Synonyms
Definition
The use of two or more tools to obtain a goal.
Introduction
Tool use is a widespread behavior among many nonhuman animal species (e.g., Shumaker et al. 2011). However, nonhuman primates and corvids have produced the most extraordinary examples of tool-use behaviors. In the wild, for example, chimpanzees at Gombe (Tanzania) have been reported to plunge little sticks into termite mounds in order to access the termites. Similar behaviors have been described in New Caledonian crows – they use small twigs to extract insects from holes in logs. These two examples represent instances of using a single tool to obtain food (Shumaker et al. 2011).
Although more uncommon, instances in which the use of two or more tools is required to obtain a particular goal – so-called associative tool behavior (Shumaker et al. 2011) – have also been demonstrated in animals. Associative tool behaviors encompass cases in which animals use a tool to support another...
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References
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Martin-Ordas, G. (2016). Sequential Tool Use. In: Weekes-Shackelford, V., Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_3176-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_3176-1
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Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
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