Table of Contents - PeerJ (Biology Articles)

Taeniopygia guttata

Looking after your partner

‘Sentinel’ behavior (whereby an individual animal assumes a prominent position to scan for predators, whilst others engage in another activity) is an effective strategy amongst species with stable social groups utilizing cooperative and polygynous breeding systems. This study, however, provides strong evidence for such behavior amongst bonded pairs of zebra finches, demonstrating that socially monogamous animals also benefit from sentinel behavior.

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