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Long-term retention of the differential values of Arabic numerals by chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)

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Abstract

As previously reported (Beran and Rumbaugh, 2001), two chimpanzees used a joystick to collect dots, one-at-a-time, on a computer monitor, and then ended a trial when the number of dots collected was equal to the Arabic numeral presented for the trial. Here, the chimpanzees were presented with the task again after an interval of 6 months and then again after an additional interval of 3.25 years. During each interval, the chimpanzees were not presented with the task, and this allowed an assessment of the extent to which both animals retained the values of each Arabic numeral. Despite lower performance at each retention interval compared to the original study, both chimpanzees performed above chance levels in collecting a quantity of dots equal to the target numeral, one chimpanzee for the numerals 1–7, and the second chimpanzee for the numerals 1–6. For the 3.25-year retention, errors were more dispersed around each target numeral than in the original study, but the chimpanzees' performances again appeared to be based on a continuous representation of magnitude rather than a discrete representation of number. These data provide an experimental demonstration of long-term retention of the differential values of Arabic numerals by chimpanzees.

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Notes

  1. These chimpanzees have shown similar signs of using an analog mechanism in more spontaneous tasks of numerousness judgments (e.g., Beran 2001). However, it should be noted that variability as a function of set size is not seen in studies in which "responsive" enumeration occurs as when visible sets are matched with a specific numerical symbol (see Beran and Rumbaugh 2001, for further description; see also Matsuzawa 1985; Boysen and Berntson 1989; Pepperberg 1994; Xia et al. 2000, 2001) or in some studies of numerousness judgments (Hauser et al. 2000; but see Call 2000; Beran 2001, 2003).

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by National Institutes of Health Grant HD - 38051 to the Language Research Center of Georgia State University. The author thanks Charles Menzel and David Washburn for their comments on an earlier version of this paper. All applicable institutional rules and regulations regarding animal care and use have been followed in the care and testing of the chimpanzees, and the experiment complied with all laws of the United States of America.

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  1. Language Research Center, Georgia State University, 3401 Panthersville Road, Decatur, GA 30034, USA

    Michael J. Beran

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Beran, M.J. Long-term retention of the differential values of Arabic numerals by chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Anim Cogn 7, 86–92 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-003-0191-x

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