This Perspective discusses how the field of behavioural ecology has contributed to fundamental science and tackling global challenges, ranging from understanding how natural selection leads to adaptat...

Conflict between rival groups is rife in nature. While recent work has begun exploring the behavioural consequences of this intergroup conflict, studies have primarily considered just the 1–2 h immedi...

Ecological Entomology, EarlyView.

Big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus) have a diverse vocal repertoire. We tested the hypothesis that frequency-modulated bouts (FMBs) are male-specific calls pro...

We observed domestic cats during 100-second home recordings to investigate how they greet their human caregivers. In 31 households, we analyzed the effects of caregiver and cat characteristics (sex, ...

Predation risk can drive spatial and temporal adjustments in prey behavior. This study investigates the spatiotemporal responses of capybaras (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) to predation pressure in two areas: the Pantanal in Brazil, where their main predators - jaguars (Panthera onca) and pumas (Puma concolor)- are present, and the Iberá Wetlands in Argentina, where these apex predators were absent until jaguars were reintroduced in 2021. Linear models and circular statistics were used to test whether the capybara’s gregarious behavior, distance to water (safe zones), and activity patterns differ between sites before jaguar reintroduction in Iberá, while controlling for temperature and lunar cycles. Capybaras in Pantanal displayed high group cohesion, foraged close to water, and limited their activity to daylight hours, regardless of temperature or moonlight. Conversely, Iberá capybaras exhibited flexible spatial and temporal patterns, foraging at varying distances from water and adjusting activity according to environmental conditions, mainly temperature. These results suggest that capybaras coexisting with pumas and jaguars perceive predation risk in space and time, adapting their behaviors accordingly. These findings emphasize the potential role of predation risk in shaping prey behavior and suggest that the reintroduction of apex predators can restore ecological processes like trophic cascades affecting not only prey populations but also entire biological communities.

Taku Shimada and colleagues show that socially parasitic queens of two ant species spray their respective host queens with chemical signals that trigger host workers to kill the resident queen.

The social interactions Western Australian magpies experience in their first year of life affects their intelligence, according to a new study.

As scientists, we are prone to biases. These biases can influence our ideas, how we conduct our research and how we interpret our findings. Individual researchers can take active steps to locate and ....

In many group-living birds and mammals, the formation of affiliative relationships is hypothesized to cause vocal convergence (an increase in call similarity between individuals). However, testing this causal effect can be difficult, because it requires ...