Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Preface
- 1 Introduction
- Part I Behaviours specific to communication networks
- Part II The effects of particular contexts
- Part III Communication networks in different taxa
- Part IV Interfaces with other disciplines
- Introduction
- 20 Perception and acoustic communication networks
- 21 Hormones, social context and animal communication
- 22 Cooperation in communication networks: indirect reciprocity in interactions between cleaner fish and client reef fish
- 23 Fish semiochemicals and the evolution of communication networks
- 24 Cognitive aspects of networks and avian capacities
- 25 Social complexity and the information acquired during eavesdropping by primates and other animals
- 26 Communication networks in a virtual world
- Index
22 - Cooperation in communication networks: indirect reciprocity in interactions between cleaner fish and client reef fish
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 06 August 2010
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Preface
- 1 Introduction
- Part I Behaviours specific to communication networks
- Part II The effects of particular contexts
- Part III Communication networks in different taxa
- Part IV Interfaces with other disciplines
- Introduction
- 20 Perception and acoustic communication networks
- 21 Hormones, social context and animal communication
- 22 Cooperation in communication networks: indirect reciprocity in interactions between cleaner fish and client reef fish
- 23 Fish semiochemicals and the evolution of communication networks
- 24 Cognitive aspects of networks and avian capacities
- 25 Social complexity and the information acquired during eavesdropping by primates and other animals
- 26 Communication networks in a virtual world
- Index
Summary
Introduction
The aim of this chapter is twofold. First, to outline how recent developments in cooperation theory are so similar to the communication network concept (McGregor, 1993) that a unified terminology would be useful to facilitate exchange of ideas. Second, we argue that the communication network concept provides an evolutionary framework to predict the widespread occurrence of phenomena that until now have been discussed in the context of highly developed cognitive abilities. This creates a problem: as it stands, there appear to be no words in cooperation theory that were not developed in the human context and hence do not include a cognitive component. We have to use definitions that only constitute the functional aspects of phenomena (like tactical deception and indirect reciprocity) and ignore the mechanistic aspects (i.e. theory of mind, intentionality) that are commonly part of the definitions. We ask readers always to keep in mind that our definitions never imply any specific cognitive abilities. We illustrate our ideas with data on the mutualism between the cleaner wrasse Labroides dimidiatus and its ‘client’ reef fish, which visit cleaners to have ectoparasites removed from their surface, gills and mouth (reviewed by Losey et al., 1999; Côté, 2000).
Cooperation provides a challenge to evolutionary theory because it often involves apparently altruistic behaviour. Hamilton (1964) provided a framework to understand why altruism between kin can be evolutionary stable; specifically, an altruist gains indirect fitness benefits from its action.
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- Information
- Animal Communication Networks , pp. 521 - 539Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2005
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