Behavioural data (cognition and personality)

Mainland and insular lizards’ behavioural traits were assessed using various experimental settings under controlled conditions. Specifically, we measured five personality-related behaviours (aggressiveness, boldness, exploratory behaviour, neophobia, and sociability) and four cognitive traits (spatial and reversal learning, inhibitory control, and problem-solving ability). Aggressiveness was estimated by scoring the lizards’ behaviour (number of biting attempts) in response to their mirrored image. Boldness was assessed in an anti-predatory context and quantified as the latency to emerge from a shelter after a simulated predator attack. Exploratory behaviour was measured by scoring lizards’ behaviour (i.e. time spent moving) in a novel environment. Neophobia was evaluated by observing changes in lizards' feeding latency when a novel object—brightly coloured and artificial—was placed near a familiar food source. Sociability was assessed as attraction towards the odour of conspecifics. Spatial and reversal learning were assessed in a spatial and reversal learning task during which lizards needed to learn and later re-learn the location of a safe hiding spot. Lizards’ ability to exercise inhibitory control was tested with a detour task, during which they had to surmount a transparent barrier to reach the prey. The problem-solving ability of the lizards was judged from their performance in a lid-removal task.

本研究在可控实验条件下，采用多种实验范式对大陆蜥蜴与岛屿蜥蜴的行为特征展开评估。具体而言，我们共测定了5种与个性相关的行为（攻击性(aggressiveness)、大胆性(boldness)、探索行为(exploratory behaviour)、新异恐惧症(neophobia)与社交性(sociability)）以及4种认知性状（空间与反转学习(spatial and reversal learning)、抑制控制(inhibitory control)与问题解决能力(problem-solving ability)）。其中，攻击性通过记录蜥蜴面对镜像时的咬击尝试次数进行评分估算；大胆性在反捕食情境中开展评估，以模拟捕食者攻击后蜥蜴从庇护所钻出的潜伏期作为量化指标；探索行为通过记录蜥蜴在新异环境中的移动时长进行测定；新异恐惧症通过观察当色彩鲜亮的人工新异物体放置于熟悉食物源附近时，蜥蜴取食潜伏期的变化进行评估；社交性以蜥蜴对同种个体气味的偏好程度作为评估依据。空间与反转学习通过空间反转学习任务评估，该任务要求蜥蜴先学习安全藏匿点的位置，后续再重新习得该位置；抑制控制能力通过绕道任务(detour task)测试，受试蜥蜴需越过透明屏障以获取猎物；问题解决能力则通过移盖任务中的表现进行评定。