SOCIAL COGNITION IN BABOONS |
D. Cheney and R. Seyfarth
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia , PA 19104, USA |
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| In 1838, Darwin proposed that, as with any other trait, we can understand the evolution of thinking by comparing it across species. For the past 20 years ethologists have tested this hypothesis by exploring, through field observations and experiments, what monkeys and apes know about the most prominent feature of their environment: their social companions. What is the adaptive value of this knowledge? How does it improve survival and reproduction? We consider what has been learned, and discuss some unanswered questions about the evolution of primate cognition. |
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