Orangutan males make increased use of social learning opportunities, when resource availability is high

• DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.108940
• Publication Date: 2024-01-19T02:23:26Z
• Authors: Julia Mörchen; Frances Luhn; Olivia Wassmer; Julia A. Kunz; Lars Kulik; Maria A. van Noor...; Puji Rianti; Tri Rahmaeti; Sri Suci Utami At...; Anja Widdig; Caroline Schuppli
• Keywords: Peering; Social Learning; Observational learning

Humans' colonization of diverse habitats relied on our ancestors' abilities to innovate and share innovations with others.While ecological impacts are well studied, their effect social learning remains poorly understood.We examined how food availability affects in migrant orangutan unflanged males, who may learn from local orangutans through peering (i.e., observational learning).We analyzed 1,384 dyadic associations, including 360 events, among 46 wild Sumatran 25 Bornean collected over 18 years.Migrants' rates significantly increased higher time spent proximity others.Furthermore, migrants the more sociable population exhibited compared Borneans, suggesting intrinsic and/or developmental effects learning.These findings emphasize importance investigating immediate, developmental, levels for understanding cultural evolution.