Personality traits and behavioural profiles in the domestic canary are affected by sex and photoperiod

• Published in: Ethology Vol. 123; no. 12; pp. 885 - 893
• Main Authors: Amy, Mathieu, Ung, Davy, Béguin, Nathalie, Leboucher, Gérard, Fusani, L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hamburg Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.12.2017; Wiley
• Subjects: Animal behavior; behavioural profile; Birds; domestic canary; Females; Gender aspects; Life Sciences; Males; Neurons and Cognition; Personality; Personality traits; photoperiod; Psychology and behavior; repeatability; Sex; Variation
• ISSN: 0179-1613; 1439-0310
• DOI: 10.1111/eth.12662

Personality traits and behavioural profiles are generally assumed to be stable in adulthood. Yet, it has been hypothesised that animals should cope with cyclical fluctuations by adjusting both single behaviours and suites of behaviour. Photoperiod is well known to induce hormonal and physiological changes, and these changes can in turn affect personality traits and behavioural profiles. This study is the first to explicitly investigate the influence of photoperiod on both behavioural profiles and personality traits. Six potential personality traits (within‐flock activity, ability to escape, response to threat, isolation calling, boldness and neophobia) and dominance were measured four times in 96 domestic canaries Serinus canaria (48 males and 48 females): twice during a long photoperiod (Long Days) and 6 months later twice during a short photoperiod (Short Days). Without regard to sex and photoperiod, most traits were highly repeatable, and bolder canaries were more dominant, less sensitive to an external threat and to isolation and less neophobic. In addition, the more active individuals within a flock were the more difficult to catch. Yet, both sex and photoperiod affected personality traits and behavioural profiles. Personality traits remained repeatable within each photoperiod though we observed behavioural plasticity and sex differences for response to threat, neophobia and within‐flock activity. Concerning behavioural profiles, the negative relationship between boldness and neophobia remained homogenous in both sexes during Short Days as well as during Long Days. Then, the more active individuals within a flock were the more difficult to catch in Short Days but not in Long Days. Finally, the other correlations not only varied with photoperiod but also with sex. Our study highlights the importance of photoperiod and sex in the expression of personality traits and behavioural profiles, and of the need to measure them across the whole photoperiodic cycle.