Sylvia Kaiser
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View article: Adjustment of paternal care in response to experimental variation in extra-pair mating opportunity in male zebra finches
Adjustment of paternal care in response to experimental variation in extra-pair mating opportunity in male zebra finches Open
Extra-pair paternity is prevalent in socially monogamous bird species with biparental care. Male extra-pair matings may coincide with paternal care provisioned to within-pair offspring. This may lead to a trade-off between obtaining additi…
View article: The influence of regularly changing enrichment on the cognitive judgement bias of laboratory rats
The influence of regularly changing enrichment on the cognitive judgement bias of laboratory rats Open
The provision of environmental enrichment is a frequently used refinement method to improve welfare of laboratory animals. Compared to barren housing conditions, enrichment could decrease signs of impaired welfare, such as stress hormone c…
View article: Forever an optimist? Investigating the temporal consistency of optimism within and across life phases in rats
Forever an optimist? Investigating the temporal consistency of optimism within and across life phases in rats Open
View article: The sound of silence: Sex and individual differences in rat ultrasonic vocalisation
The sound of silence: Sex and individual differences in rat ultrasonic vocalisation Open
Rats produce a diverse repertoire of ultrasonic vocalisations (USVs) that, despite their inaudibility to the human ear, have been widely studied in behavioural research. Besides alarm calls in the 22-kHz range, research has also focussed o…
View article: Is Paw Preference in Rats Influenced by Environmental Novelty?
Is Paw Preference in Rats Influenced by Environmental Novelty? Open
The phenomenon of hand and paw preferences has been an integral part of laterality research for many years. Scientists agree that both genetic and environmental factors contribute to the development of laterality. Whereas early‐life factor…
View article: What it is like to be an optimist: temporal stability of cognitive bias in rats and its link to other individual traits
What it is like to be an optimist: temporal stability of cognitive bias in rats and its link to other individual traits Open
View article: Task complexity matters: investigating behavioural lateralization in rats
Task complexity matters: investigating behavioural lateralization in rats Open
View article: Environmental dynamics influence scale cortisol levels in Mexican cavefish
Environmental dynamics influence scale cortisol levels in Mexican cavefish Open
Cortisol is a key hormone involved in stress responses, and its regulation can vary across populations experiencing different environmental pressures. While short term changes in certain environmental factors can result in immediate change…
View article: Forever an optimist? Investigating the temporal consistency of optimism within and across life phases in rats
Forever an optimist? Investigating the temporal consistency of optimism within and across life phases in rats Open
It is long known from human psychology that people differ in their perception of the world, with some judging ambiguous information more positively (i.e., “optimists”) and some more negatively (i.e., “pessimists”). About 20 years ago, this…
View article: The Sound of Silence: Sex and Individual Differences in Rat Ultrasonic Vocalisation
The Sound of Silence: Sex and Individual Differences in Rat Ultrasonic Vocalisation Open
View article: Optimism and pessimism: a concept for behavioural ecology
Optimism and pessimism: a concept for behavioural ecology Open
Originating from human psychology, the concepts of “optimism” and “pessimism” were transferred to animal welfare science about 20 years ago to study emotional states in non‐human animals. Over time, “optimism” and “pessimism” have develope…
View article: The behavioural ecology of optimism: judgement bias and foraging under predation risk in mice
The behavioural ecology of optimism: judgement bias and foraging under predation risk in mice Open
View article: The gut microbiota-immune-brain axis in a wild vertebrate: dynamic interactions and health impacts
The gut microbiota-immune-brain axis in a wild vertebrate: dynamic interactions and health impacts Open
The gut microbiota-immune-brain axis is a feedback network which influences diverse physiological processes and plays a pivotal role in overall health and wellbeing. Although research in humans and laboratory mice has shed light into the a…
View article: Personality matters – The interplay between consistent individual differences and mouse welfare in female C57BL6/J mice
Personality matters – The interplay between consistent individual differences and mouse welfare in female C57BL6/J mice Open
To ensure good welfare of animals in human hands, it is essential to modify housing conditions according to the animals’ needs. Traditionally, the effects of such modifications are studied by means of group-level comparisons, thereby widel…
View article: Individualisation and individualised science across disciplinary perspectives
Individualisation and individualised science across disciplinary perspectives Open
Recent efforts in a range of scientific fields have emphasised research and methods concerning individual differences and individualisation. This article brings together various scientific disciplines—ecology, evolution, and animal behavio…
View article: The gut microbiota-immune-brain axis in a wild vertebrate: dynamic interactions and health impacts
The gut microbiota-immune-brain axis in a wild vertebrate: dynamic interactions and health impacts Open
The gut microbiota-immune-brain axis is a feedback network which influences diverse physiological processes and plays a pivotal role in overall health and well-being. Although research in humans and laboratory mice has shed light into the …
