Cooperation and parental care
Fitness consequences of cognitive abilities on cooperation and conflict in bi-parental care across environments
Together with Dr. Alexis Chaine, we are investigating how the links between parental care, cooperation and cognition can fluctuate with environmental condition (elevation), using a monitored population of wild great tits spread over 1000m of elevation in the French Pyrenees. By:
- determining the relationship between cognitive performance and parental care,
- evaluating the importance of cognitive performance in the coordination of biparental care…
- … among environments (altitudinal and urbanization gradients and brood size manipulations),
- determining the fitness consequences of cognitive performance related to parental care in contrasted environments.
We will provide a major advance in our understanding of the role that cognitive performance plays in behavioral plasticity with regards to the coordination of bi-parental care under different environmental conditions.
