This video is under embargo. Please login to access this video.
Caption
Brett Jesmer, PhD. Candidate in the UW Program of Ecology, and a team of University of Wyoming scientists has provided the first empirical evidence that ungulates (hooved mammals) must learn where and when to migrate, and that they maintain their seasonal migrations by passing cultural knowledge across generations.
The results were reported today in Science, one of the world’s top journals. Biologists have long suspected that, unlike many bird, fish and insect migrations that are driven by genetics, ungulates learn to migrate from their mothers or other animals in the herd. Previous research had hinted that migration was socially learned in ungulates, but a clear test had eluded researchers until now. For more information, email Brett Jesmer at bjesmer@uwyo.edu or Matthew Kauffman at mkauffm1@uwyo.edu.
Credit
Field footage provided by Wyoming Migration Initiative, Matt Kauffman, Joe Riis, and Greg Nickerson.
Video produced by University of Wyoming / Ali Grossman
Usage Restrictions
Video must be posted as a whole