Congratulations! Marina successfully defended her PhD thesis! Many congratulations and all the best for your future!
New paper in Frontiers in Zoology To eat or to care? Factors shaping parental or infanticidal behaviours in male poison frogs during territory takeover. This paper is the final result of the great MSc thesis of Leïla Perroulaz.
New paper in Scientific Reports "Tokay geckos adjust their behaviour based on handler familiarity but according to context" by Isabel Damas-Moreira, Lauriane Bégué, Eva Ringler, and Birgit Szabo demonstrates that reptiles can differentiate between familiar and non-familiar human handlers and adjust their behaviour based on their previous experience
Eva Ringler featured on UniAktuell Eva Ringler was interviewed by UniAktuell about the struggles of women in science
New paper in Molecular Ecology New paper by Océane La Loggia, Diogo F. Antunes, Nadia Aubin-Horth, and Barbara Taborsky shows that social complexity during early development has long-term effects on neuroplasticity in the social decision-making network.
Special Issue on 'Division of labour as key driver of social evolution' Michael and Barbara Taborsky have co-edited a special issue in the Philosophical Transactions B on 'Division of labour as key driver of social evolution'
New research station at the Zoo Zürich In the recently opened research station at the Zoo Zürich, Eva Ringler's team will coordinate projects in one of the research compartments. In the following years, students and researchers from the Behavioural Ecology division will study various aspects of parental care and cognition in poison frogs. The work inside the compartments is fully visible to the zoo visitors, which will make research more visible and comprehensible to the general public.
New paper in Behavioral Ecology Marina and co-authors published the paper "Clutch attendance and call parameters are linked to mating success in a glassfrog with paternal care". The findings of this study demonstrate the prominent role of acoustic communication and female choice in a species with male parental care and sequential polyandry.
New paper about individual discrimination in Tokay geckos "Sex-specific discrimination of familiar and unfamiliar mates in the Tokay gecko." This study is the outcome of a great collaborative effort! We found that both males and females chemically differentiate familiar and unfamiliar mating partners. This research highlights the efficacy of using odours as social stimuli for investigating social cognition in lizards.
Congratulations! Paulina Pawlak successfully defended her PhD thesis! Many congratulations from all of us to this big achievement!
Apple harvesting at Hasli This year, for the first time, we harvested the apples on the trees around the research station to make our own apple juice. This was super great fun and very successful!
Niko Tinbergen Award to Zegni Triki Zegni was awarded the Niko Tinbergen Award from Ethologische Gesellschaft e.V. in 2024! Many congratulations!
Biology Day 2024 The "fish team" won the first price at Biology Day with their highly engaging performance about social competence in fish
Teacher of the year Eva was awarded "Teacher of the Year" for third year Biology students specializing in Ecology and Evolution
Faculty price Mélissa Peignier won the faculty price for the best PhD thesis in Biology! Many congratulations for this great achievment!
New paper about the evolutionary trade-offs between testes size and parenting in glassfrogs Anyelet and collaborators published a new paper in Proceedings of the Royal Society B! Many congratulations!
PhD defensio Many congratulations to Dr. Océane LaLoggia for successful defending her PhD thesis! We wish you all the best for your future career!
New paper about the development of personality "Behavioural consistency across metamorphosis in a neotropical poison frog" is based on the BSc work of Noëlle, and Lauriane proceeded with with experiments in metamorphs. Very proud of this collaborative project!
New paper about the link between personality and reproductive success Mélissa's main PhD paper "Personality traits differentially affect components of reproductive success in a Neotropical poison frog" was just published in Proceeding B!
New paper about the role of personality on pool finding in poison frogs "Odour cues rather than personality affect tadpole deposition in a Neotropical poison frog" was just published as part of the special issue "Behavioural Flexibility and Novel Environments" in Current Zoology.
PhD position available We are looking for a PhD student to study behavioural flexibility in poison frogs
Behaviour2023 conference in Bielefeld We had a great time at the Behaviour2023 conference in Bielefeld! Lots of exciting presentations and stimulating discussions for future projects.
SNSF Scientific Image Competition 2023 Francesca's image “Searching for a good father” wins first prize in the category "Object of Study" in the SNSF Scientific Image Competition 2023! A second image (radial arm maze for testing spatial cognition in geckos) was also awarded by the committee!
Fieldwork in French Guiana 2023 started The 2023 field season in French Guiana just started! All the best for Noelle and Dhanya for their MSc projects!
Hasli Snow Day We had a fun and sunny day in Grindelwald sliding down all levels from baby area to black slopes!
New paper in Scientific Reports "Regardless of personality, males show similar levels of plasticity in territory defense in a Neotropical poison frog" by Mélissa Peignier, Lauriane Bégué, Max Ringler, Birgit Szabo & Eva Ringler
New paper in Animal Cognition Geckos differentiate self from other using both skin and faecal chemicals: evidence towards self-recognition?
New paper in Behaviour Lauriane's MSc project is published in Behaviour! "The link between animal personality and habitat selection in males of the Neotropical poison frog Allobates femoralis"
PhD defensio Maria successfully defender her PhD thesis! Many congratulations from all of us to your achievements!
PhD defensio Mélissa successfully defender her PhD thesis! Many congratulations from all of us to your achievements!
New paper in elife Contrasting parental roles shape sex differences in poison frog space use but not navigational performance
New paper in Biology Letters Fish can infer relations between colour cues in a non-social learning task
New paper in Animal Cognition Our first gecko paper is out! "Fear of the new? Geckos hesitate to attack novel prey, feed near objects and enter a novel space" by Birgit Szabo & Eva Ringler
New paper in Ethology "Mate choice in a promiscuous poison frog." This manuscript is the result of a student research practical!
