middle Aged ; },
abstract = {Background: Deficits in problem-solving may be related to vulnerability to suicidal behavior. We aimed to identify the electroencephalographic (EEG) power spectrum associated with the performance of the Raven as a reasoning/problem-solving task among individuals with recent suicide attempts. Methods: This study with the case-control method, consisted of 61 participants who were assigned to three groups: Suicide attempt + Major Depressive Disorder (SA + MDD), Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), and Healthy Control (HC). All participants underwent clinical evaluations and problem-solving abilities. Subsequently, EEG signals were recorded while performing the Raven task. Results: The SA + MDD and MDD groups were significantly different from the HC group in terms of anxiety, reasons for life, and hopelessness. Regarding brain oscillations in performing the raven task, increased theta, gamma, and betha power extending over the frontal areas, including anterior prefrontal cortex, dlPFC, pre-SMA, inferior frontal cortex, and medial prefrontal cortex, was significant in SA + MDD compared with other groups. The alpha wave was more prominent in the left frontal, particularly in dlPFC in SA + MDD. Compared to the MDD group, the SA + MDD group had a shorter reaction time, while their response accuracy did not differ significantly. Conclusions: Suicidal patients have more frontal activity in planning and executive function than the two other groups. Nevertheless, it seems that reduced activity in the left frontal region, which plays a crucial role in managing emotional distress, can contribute to suicidal tendencies among vulnerable individuals. Limitation The small sample size and chosen difficult trials for the Raven task were the most limitations of the study.},
}

Humans
Male
*Suicide, Attempted/psychology
Female
*Electroencephalography/methods
Adult
*Depressive Disorder, Major/physiopathology/psychology
*Frontal Lobe/physiopathology
Case-Control Studies
Problem Solving/physiology
Young Adult
Executive Function/physiology
Prefrontal Cortex/physiopathology
Neuropsychological Tests
Middle Aged

@article {pmid39172108,
year = {2024},
author = {Mason, LLK and Masuda, B and Swaisgood, RR and Flanagan, AM},
title = {Nest quality predicts the probability of egg loss in the critically endangered 'Alalā (Corvus hawaiiensis).},
journal = {Zoo biology},
volume = {43},
number = {5},
pages = {481-490},
doi = {10.1002/zoo.21849},
pmid = {39172108},
issn = {1098-2361},
support = {//San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance/ ; //State of Hawaii Division of Forestry and Wildlife/ ; //Max and Yetta Karasik Family Foundation/ ; //National Fish and Wildlife Foundation/ ; //U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/ ; //Anonymous/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; *Endangered Species ; *Nesting Behavior/physiology ; Male ; Female ; Animal Husbandry/methods ; Ovum/physiology ; Conservation of Natural Resources ; Animals, Zoo ; },
abstract = {Conservation breeding programs for endangered species face challenges, notably in the development of husbandry techniques, complicated by the impracticality of conducting controlled experiments. To reduce uncertainty regarding what works in conservation breeding programs, it is essential to capture data. In avian breeding programs, the construction of quality nests and appropriate incubation and handling of eggs by the parents are essential prerequisites to the successful production of offspring. Here, we study factors influencing nest-building and parental incubation outcomes in 'alalā (Corvus hawaiiensis), which is extinct in the wild and numbers fewer than 130 individuals in human care. Using parent-incubated egg data from 2018 to 2021 (171 clutches, 55 pairs), we evaluated the role of husbandry factors in determining the quality of nests constructed by 'alalā and the likelihood of nest quality and other social and environmental factors to predict egg loss (breaking, cannibalization, or ejection of an egg from the nest). More than half of all eggs laid failed to reach the hatch date. Nest quality was the most influential predictor of egg loss, with eggs in higher quality nests more likely to reach the hatch date. Male age also influenced egg loss, with very young (3 years old) and older males (⪞12 years old) experiencing more egg loss. Furthermore, the two facilities and two aviary types also differed in the quality of nests 'alalā constructed, indicating that nest-building behavior can be influenced by husbandry practices. These findings reduce uncertainty and provide insights for recommended management interventions to facilitate successful reproduction in human care.},
}

Animals
*Endangered Species
*Nesting Behavior/physiology
Male
Female
Animal Husbandry/methods
Ovum/physiology
Conservation of Natural Resources
Animals, Zoo

