E&E Seminar: “Cooperative relationships in vampire bats” by Gerald Carter (Princeton University)
November 18, 2025
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Location
SELE 4289
Calendar
Download iCal FileJoin us November 18, 2025 at 12:30 in SELE 4289 for an E&E Seminar featuring "Cooperative relationships in vampire bats" by Dr. Gerald Carter (Princeton University).
Host: Angie Salles
Abstract: Cooperative relationships (e.g. "friendships" in humans) make us happier and healthier. But what exactly is friendship? What are its evolutionary origins? What are the cognitive traits that make it possible? How, why, and to what extent did those traits evolve in other mammals? The long-term goal of my research is to make a small contribution to these big questions by developing food sharing in vampire bats into a tractable experimental system where we can model, measure, and manipulate how friendship-like relationships initially form and change over time. Vampire bats form long-term cooperative social bonds that involve natural, frequent, costly, and reciprocal helping behaviors (e.g. regurgitated food donations). In my lab, we combine field studies, manipulative lab experiments, and data-driven modelling to test hypotheses about how the bats decide who to follow, groom, and help in times of need. In this talk, I will review our progress on this long-term program and discuss future directions.
Date posted
Apr 18, 2025
Date updated
Oct 29, 2025