Book contents
- Field and Laboratory Methods in Animal Cognition
- Field and Laboratory Methods in Animal Cognition
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Contributors
- Foreword
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction. The Concept of Umwelt in Experimental Animal Cognition
- 1 Ants – Individual and Social Cognition
- 2 Bats – Using Sound to Reveal Cognition
- 3 Bees – The Experimental Umwelt of Honeybees
- 4 Carib Grackles – Field and Lab Work on a Tame, Opportunistic Island Icterid
- 5 Chicken – Cognition in the Poultry Yard
- 6 Chimpanzees – Investigating Cognition in the Wild
- 7 Dolphins and Whales – Taking Cognitive Research Out of the Tanks and into the Wild
- 8 Elephants – Studying Cognition in the African Savannah
- 9 Fish – How to Ask Them the Right Questions
- 10 Hermit Crabs – Information Gathering by the Hermit Crab, Pagurus bernhardus
- 11 Hyenas – Testing Cognition in the Umwelt of the Spotted Hyena
- 12 Lizards – Measuring Cognition: Practical Challenges and the Influence of Ecology and Social Behaviour
- 13 Meerkats – Identifying Cognitive Mechanisms Underlying Meerkat Coordination and Communication: Experimental Designs in Their Natural Habitat
- 14 Octopuses – Mind in the Waters
- 15 Grey Parrots (Psittacus erithacus) – Cognitive and Communicative Abilities
- 16 Sharks – Elasmobranch Cognition
- 17 Spiders – Hints for Testing Cognition and Learning in Jumping Spiders
- 18 Tortoises – Cold-Blooded Cognition: How to Get a Tortoise Out of Its Shell
- Epilogue
- Index
- References
Introduction. The Concept of Umwelt in Experimental Animal Cognition
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 30 July 2018
Book contents
- Field and Laboratory Methods in Animal Cognition
- Field and Laboratory Methods in Animal Cognition
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Contributors
- Foreword
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction. The Concept of Umwelt in Experimental Animal Cognition
- 1 Ants – Individual and Social Cognition
- 2 Bats – Using Sound to Reveal Cognition
- 3 Bees – The Experimental Umwelt of Honeybees
- 4 Carib Grackles – Field and Lab Work on a Tame, Opportunistic Island Icterid
- 5 Chicken – Cognition in the Poultry Yard
- 6 Chimpanzees – Investigating Cognition in the Wild
- 7 Dolphins and Whales – Taking Cognitive Research Out of the Tanks and into the Wild
- 8 Elephants – Studying Cognition in the African Savannah
- 9 Fish – How to Ask Them the Right Questions
- 10 Hermit Crabs – Information Gathering by the Hermit Crab, Pagurus bernhardus
- 11 Hyenas – Testing Cognition in the Umwelt of the Spotted Hyena
- 12 Lizards – Measuring Cognition: Practical Challenges and the Influence of Ecology and Social Behaviour
- 13 Meerkats – Identifying Cognitive Mechanisms Underlying Meerkat Coordination and Communication: Experimental Designs in Their Natural Habitat
- 14 Octopuses – Mind in the Waters
- 15 Grey Parrots (Psittacus erithacus) – Cognitive and Communicative Abilities
- 16 Sharks – Elasmobranch Cognition
- 17 Spiders – Hints for Testing Cognition and Learning in Jumping Spiders
- 18 Tortoises – Cold-Blooded Cognition: How to Get a Tortoise Out of Its Shell
- Epilogue
- Index
- References
Summary
The concept of "Umwelt" was coined by Jakob von Uexküll during the nineteenth century. The term comprises the "Merkwelt" (how living beings perceive the world through their senses) and the "Wirkwelt" (how living beings interact with the world through their actions). Since all animal cognition tests consist of animals performing actions after having perceived some stimuli, taking each species' umwelt into account when designing the tests and control conditions is deemed mandatory. The authors introduce these concepts and highlight their relevance by providing some experimental examples.
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- Field and Laboratory Methods in Animal CognitionA Comparative Guide, pp. 1 - 7Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2018
References
Kant, I. (1781/1998). Critique of pure reason. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ramón y Cajal, S. (1897/2016). Los tónicos de la voluntad: reglas y consejos sobre investigación científica. Madrid: Gadir.Google Scholar
von Uexküll, J. (1934/2010). A foray into the worlds of animals and humans with a theory of meaning. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press.Google Scholar
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