@article {pmid39148142,
year = {2024},
author = {Martínez-Renau, E and Martín-Platero, AM and Bodawatta, KH and Martín-Vivaldi, M and Martínez-Bueno, M and Poulsen, M and Soler, JJ},
title = {Social environment influences microbiota and potentially pathogenic bacterial communities on the skin of developing birds.},
journal = {Animal microbiome},
volume = {6},
number = {1},
pages = {47},
pmid = {39148142},
issn = {2524-4671},
support = {PRE2018-085378//Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación/ ; CGL2017-83103-P//Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación/ ; CGL2017-83103-P//European Regional Development Fund/ ; },
abstract = {BACKGROUND: Animal bacterial symbionts are established early in life, either through vertical transmission and/or by horizontal transmission from both the physical and the social environment, such as direct contact with con- or heterospecifics. The social environment particularly can influence the acquisition of both mutualistic and pathogenic bacteria, with consequences for the stability of symbiotic communities. However, segregating the effects of the shared physical environment from those of the social interactions is challenging, limiting our current knowledge on the role of the social environment in structuring bacterial communities in wild animals. Here, we take advantage of the avian brood-parasite system of Eurasian magpies (Pica pica) and great spotted cuckoos (Clamator glandarius) to explore how the interspecific social environment (magpie nestlings developing with or without heterospecifics) affects bacterial communities on uropygial gland skin.

RESULTS: We demonstrated interspecific differences in bacterial community compositions in members of the two species when growing up in monospecific nests. However, the bacterial community of magpies in heterospecific nests was richer, more diverse, and more similar to their cuckoo nest-mates than when growing up in monospecific nests. These patterns were alike for the subset of microbes that could be considered core, but when looking at the subset of potentially pathogenic bacterial genera, cuckoo presence reduced the relative abundance of potentially pathogenic bacterial genera on magpies.

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings highlight the role of social interactions in shaping the assembly of the avian skin bacterial communities during the nestling period, as exemplified in a brood parasite-host system.},
}

@article {pmid39141936,
year = {2024},
author = {Nelson, APK and Mole, J and Pombo, G and Gray, RJ and Ruffle, JK and Chan, E and Rees, GE and Cipolotti, L and Nachev, P},
title = {The minimal computational substrate of fluid intelligence.},
journal = {Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior},
volume = {179},
number = {},
pages = {62-76},
doi = {10.1016/j.cortex.2024.07.003},
pmid = {39141936},
issn = {1973-8102},
mesh = {Humans ; *Intelligence/physiology ; Male ; Female ; *Neural Networks, Computer ; Adult ; Middle Aged ; Cognition/physiology ; Young Adult ; Intelligence Tests ; Aged ; Neuropsychological Tests ; },
abstract = {The quantification of cognitive powers rests on identifying a behavioural task that depends on them. Such dependence cannot be assured, for the powers a task invokes cannot be experimentally controlled or constrained a priori, resulting in unknown vulnerability to failure of specificity and generalisability. Evaluating a compact version of Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices (RAPM), a widely used clinical test of fluid intelligence, we show that LaMa, a self-supervised artificial neural network trained solely on the completion of partially masked images of natural environmental scenes, achieves representative human-level test scores a prima vista, without any task-specific inductive bias or training. Compared with cohorts of healthy and focally lesioned participants, LaMa exhibits human-like variation with item difficulty, and produces errors characteristic of right frontal lobe damage under degradation of its ability to integrate global spatial patterns. LaMa's narrow training and limited capacity suggest matrix-style tests may be open to computationally simple solutions that need not necessarily invoke the substrates of reasoning.},
}

Humans
*Intelligence/physiology
Male
Female
*Neural Networks, Computer
Adult
Middle Aged
Cognition/physiology
Young Adult
Intelligence Tests
Aged
Neuropsychological Tests