View article: Specifically unspecific – Simple devices as feasible and effective enrichment for small mammals
Specifically unspecific – Simple devices as feasible and effective enrichment for small mammals Open
Although enrichment is an essential part of modern zoo animal husbandry, research on effective enrichment for small mammals is scarce, albeit they are regularly kept in zoos. To develop solutions that are inexpensive, readily applicable, a…
View article: Individualisation and individualised science across disciplinary perspectives
Individualisation and individualised science across disciplinary perspectives Open
Recent efforts in a range of scientific fields have emphasised research and methods concerning individual differences and individualisation. This article brings together various scientific disciplines—ecology, evolution, and animal behavio…
View article: Social niche shapes social behavior and cortisol concentrations during adolescence in female guinea pigs
Social niche shapes social behavior and cortisol concentrations during adolescence in female guinea pigs Open
Individualized social niches arise in social groups, resulting in divergent social behavior profiles among group members. During sensitive life phases, the individualized social niche can profoundly impact the development of social behavio…
View article: Stress response of fire salamander larvae differs between habitat types
Stress response of fire salamander larvae differs between habitat types Open
The larvae of the European fire salamander ( Salamandra salamandra ) can inhabit two different habitats: streams and ponds. Streams are characterized by lower predation risks and higher food availability. Thus, ponds are considered a less …
View article: Individualized social niches in animals: Theoretical clarifications and processes of niche change
Individualized social niches in animals: Theoretical clarifications and processes of niche change Open
What are social niches, and how do they arise and change? Our first goal in the present article is to clarify the concept of an individualized social niche and to distinguish it from related concepts, such as a social environment and a soc…
View article: Shaped by you: The effect of social partner on cortisol and behavior during adolescence in a female rodent
Shaped by you: The effect of social partner on cortisol and behavior during adolescence in a female rodent Open
Adolescence is a sensitive phase when cues from the social environment can shape consistent individual differences in behavioral and hormonal profiles, but the effect of the social partner on these phenotypes is not well‐understood, especi…
View article: Structural enrichment for laboratory mice: exploring the effects of novelty and complexity
Structural enrichment for laboratory mice: exploring the effects of novelty and complexity Open
Providing structural enrichment is a widespread refinement method for laboratory rodents and other animals in captivity. So far, animal welfare research has mostly focused on the effect of increased complexity either by accumulating or com…
View article: Stress response of fire salamander larvae differs between habitat types
Stress response of fire salamander larvae differs between habitat types Open
Different habitats can impose varying selection pressures on individuals of the same species. Larvae of the European fire salamander ( Salamandra salamandra ) can inhabit two different habitats: streams and ponds. Streams are characterised…
View article: The behavioural ecology of optimism: exploring potential consequences of judgement bias in mice
The behavioural ecology of optimism: exploring potential consequences of judgement bias in mice Open
When confronted with ambiguous information, some individuals respond as expecting positive and others as expecting negative outcomes. Based on such decisions in ambiguous situations, a behavioural test was developed in animal welfare scien…
View article: Individualisation and Individualised Science: Integrating Disciplinary Perspectives
Individualisation and Individualised Science: Integrating Disciplinary Perspectives Open
Recent trends in a range of scientific fields have seen a shift towards research and methods concerning individual differences and individualisation. This article brings together various scientific disciplines—ecology, evolution, and anima…
View article: The power of a touch: Regular touchscreen training but not its termination affects hormones and behavior in mice
The power of a touch: Regular touchscreen training but not its termination affects hormones and behavior in mice Open
Touchscreen-based procedures are increasingly used in experimental animal research. They not only represent a promising approach for translational research, but have also been highlighted as a powerful tool to reduce potential experimenter…
View article: Behavioral lateralization of mice varying in serotonin transporter genotype
Behavioral lateralization of mice varying in serotonin transporter genotype Open
In humans, non-right-handedness is associated with a higher incidence of psychiatric disorders. Since serotonin seems to be involved in both, the development of psychiatric disorders and lateralization, the present study focuses on the eff…
View article: Effects of castration and sterilization on baseline and response levels of cortisol—A case study in male guinea pigs
Effects of castration and sterilization on baseline and response levels of cortisol—A case study in male guinea pigs Open
An uncontrolled reproduction of animals in human hands should be avoided. To meet this goal, animals are widely castrated, i.e., the gonads are completely removed. Since the gonads are the most important source of sex hormones, this is a s…
View article: Correction: Do multiple experimenters improve the reproducibility of animal studies?
Correction: Do multiple experimenters improve the reproducibility of animal studies? Open
[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001564.].