根據(jù)一項(xiàng)研究，大群家麻雀（Passer domesticus）與較小的群體相比表現(xiàn)出了更有效的解決問題的技能,。此前的研究表明,，群體生活為動(dòng)物帶來了各種優(yōu)勢(shì)，諸如躲避捕食者和在獲取食物上的成功,。
András Liker 和Veronika Bókony如今報(bào)告說,，較大的麻雀群體比較小的群體有能力更頻繁、更快地獲取食物,。這組作者把捕獲的野生麻雀分成了大群（6只）或小群（2只）,，把熟悉的食物放在熟悉的容器中給它們，但是打開容器的方法和它們?cè)?jīng)看到的不同,，然后觀察它們,。6只一群的麻雀打開容器的次數(shù)是2只一群的4倍，而且打開速度是后者的11倍,。這項(xiàng)研究發(fā)現(xiàn)大群獲取食物的速度是小群的7倍,，這組科學(xué)家把它歸結(jié)為在打開容器方面的效率增加而不是嘗試的次數(shù)更多。無論群體的大小,，城市麻雀比農(nóng)村麻雀打開容器的速度更快,。這組作者提出了一個(gè)假說，即較大群的鳥比較小群的鳥更多樣化，因此更可能具有迅速解決一項(xiàng)任務(wù)的有技能的個(gè)體,。（生物谷Bioon.com）
生物谷推薦原始出處：
PNAS April 27, 2009, doi: 10.1073/pnas.0900042106
Larger groups are more successful in innovative problem solving in house sparrows
András Liker,1 and Veronika Bókony
1 Department of Limnology, University of Pannonia, H-8201, Veszprém, Hungary
Abstract
Group living offers well-known benefits to animals, such as better predator avoidance and increased foraging success. An important additional, but so far neglected, advantage is that groups may cope more effectively with unfamiliar situations through faster innovations of new solutions by some group members. We tested this hypothesis experimentally by presenting a new foraging task of opening a familiar feeder in an unfamiliar way to house sparrows in small and large groups (2 versus 6 birds). Group size had strong effects on problem solving: sparrows performed 4 times more and 11 times faster openings in large than in small groups, and all members of large groups profited by getting food sooner (7 times on average). Independently from group size, urban groups were more successful than rural groups. The disproportionately higher success in large groups was not a mere consequence of higher number of attempts, but was also related to a higher effectiveness of problem solving (3 times higher proportion of successful birds). The analyses of the birds' behavior suggest that the latter was not explained by either reduced investment in antipredator vigilance or reduced neophobia in large groups. Instead, larger groups may contain more diverse individuals with different skills and experiences, which may increase the chance of solving the task by some group members. Increased success in problem solving may promote group living in animals and may help them to adapt quickly to new situations in rapidly-changing environments.