@article {pmid39140880,
year = {2024},
author = {Machado, RB and Amorim, TOS and de Castro, F and Andriolo, A},
title = {Use of whistles for acoustic classification of delphinids (odontoceti: Delphinidae) in the Western South Atlantic Ocean.},
journal = {The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America},
volume = {156},
number = {2},
pages = {1070-1080},
doi = {10.1121/10.0028170},
pmid = {39140880},
issn = {1520-8524},
mesh = {Animals ; *Vocalization, Animal/classification ; *Acoustics ; Atlantic Ocean ; *Dolphins/classification/physiology ; Sound Spectrography ; Brazil ; Species Specificity ; Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted ; },
abstract = {This study focuses on the acoustic classification of delphinid species at the southern continental slope of Brazil. Recordings were collected between 2013 and 2015 using towed arrays and were processed using a classifier to identify the species in the recordings. Using Raven Pro 1.6 software (Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY), we analyzed whistles for species identification. The random forest algorithm in R facilitates classification analysis based on acoustic parameters, including low, high, delta, center, beginning, and ending frequencies, and duration. Evaluation metrics, such as correct and incorrect classification percentages, global accuracy, balanced accuracy, and p-values, were employed. Receiver operating characteristic curves and area-under-the-curve (AUC) values demonstrated well-fitting models (AUC ≥ 0.7) for species definition. Duration and delta frequency emerged as crucial parameters for classification, as indicated by the decrease in mean accuracy. Multivariate dispersion plots visualized the proximity between acoustic and visual match data and exclusively acoustic encounter (EAE) data. The EAE results classified as Delphinus delphis (n = 6), Stenella frontalis (n = 3), and Stenella longirostris (n = 2) provide valuable insights into the presence of these species between approximately 23° and 34° S in Brazil. This study demonstrates the effectiveness of acousting classification in discriminating delphinids through whistle parameters.},
}

Animals
*Vocalization, Animal/classification
*Acoustics
Atlantic Ocean
*Dolphins/classification/physiology
Sound Spectrography
Brazil
Species Specificity
Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted

@article {pmid39140629,
year = {2024},
author = {Wang, SS and Parikh, JR},
title = {A Radiologist's Wellness Journey: AJR Podcast Series on Wellness, Episode 5.},
journal = {AJR. American journal of roentgenology},
volume = {223},
number = {3},
pages = {e2431888},
doi = {10.2214/AJR.24.31888},
pmid = {39140629},
issn = {1546-3141},
mesh = {Humans ; *Radiologists ; Webcasts as Topic ; Burnout, Professional/prevention & control ; Periodicals as Topic ; Health Promotion/methods ; },
}

Humans
*Radiologists
Webcasts as Topic
Burnout, Professional/prevention & control
Periodicals as Topic
Health Promotion/methods

@article {pmid39110762,
year = {2024},
author = {Zandberg, L and Morfi, V and George, JM and Clayton, DF and Stowell, D and Lachlan, RF},
title = {Bird song comparison using deep learning trained from avian perceptual judgments.},
journal = {PLoS computational biology},
volume = {20},
number = {8},
pages = {e1012329},
pmid = {39110762},
issn = {1553-7358},
mesh = {Animals ; *Deep Learning ; *Vocalization, Animal/physiology ; *Finches/physiology ; Algorithms ; Computational Biology/methods ; Judgment/physiology ; Male ; Sound Spectrography/methods ; Conditioning, Operant/physiology ; Humans ; },
abstract = {Our understanding of bird song, a model system for animal communication and the neurobiology of learning, depends critically on making reliable, validated comparisons between the complex multidimensional syllables that are used in songs. However, most assessments of song similarity are based on human inspection of spectrograms, or computational methods developed from human intuitions. Using a novel automated operant conditioning system, we collected a large corpus of zebra finches' (Taeniopygia guttata) decisions about song syllable similarity. We use this dataset to compare and externally validate similarity algorithms in widely-used publicly available software (Raven, Sound Analysis Pro, Luscinia). Although these methods all perform better than chance, they do not closely emulate the avian assessments. We then introduce a novel deep learning method that can produce perceptual similarity judgements trained on such avian decisions. We find that this new method outperforms the established methods in accuracy and more closely approaches the avian assessments. Inconsistent (hence ambiguous) decisions are a common occurrence in animal behavioural data; we show that a modification of the deep learning training that accommodates these leads to the strongest performance. We argue this approach is the best way to validate methods to compare song similarity, that our dataset can be used to validate novel methods, and that the general approach can easily be extended to other species.},
}

Animals
*Deep Learning
*Vocalization, Animal/physiology
*Finches/physiology
Algorithms
Computational Biology/methods
Judgment/physiology
Male
Sound Spectrography/methods
Conditioning, Operant/physiology
Humans

