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The database will comprise a collection of vocal communications, mating displays, play and other social behaviors observed in species from across the globe.

The study, published in and introducing the database, was authored by Kiran Basava, a postdoctoral research associate in UA’s College of Information Science.

“There is a consensus among animal behavior researchers that cultural traditions and socially learned behaviors are important to conservation,� said Basava. “There are decades of research investigating these behaviors across different species that are scattered throughout the literature. We synthesized that work to facilitate creative research and discussions about how culture is defined across different species, as well as how animals respond to different environmental disturbances caused by humans.�

The study originated from the goal of understanding what different animal behaviors tell us about the relationship between human civilization and the animal kingdom. For instance, one question is why all elephants won’t understand each other if they are moved by humans between herds to improve biodiversity and group health.

The database was developed by Basava along with colleagues in the information science college: Cristian Román-Palacios, an assistant professor; Kristen Martinet, a postdoctoral research associate; Hector Garcia-Verdugo, a research associate; and Paige Cherry, an undergraduate student studying information science. Additional participants included Md Alam, a graduate student in the School of Plant Science in the College of Agriculture, Life and Environmental Sciences, and Liam Roberts, a graduate student in Entomology and Insect Science.

“The Animal Culture Database will assist in teaching and understanding basic science,� Román-Palacios said. “You can investigate the origins of culture by not just tracing it back to humans, but by seeing how much variance there is between different species and asking what drives those differences. Culture is not just a human phenomenon, and this database can help investigate what drives culture across the animal kingdom.�

The database was developed by the researchers after reviewing thousands of studies on animal behavior published over past decades, out of which more than 1,000 papers were selected to build the parameters. It now includes information from 121 of those studies, which consolidated data about the behaviors of 30 mammalian species, 30 avian species and one insect species into a searchable, online database.

The core of the database includes an interactive world map in which populations of different species and details of their behaviors have been marked. This data can also be searched by species, behavior or location.

Basava said they are currently working to add information from more than 600 additional papers, and there are future plans to allow other scientists to add their own research to the database.