Familiarity modulates preference for joint feeding with conspecifics in rats

Author:

Wada ReoORCID,Kamijo Makiko,Katsu NorikoORCID,Hakataya ShiomiORCID,Okanoya KazuoORCID,Koda HirokiORCID

Abstract

AbstractRats are highly social mammals that form social groups of various sizes. Interestingly, they are known to show prosocial behaviors, and are socially tolerant of other conspecifics as they feed together, but the specificity of their prosociality has not been fully understood. Here, we investigated what degree rats showed social choice, i.e., preferential joint feeding even with unfamiliar animals by performing a simple feeding site choice task. In the task, subjects were tested to choose between the feeding site where they fed with other rats (social option) or the other site where they could feed alone (solitary option). The results showed that social option choices increased particularly when the partner was a single non-cagemate rat. This result means that high social preference for other individuals occurs spontaneously, even when they are feeding with unfamiliar non-cagemates. This high degree of social tolerance would lead to the suppression of aggressive behavior as well as enhancement of affiliative relationships even in situations when the rats met with unfamiliar conspecifics for the first time.HighlightsRats are highly socially tolerant mammals as they feed with conspecifics together.We explored how the presence of conspecifics affects feeding site choices in rats.Social choices increased when the partners were non-cagemates.Social choices decreased as the number of non-cagemates increased.Joint feeding with a single non-cagemate is observed particularly frequently.

Publisher

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

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