@article {pmid39073820,
year = {2024},
author = {Krieger, N and Testa, C and Chen, JT and Johnson, N and Watkins, SH and Suderman, M and Simpkin, AJ and Tilling, K and Waterman, PD and Coull, BA and De Vivo, I and Smith, GD and Diez Roux, AV and Relton, C},
title = {Epigenetic Aging and Racialized, Economic, and Environmental Injustice: NIMHD Social Epigenomics Program.},
journal = {JAMA network open},
volume = {7},
number = {7},
pages = {e2421832},
pmid = {39073820},
issn = {2574-3805},
mesh = {Humans ; Male ; Female ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Middle Aged ; *Epigenomics/methods ; *Aging/genetics ; Aged ; *Epigenesis, Genetic/genetics ; United States ; Racism/statistics & numerical data ; Adult ; Social Justice ; Socioeconomic Factors ; Aged, 80 and over ; },
abstract = {IMPORTANCE: Epigenetic age acceleration is associated with exposure to social and economic adversity and may increase the risk of premature morbidity and mortality. However, no studies have included measures of structural racism, and few have compared estimates within or across the first and second generation of epigenetic clocks.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether epigenetic age acceleration is positively associated with exposures to diverse measures of racialized, economic, and environmental injustice measured at different levels and time periods.

This cross-sectional study used data from the My Body My Story (MBMS) study between August 8, 2008, and December 31, 2010, and examination 5 of the Multi-Ethnic Atherosclerosis Study (MESA) from April 1, 2010, to February 29, 2012. In the MBMS, DNA extraction was performed in 2021; linkage of structural measures to the MBMS and MESA, in 2022. US-born individuals were randomly selected from 4 community health centers in Boston, Massachusetts (MBMS), and 4 field sites in Baltimore, Maryland; Forsyth County, North Carolina; New York City, New York; and St Paul, Minnesota (MESA). Data were analyzed from November 13, 2021, to August 31, 2023.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Ten epigenetic clocks (6 first-generation and 4 second-generation), computed using DNA methylation data (DNAm) from blood spots (MBMS) and purified monocytes (MESA).

RESULTS: The US-born study population included 293 MBMS participants (109 men [37.2%], 184 women [62.8%]; mean [SD] age, 49.0 [8.0] years) with 224 Black non-Hispanic and 69 White non-Hispanic participants and 975 MESA participants (492 men [50.5%], 483 women [49.5%]; mean [SD] age, 70.0 [9.3] years) with 229 Black non-Hispanic, 191 Hispanic, and 555 White non-Hispanic participants. Of these, 140 (11.0%) exhibited accelerated aging for all 5 clocks whose estimates are interpretable on the age (years) scale. Among Black non-Hispanic MBMS participants, epigenetic age acceleration was associated with being born in a Jim Crow state by 0.14 (95% CI, 0.003-0.27) SDs and with birth state conservatism by 0.06 (95% CI, 0.01-0.12) SDs, pooling across all clocks. Low parental educational level was associated with epigenetic age acceleration, pooling across all clocks, for both Black non-Hispanic (0.24 [95% CI, 0.08-0.39] SDs) and White non-Hispanic (0.27 [95% CI, 0.03-0.51] SDs) MBMS participants. Adult impoverishment was positively associated with the pooled second-generation clocks among the MESA participants (Black non-Hispanic, 0.06 [95% CI, 0.01-0.12] SDs; Hispanic, 0.07 [95% CI, 0.01-0.14] SDs; White non-Hispanic, 0.05 [95% CI, 0.01-0.08] SDs).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: The findings of this cross-sectional study of MBMS and MESA participants suggest that epigenetic age acceleration was associated with racialized and economic injustice, potentially contributing to well-documented inequities in premature mortality. Future research should test the hypothesis that epigenetic accelerated aging may be one of the biological mechanisms underlying the well-documented elevated risk of premature morbidity and mortality among social groups subjected to racialized and economic injustice.},
}

Humans
Male
Female
Cross-Sectional Studies
Middle Aged
*Epigenomics/methods
*Aging/genetics
Aged
*Epigenesis, Genetic/genetics
United States
Racism/statistics & numerical data
Adult
Social Justice
Socioeconomic Factors
Aged, 80 and over

