Cognitive performance is linked to survival in free-living African striped mice

Abstract

Cognition is shaped by evolution and is predicted to increase fitness. However, the link between cognition and fitness in free-living animals is unresolved. We studied the correlates of cognition and survival in a free-living rodent inhabiting an arid environment. We tested 143 striped mice ( Rhabdomys pumilio ) using a battery of cognitive tests, including: (i) an attention task, (ii) two problem-solving tasks, (iii) a learning and reversal learning task, and (iv) an inhibitory control task. We related cognitive performance with days of survival. Better problem-solving and inhibitory control performance were significant correlates of survival. Surviving males showed greater reversal learning which may be related to sex-specific behavioural and life-history characteristics. Specific cognitive traits and not a composite measure of general intelligence underpins fitness in this free-living rodent population, enhancing our understanding of the evolution of cognition in non-human animals.