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146 results for “brain size”
Data from: Brain size does not predict learning strategies in a serial reversal learning test
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Data from: Social brain volume is associated with in-degree social network size among older adults
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Relative brain size is predicted by the intensity of intrasexual competition in frogs
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Does brain size matter? Linking cognitive and ecological traits to climate change vulnerability in seabirds
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Brain size affects responsiveness in mating behavior to variation in predation pressure and sex-ratio
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Brain size, gut size and cognitive abilities: the energy trade-offs tested in artificial selection experiment
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Data from: Testing hypotheses of marsupial brain size variation using phylogenetic multiple imputations and a Bayesian comparative framework
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Data from: Larger brain size indirectly increases vulnerability to extinction in mammals
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Brain size predicts learning abilities in bees
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Data from: Light enough to travel or wise enough to stay? Brain size evolution and migratory behaviour in birds
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Data from: Evidence of a conserved molecular response to selection for increased brain size in primates
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Data from: Reversed brain size sexual dimorphism accompanies loss of parental care in white sticklebacks
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Predation risk in relation to brain size in alternative prey of pygmy owls varies depending on the abundance of main prey
Large brains in prey may allow adoption of anti-predator behavior that facilitates escape. Prey species with relatively large brains have been shown to be less likely to fall prey to predators. This leads to the hypothesis that individuals that have been captured by predators on average should have smaller brains than sympatric individuals. We exploited the fact that Eurasian pygmy owls Glaucidium passerinum hoard small mammals and birds in cavities and nest-boxes for over-winter survival, allowing for comparison of the phenotype of prey with that of live conspecifics. In Northern Europe, main prey of pygmy owls are voles of the genera Myodes and Microtus , while forest birds and shrews are the most important alternative prey. Large fluctuations (amplitude 100-200-fold) in vole populations induce rapid numerical responses of pygmy owls in response to main prey populations, which in turn results in varying predation pressure on small birds. We found, weighed and measured 153 birds in food-stores of pygmy owls and mist-netted, weighed and measured 333 live birds of 12 species in central-western Finland during two autumns with low (2017) and high (2018) pygmy owl risk. In two autumns, individuals with large brains survived longer compared to individuals with small brains. Avian prey of pygmy owls had smaller heads than live birds in autumn 2018 when predation risk by pygmy owl was high, while a similar difference was not significant in 2017 when predation risk by pygmy owls was reduced. Finally, avian survivors were in better body condition than avian prey individuals. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that pygmy owls differentially prey on small birds that are in poor body condition and have small brains, and that predation risk imposed by pygmy owls on small birds in boreal forests varies depending on the abundance of the main prey (voles).
Data from: Coevolution of cultural intelligence, extended life history, sociality, and brain size in primates
Explanations for primate brain expansion and the evolution of human cognition and culture remain contentious despite extensive research. While multiple comparative analyses have investigated variation in brain size across primate species, very few have addressed why primates vary in how much they use social learning. Here, we evaluate the hypothesis that the enhanced reliance on socially transmitted behavior observed in some primates has coevolved with enlarged brains, complex sociality, and extended lifespans. Using recently developed phylogenetic comparative methods we show that, across primate species, a measure of social learning proclivity increases with absolute and relative brain volume, longevity (specifically reproductive lifespan), and social group size, correcting for research effort. We also confirm relationships of absolute and relative brain volume with longevity (both juvenile period and reproductive lifespan) and social group size, although longevity is generally the stronger predictor. Relationships between social learning, brain volume, and longevity remain when controlling for maternal investment and are therefore not simply explained as a by-product of the generally slower life history expected for larger brained species. Our findings suggest that both brain expansion and high reliance on culturally transmitted behavior coevolved with sociality and extended lifespan in primates. This coevolution is consistent with the hypothesis that the evolution of large brains, sociality, and long lifespans has promoted reliance on culture, with reliance on culture in turn driving further increases in brain volume, cognitive abilities, and lifespans in some primate lineages.
Data from: Hibernation constrains brain size evolution in mammals
The expensive brain hypothesis predicts that the lowest stable level of steady energy input acts as a strong constraint on a species' brain size, and thus that periodic troughs in net energy intake should select for reduced brain size relative to body mass. Here, we test this prediction for the extreme case of hibernation. Hibernators drastically reduce food intake for up to several months, and are therefore expected to have smaller relative brain sizes than non‐hibernating species. Using a comparative phylogenetic approach on brain size estimates of 1104 mammalian species, and controlling for possible confounding variables, we indeed found that the presence of hibernation in mammals is correlated with decreased relative brain size. This result adds to recent comparative work across mammals and amphibians supporting the idea that environmental seasonality (where in extremis hibernation is necessary for survival) imposes an energetic challenge, and thus acts as an evolutionary constraint on relative brain size.
Data from: Insect brain plasticity: effects of olfactory input on neuropil size
Insect brains are known to express a high degree of experience-dependent structural plasticity. One brain structure in particular, the mushroom body, has been attended to in numerous studies as it is implicated in complex cognitive processes such as olfactory learning and memory. It is, however, poorly understood to what extent sensory input per se affects plasticity of the mushroom bodies. By performing unilateral blocking of olfactory input on immobilized butterflies, we were able to measure the effect of passive sensory input on the volumes of antennal lobes and mushroom body calyces. We showed that the primary and secondary olfactory neuropils respond in different ways to olfactory input. Antennal lobes show absolute experience-dependency and increase in volume only if receiving direct olfactory input from ipsilateral antennae, while mushroom body calyx volumes were unaffected by the treatment and instead show absolute age-dependency in this regard. We therefore propose that cognitive processes related to behavioural expressions are needed in order for the calyx to show experience-dependent volumetric expansions. Our results indicate that such experience-dependent volumetric expansions of calyces observed in other studies may have been caused by cognitive processes rather than by sensory input, bringing some causative clarity to a complex neural phenomenon.
