Data from: Infectious disease, behavioural flexibility, and the evolution of culture in primates

Culturally transmitted traits are observed in a wide array of animal
species, yet we understand little about the costs of the behavioural
patterns that underlie culture, such as innovation and social learning. We
propose that infectious diseases are a significant cost associated with
cultural transmission. We investigated two hypotheses that may explain
such a connection: that social learning and exploratory behaviours
(specifically, innovation and extractive foraging) either compensate for
existing infection or increase exposure to infectious agents. We used
Bayesian comparative methods, controlling for sampling effort, body mass,
group size, geographical range size, terrestriality, latitude and
phylogenetic uncertainty. Across 127 primate species, we found a positive
association between pathogen richness and rates of innovation, extractive
foraging and social learning. This relationship was driven by two
independent phenomena: socially contagious diseases were positively
associated with rates of social learning, and environmentally transmitted
diseases were positively associated with rates of exploration. Because
higher pathogen burdens can contribute to morbidity and mortality, we
propose that parasitism is a significant cost associated with the
behavioural patterns that underpin culture, and that increased pathogen
exposure is likely to have played an important role in the evolution of
culture in both non-human primates and humans.