New paper in Behavioural Processes Lizards lack speed-accuracy trade-offs in a quantitative foraging task when unable to sample the reward
Poster Award to Marina Marina's interactive "frog tinder" poster was selected as one of the three best posters at ISBE2022! Huge congratulations!
ISBE 2022 International Society for Behavioral Ecology Congress 2022, 28th July - 2nd August, 2022 in Stockholm, Sweden
New paper in Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology "Exploring links between personality traits and their social and non‑social environments in wild poison frogs" by Melissa Peignier and Co-authors: In this study we assessed individual levels of aggression, boldness and exploration across an entire wild poison frog population. We found a plastic response of males to changes in female density, which might reflect how individuals cope with their socio-ecological environment.
PhD defensio Congratulations to Irene Garcia Ruiz for a phantastic PhD defense! All the best for your future!
New paper in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution This study led by Sarah Chaloupka represents the first documentation of repeatable aggressive behavior in a territorial context in amphibians.
New paper in Journal of General and Comparative Endocrinology In this study led by Camilo Rodriguez we investigate the androgen response to territorial challenges in a poison frog. This study provides novel support for the challenge hypothesis in a territorial frog.
PhD defensio Congratulations to Jon Andreja (Deja) Nuotclà for his successful PhD defense! All the best for your future career!
New paper in Journal of Experimental Biology A new paper by Birgit Szabo, Rosanna Mangione and co-authors investigates anti-predator behaviour in poison frog tadpoles.
New paper in Evolution This study by Dario Josi, Dik Heg and collaborators suggests that in the cooperative breeder Neolamprologus savoryi, which shows a complex social and relatedness structure, the relative importance of direct and indirect fitness benefits of cooperation depends strongly on helper age.
New paper in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution This field study of Dario Josi and collaborators shows that the life history trajectories of males and females diverge substantially in the cooperatively breeding cichlid Neolamprologus savoryi, which relates to social structure and mating pattern and has important implications for growth, survival and the timing of reproduction.
Special issue in Ethology on “The evolution of social behaviour” A special issue in Ethology, edited by Barbara Taborsky, has appeared to honour the retirement of Michael Taborsky. It contains 16 papers by speakers of a symposium with the same title held on September 10, 2021, at the University of Bern.
New paper in PNAS In their experimental study, Sakshi Sharda, Tobias Züst, Matthias Erb and Barbara Taborsky showed that mothers that had been exposed to predator videos during egg maturation laid heavier and more nutrient-rich eggs. The offspring hatching from these eggs had a 50 msec faster flight reflex at an age of three months compared to the control treatment, revealing an adaptive egg-mediated maternal effect on behaviour.
The evolution of social behaviour This book by Michael Taborsky, Mike Cant and Jan Komdeur draws on social evolution theory, experimental evidence and studies conducted in the field to outline the evolutionary principles underlying the stunning diversity of social systems and behaviours. To succeed in the competition for resources, organisms may either 'race' to be quicker than others, 'fight' for privileged access, or 'share' their efforts and gains. This book illustrates how the ecology and intrinsic attributes of organisms select for each of these strategies, and how a handful of straightforward concepts explain the evolution of successful decision rules in behavioural interactions, whether among members of the same or different species.
New paper in Frontiers in Psychology A new study by Niklas Paulsson and Michael Taborsky shows that reaching out for inaccessible food is a signal of need in Norway rats, which is directed towards social partners that can help obtaining the desired treat.
Appointed fellow of the Institute of Advanced Study, Berlin Michael Taborsky has been elected fellow of the Institute of Advanced Study (Wissenschaftskolleg) in Berlin, starting September 2022. Further, on occasion of the World Humanitarian Day (Aug 19, 2021), Expertscape announced that based on PubMed-data Michael Taborsky is rated among the top ten experts studying altruism worldwide https://expertscape.com/ex/altruism
New paper in Functional Ecology The environment experienced by an organism can affect the expression of individual traits, such as body shape and behaviour. Such local adaptations might influence sociality on the individual and population levels alike. In a study recently published in Functional Ecology an international team led by IEE MSc-student Annika Freudiger and PI Joachim Frommen showed that environmental settings influence the body shape of cooperatively breeding cichlids. These shape differences were heritable and have the potential to feed back on group structure, thereby highlighting the potential to mediate the evolution and maintenance of complex social systems.
Glassfrogs featured in National Geographic These see-through frogs are full of surprises - In the latest issue of National Geographic Anyelet Valencia-Aguilar, Juan Guayasamin, Jesse Delia, Carlos Taboada and Justin Yeager talked about glass frogs. Article and pictures by Angela Posada-Swafford and Jaime Culebras.
BiologyDay21 Anyelet and Marina win the first price with their highly entertaining presentation about our glassfrog reasearch project at the BiologyDay21
New paper in Animal Behaviour "The interplay between winner-loser effects and social rank in cooperatively breeding vertebrates" by Dona Lerena, Diogo Antunes, and Barbara Taborsky.
New paper in Behavioral Ecology "Spontaneous quantity discrimination in a family-living lizard" by Birgit Szabo and co-authors.
New paper in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution "Habitat Quality Determines Dispersal Decisions and Fitness in a Beetle – Fungus Mutualism" by Jon Andreja (Deja) Nuotclà, Janina Marie Christin Diehl and Michael Taborsky
New paper in Scientific Reports "Rats show direct reciprocity when interacting with multiple partners" by Nina Kettler, Manon K. Schweinfurth & Michael Taborsky
