Animal behavior research and observation

Observing animal behavior is done in a wide variety of research areas, from fundamental neurosciences to wildlife behavior studies or farm animal welfare studies. Explore a range of diverse topics in animal behavior research. From social interactions to genetic influences, gain a comprehensive understanding of animal behavior in various contexts and in various species.

berry-spruijt-says-goodbye

Prof. Berry Spruijt says goodbye (but not really)

Prof. Dr. Berry M. Spruijt recently retired from his position at Utrecht University. I had the honor of attending the symposium that was organized to reflect on and celebrate his career.
head-and-neck-positions-horse

Which head and neck positions are stressful for your horse during lunging?

Being a horse owner and a Noldus employee is the perfect combination when it comes to keeping track of the scientific background for my horseback riding hobby.
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Video-tracking the effect of influenza infection on ferrets

Ferrets are the ideal animal model to assess influenza virus infection and pathogenicity as they display similar clinical symptoms to humans such as sneezing, fever and lethargy.
aphid-predators

Ladybugs and lacewings do not spy on their prey’s alarm pheromone

Leaf sucking creatures like plant aphids are common and can cause considerable damage to plants. Therefore, quite a lot of effort is made to control these tiny creatures.
sniffing-indicator-tastiness

Picky cats and tasty food – sniffing is an indicator for tastiness

Cats can be extremely picky when it comes to food. If the cat doesn’t like it, it will refuse to eat. Reason enough for the pet food industry to try to find out what cats really like.
motor-functioning-mice

Walking the ladder: testing the cellular source of motor functioning in mice

The cerebellum, our “little brain”, is all about motor control; more specifically, it’s about coordination, precision, and timing.
test-dietary-preferences-horses

What a horse likes to eat: how to test dietary preferences

Redgate and colleagues looked into the addition of a monadic phase (a phase in which only one food was offered at a time instead of all of the options) to choice testing.
measuring-fish-aggression

The accuracy of measuring fish aggression by using mirror tests

To examine the response of cichlids to their mirror image, Balzarini et al. used three sympatric species from Lake Tanganyika and did the mirror test for measuring aggression.
food-scarcity-and-caching-fox-squirrels

The relationship between food scarcity and caching in fox squirrels

We’ve all seen squirrels carrying acorns around in their mouths and burying them in the ground. This is a way to hoard food, and most squirrels use a strategy called scatter-hoarding.
welfare-shelter-dogs

The impact of visitor access in a shelter on the welfare of shelter dogs

If you’ve ever been to a shelter to adopt a dog, you know that when you walk into the holding area, the dogs can get very noisy.