@article {pmid39069816,
year = {2024},
author = {Connelly, F and Johnsson, RD and Mulder, RA and Hall, ML and Lesku, JA},
title = {Experimental playback of urban noise does not affect cognitive performance in captive Australian magpies.},
journal = {Biology open},
volume = {13},
number = {8},
pages = {},
pmid = {39069816},
issn = {2046-6390},
support = {//Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment/ ; //Ecological Society of Australia/ ; DP170101003//Australian Research Council/ ; //La Trobe University/ ; },
mesh = {Animals ; *Cognition ; *Noise/adverse effects ; Australia ; *Passeriformes/physiology ; Behavior, Animal ; Male ; },
abstract = {Exposure of wildlife to anthropogenic noise is associated with disruptive effects. Research on this topic has focused on behavioural and physiological responses of animals to noise, with little work investigating links to cognitive function. Neurological processes that maintain cognitive performance can be impacted by stress and sleep disturbances. While sleep loss impairs cognitive performance in Australian magpies, it is unclear whether urban noise, which disrupts sleep, can impact cognition as well. To fill this gap, we explored how environmentally relevant urban noise affected the performance of wild-caught, city-living Australian magpies (Gymnorhina tibicen tyrannica) on a cognitive task battery including associative and reversal learning, inhibitory control, and spatial memory. Birds were housed and tested in a laboratory environment; sample sizes varied across tasks (n=7-9 birds). Tests were conducted over 4 weeks, during which all magpies were exposed to both an urban noise playback and a quiet control. Birds were presented with the entire test battery twice: following exposure to, and in the absence of, an anthropogenic noise playback; however, tests were always performed without noise (playback muted during testing). Magpies performed similarly in both treatments on all four tasks. We also found that prior experience with the associative learning task had a strong effect on performance, with birds performing better on their second round of trials. Like previous findings on Australian magpies tested on the same tasks in the wild under noisy conditions, we could not find any disruptive effects on cognitive performance in a controlled experimental laboratory setting.},
}

Animals
*Cognition
*Noise/adverse effects
Australia
*Passeriformes/physiology
Behavior, Animal
Male

@article {pmid38954382,
year = {2024},
author = {de Almeida, AT and de Sanctis Pecora, C and Marques, ER and Contin, L and de Almeida, CT and da Cunha, AL},
title = {Assessment of the Efficacy and Durability of IncobotulinumtoxinA in the Treatment of the Upper Face in Adult Women.},
journal = {Dermatology and therapy},
volume = {14},
number = {8},
pages = {2093-2108},
pmid = {38954382},
issn = {2193-8210},
support = {001/2022//Merz Pharmaceuticals/ ; },
abstract = {INTRODUCTION: IncobotulinumtoxinA (Xeomin®) is used in the treatment of dynamic wrinkles and the aesthetic repositioning of facial structures. The duration of its muscular effect typically extends for around 4 months. However, the residual aesthetic benefit can be observed for a longer period. To date, the long-term aesthetic benefit of incobotulinumtoxinA in facial aesthetics has not been systematically evaluated. This study aimed to evaluate longitudinally the duration and aesthetic benefits of incobotulinumtoxinA in the treatment of the upper face in adult women.

METHODS: A quasi-experimental, evaluator-blind, clinical trial involving 28 adult women (30-60 years old) with facial movement lines, undergoing treatment of the upper face with incobotulinumtoxinA by two injectors, following an individualized protocol (ONE21 and glabellar contraction patterns) was performed. Participants were evaluated on the day of the intervention (day 0) and days 30, 120, 180, and 240, and subjected to standardized photographs. The following outcomes were evaluated blindly at each visit: Merz Aesthetics Facial Contraction Scale (MAS), GAIS (Global Aesthetic Improvement Scale), and patient satisfaction. Adverse effects were evaluated at each visit.

RESULTS: Participants ranged in age from 30 to 60 years, 93% were self-declared white, and most of their baseline MAS scores for dynamic lines were moderate and severe. All the parameters presented significative reduction from baseline until day 180. At day 240, the dynamic MAS scores were lower than baseline for forehead lines in 15.4% (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.8-30.0%) of the participants, for glabellar lines in 38.5% (95% CI 18.8-58.1%), and for crow's feet lines in 26.9% (95% CI 9.0-44.8%). Aesthetic improvement compared to baseline was identified in 35% (CI 95% 23‒50%) of the participants at day 240, and 62% (CI 95% 42‒81%) of the sample kept reporting some satisfaction with the procedure.

CONCLUSION: The aesthetic treatment of the upper face with incobotulinumtoxinA demonstrates enduring clinical benefits, and patient satisfaction lasting up to 180 days in most participants. The length of efficacy, which exceeded those reported in the literature, may be attributed to the use of techniques based on individualized assessment such as ONE21 and glabellar patterns of contraction.},
}