Data from: Brain size and the expression of pheomelanin-based colour in birds
Eumelanin and pheomelanin are the most common vertebrate pigments. They generate different colours and are synthesized under different physiological conditions. While pheomelanogenesis requires high levels of a key intracellular antioxidant (glutathione, GSH), eumelanogenesis is inhibited by GSH. This implies that species that present the molecular basis to produce large amounts of pheomelanin might be more limited to perform other costly processes that generate oxidative stress than species that produce eumelanin. Brain development requires large amounts of energy and antioxidants during ontogeny, so that large-brained species may be constrained in their simultaneous synthesis of large amounts of pheomelanin, but not in their synthesis of eumelanin. Here we tested this hypothesis in a large dataset of 323 bird species. After controlling for the effects of phylogeny, latitude and sexual dichromatism, the proportion of pheomelanic plumage colour was strongly negatively related to the relative brain mass of species, while no relationship was found for the proportion of eumelanic colour. This indicates that the production of pheomelanin is a costly process that cannot evolve together with complex neural structures and thus with large cognitive capacity. This is the first time that the expression of melanic traits is found to correlate with another phenotypic character across species.
Data from: Predator-driven brain size evolution in natural populations of Trinidadian killifish (Rivulus hartii)
Vertebrates exhibit extensive variation in relative brain size. It has long been assumed that this variation is the product of ecologically driven natural selection. Yet, despite more than 100 years of research, the ecological conditions that select for changes in brain size are unclear. Recent laboratory selection experiments showed that selection for larger brains is associated with increased survival in risky environments. Such results lead to the prediction that increased predation should favour increased brain size. Work on natural populations, however, foreshadows the opposite trajectory of evolution; increased predation favours increased boldness, slower learning, and may thereby select for a smaller brain. We tested the influence of predator-induced mortality on brain size evolution by quantifying brain size variation in a Trinidadian killifish, Rivulus hartii, from communities that differ in predation intensity. We observed strong genetic differences in male (but not female) brain size between fish communities; second generation laboratory-reared males from sites with predators exhibited smaller brains than Rivulus from sites in which they are the only fish present. Such trends oppose the results of recent laboratory selection experiments and are not explained by trade-offs with other components of fitness. Our results suggest that increased male brain size is favoured in less risky environments because of the fitness benefits associated with faster rates of learning and problem-solving behaviour.
Data from: Rearing group size determines social competence and brain structure in a cooperatively breeding cichlid
Social animals can greatly benefit from well-developed social skills. Because the frequency and diversity of social interactions often increase with the size of social groups, the benefits of advanced social skills can be expected to increase with group size. Variation in social skills often arises during ontogeny, depending on early social experience. Whether variation of social-group sizes affects development of social skills and related changes in brain structures remains unexplored. We investigated whether, in a cooperatively breeding cichlid, early group size (1) shapes social behavior and social skills and (2) induces lasting plastic changes in gross brain structures and (3) whether the development of social skills is confined to a sensitive ontogenetic period. Rearing-group size and the time juveniles spent in these groups interactively influenced the development of social skills and the relative sizes of four main brain regions. We did not detect a sensitive developmental period for the shaping of social behavior within the 2-month experience phase. Instead, our results suggest continuous plastic behavioral changes over time. We discuss how developmental effects on social behavior and brain architecture may adaptively tune phenotypes to their current or future environments.
Data from: Brain size affects the behavioral response to predators in female guppies (Poecilia reticulata)
Large brains are thought to result from selection for cognitive benefits, but how enhanced cognition leads to increased fitness remains poorly understood. One explanation is that increased cognitive ability results in improved monitoring and assessment of predator threats. Here, we use male and female guppies (Poecilia reticulata), artificially selected for large and small brain size, to provide an experimental evaluation of this hypothesis. We examined their behavioural response as singletons, pairs or shoals of four towards a model predator. Large-brained females, but not males, spent less time performing predator inspections, an inherently risky behaviour. Video analysis revealed that large-brained females were further away from the model predator when in pairs but that they habituated quickly towards the model when in shoals of four. Males stayed further away from the predator model than females but again we found no brain size effect in males. We conclude that differences in brain size affect the female predator response. Large-brained females might be able to assess risk better or need less sensory information to reach an accurate conclusion. Our results provide experimental support for the general idea that predation pressure is likely to be important for the evolution of brain size in prey species.
ScienceDex guides
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These curated guides explain access requirements, typical timelines, costs, and reuse considerations for widely used research datasets.
Allen Brain Atlas
Allen Brain Atlas is an Allen Institute collection of brain map atlases, datasets, APIs, and analysis tools covering mouse, human, and non-human primate brain resources.
Annotated Behaviour and Observability Dataset (ABODe)
ABODe is a University of Edinburgh DataShare dataset for behavior classification in group-housed mice using home-cage video, identities, bounding boxes, ground-plate positions, and annotator labels.
DANDI Archive for NWB datasets
DANDI is a BRAIN Initiative archive for publishing and sharing neurophysiology data, including electrophysiology, optophysiology, and behavioral data packaged as NWB and related standards.
International Brain Laboratory public data
The International Brain Laboratory public data releases expose standardized mouse decision-making experiments, including Neuropixels recordings, widefield calcium imaging, behavior, and session metadata accessed through the ONE API.
OpenNeuro
OpenNeuro is a free, open platform for sharing neuroimaging datasets, with public search, dataset pages, and download paths for web, S3, DataLad, and the OpenNeuro CLI.