Data from: Sex and boldness explain individual differences in spatial learning in a lizard

Understanding individual differences in cognitive performance is a major challenge to animal behaviour and cognition studies. We used the Eastern water skink (Eulamprus quoyii) to examine associations between exploration, boldness and individual variability in spatial learning, a dimension of lizard cognition with important bearing on fitness. We show that males perform better than females in a biologically relevant spatial learning task. This is the first evidence for sex differences in learning in a reptile, and we argue that it is probably owing to sex-specific selective pressures that may be widespread in lizards. Across the sexes, we found a clear association between boldness after a simulated predatory attack and the probability of learning the spatial task. In contrast to previous studies, we found a nonlinear association between boldness and learning: both ‘bold’ and ‘shy’ behavioural types were more successful learners than intermediate males. Our results do not fit with recent predictions suggesting that individual differences in learning may be linked with behavioural types via high–low-risk/reward trade-offs. We suggest the possibility that differences in spatial cognitive performance may arise in lizards as a consequence of the distinct environmental variability and complexity experienced by individuals as a result of their sex and social tactics.

Usage Notes
Learning_models_dataData file containing three worksheets. One worksheet with data for GLM analyses and multi-model averaging. Second file for learning curve analyses and third file for generating Figure 1.

探讨认知能力个体差异对于动物行为与认知研究而言是一项重大挑战。本研究以东方水蜥（Eulamprus quoyii）为研究对象，旨在探究探索性、胆识与个体在空间学习上的差异之间的关联，空间学习是爬行动物认知的一个维度，对生存适应具有重要意义。研究发现，在生物学相关联的空间学习任务中，雄性表现优于雌性。这是首次在爬行动物中发现学习过程中的性别差异，我们认为这可能是由于在爬行动物中普遍存在的针对不同性别的选择性压力所导致的。在性别之间，我们发现模拟捕食攻击后的胆识与学习空间任务的可能性之间存在明显的关联。与先前研究不同，我们发现了胆识与学习之间的非线性关联：无论是‘勇敢’还是‘胆小’的行为类型，都比中间类型的雄性学习效果更佳。我们的研究结果并不符合近期预测，即学习中的个体差异可能与行为类型通过高低风险/奖励权衡相联系。我们提出了一种可能性，即空间认知能力的差异可能源于个体因性别和社会策略不同而经历的独特环境变异性和复杂性。