Accueil LECD

Un laboratoire pour mieux comprendre comportement, communication et développement
chez les animaux et les bébés humains

 
Main projects

Two main topics for the research at the LECD entitled:

  • Topic#1 Communication: from vocal to multimodal behaviour
  • Topic#2 Developmental and cognitive bases of social life within material environments

Different research programs are presented starting with those belonging mainly to topic#1 and ending with those dealing more with aspects of topic#2.

ROBIN

Nicole Geberzahn, Laurent Nagle, Mathieu Amy, Julie Bosca (PhD student), Juliana Lopez Marulanda (ATER), Marie Huet (animal care taker).
Partners: NEUROPSI-CNRS, university Paris Saclay (Fanny Rybak, Chloris Maury, Thierry Aubin), Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, Seewiesen, Germany (Manfred Gahr, Antje Bakker).

This project received and receives support in form of a temporal assignment of one member of the LECD (Nicole Geberzahn, coordinator) to the Acoustics communication teams, NEUROPSI-CNRS, university Paris Saclay by the CNRS (delegation period 2019-2023) and
the University Paris Nanterre (CRCT period 2024). Singing in songbirds has long been considered a male trait.
However, birdsong is also present in female songbirds, a topic widely neglected in research. Studying the song of female birds, in comparison to that of males, is becoming a necessity today. When birds sing, they face different types of constraints related to the process of vocal production or to the transmission of acoustic signals. For species living in urban areas, anthropogenic noise has a negative impact, particularly on long-distance communication. Birds use different strategies to counteract the acoustic masking caused by this noise. For instance, many species shift up the minimum frequenies of their songs to avoid masking by urbain noise. So far, so study has investigated whether there are sex-specific differences in the strategies to adapt to the impact of anthropogenic noise. The European robin is a perfect model to study this question, as this species frequently colonizes urban environments and both males and females sing. During the current contract (ongoing research as part of the PhD thesis of Julie Bosca supervised by Nicole Geberzahn and Mathieu Amy (Laurent Nagle until 2023), we will address the following questions: 1) do female robins develop the same strategies as males to counteract noise (i.e. do both sexes shift up minimum frequencies of their song)? 2) do adaptations of vocal behaviour to urban noise negatively influence the vocal performances in this species (i.e. do such adaptations influence how close to vocal production limits birds sing)? and, if so, 3) is vocal performance in urbain habitats equally compromised in both sexes?

REDSTART

Tudor Draganoiu

Age is known to influence territorial interactions, mate choice as well as reproductive success in birds. Song may be an indicator of age and several songbirds were shown to take the age of the opponent into account during their territorial responses. However, there is only limited evidence for age-related differences in song until now. Our field approach enabled us to dispose of a data set of longitudinal recordings suitable to test for age-related modifications in the songs of a common yet under-studied European songbird, the black redstart. We will mainly explore the evolution of different vocal performance parameters such as the trill rate, the vocal deviation or the consistency of the songs between the first and the second year of life. The black redstart is a species with a delayed plumage maturation, males reaching their definitve plumage only at the end of the first breeding season. Song analyses will enable to test if it also displays a vocal delayed maturation (an increase in one or several measures of vocal performance).

SAVI

Tudor Draganoiu

Many fieldwork experiments highligted a consistent role of bird song in territorial defence. However this is only one step in an escalation chain that may lead to physical aggression. Songbirds use also several call types and some of them have equally been shown to mediate territorial interactions. However  they received much less attention until now. Preliminary observations and recordings (2017-2022) in a Transylvanian population of a reedbed songbird, the Savi warbler Locustella luscinioides, revealed that males use both calls and songs in their territorial responses to playback making it a suitable model to test the threat function of calls. We will therefore record songs and calls and study the behavioural reaction of birds to playback in this population (Romania).

FEMCOURT

Courtship signals in female canaries
Lead : Mathieu Amy and we will take advantage of the recent recruitment of Lucie Rigaill who is a specialist of multimodal communication in primates.

We will continue our research on female signals in the context of sexual selection using canaries. We will particularly take into account the multimodality of communication. In songbirds, courtships often are reciprocal but researches have mainly focused on male signals and female
signals are overlooked. In response to male song, female canaries produce multiple signals : they combine a Copulation Solicitation Display (CSD) and a Copulation Solicitation Call (CSC). We aim to understand the production of female multiple signals by precisely describing the movements during CSDs, the acoustic parameters of the CSCs and their coordination. This first step will enable us to construct a female robot bird (in collaboration with the NIRVANA team, see below) in order to asses the effects of female multimodal signals on male courtship.

NIRVANA

Program funded by the ANR in 2023 (2024-2027).
Coordinator: Sébastien Derégnaucourt. Other members of the LECD involved in this program: Mathieu Amy, Juliette Lavender (research engineer hired in 2024), Nathan Perez (PhD student).
Partners: Laboratory ETIS-CNRS, University Paris Cergy (Alexandre Pitti, Sofiane Boucenna), NEUROPSI-CNRS, university Paris Saclay (Nicolas Giret, Catherine del Negro), LS2N-CNRS Nantes (Vincent Lostanlen).

There is mounting evidence that variability plays an important role in the outcome of sensorimotor learning: in some cases, increased variability during learning is eventually associated with better performance. With this project, we propose to investigate at the LECD 1) the effects of variability on developmental vocal learning using birdsong as a biological model and 2) to use birdsong vocal trajectories to build computational models. Taking advantage of recent methodological advances including the successful use of a robot bird as a song tutor, we will track the song development of young zebra finches (Taeniopygia
guttata) and canaries (Serinus canaria) exposed to different song models that exhibit significant variability. Then, these results will help building new developmental algorithms for neurorobotics including direct model learning and sensorimotor skill acquisition. In particular, the song learning process will be  reproduced in a robot bird that will learn the correspondence between the sound emitted by a live bird and its own motor primitives. This interdisciplinary project combines neuroethology, neurorobotics and signal analysis and synthesis. As part of this research program, we will also explore whether female  canaries who sing sometimes spontaneously but that can also be induced to sing with a testosterone implant, are able to imitate sounds. We will take advantage of a pilot experiment performed during the current contract. We trained young canaries to learn musical melodies inspired by the methods used in  the 18th and 19th centuries. At the behavioural level, this experiment will allow us to explore the learning abilities of artificial stimuli of this species, especially in females for whom, until now, vocal learning abilities have been little explored.

ORIGAMI

ORIGins of Action/perception Mechanisms In the language domain: from the womb to infancy
Irene Lorenzini, Maya Gratier

In healthy adults, speech processing entails the joint activation of brain areas associated with speech perception and production, testifying of a strict Action/Perception (A/P) association in language processing. However, little is known about the infancy of A/P loops in the language domain. Thus, current models of language acquisition bypass a perceptual mechanism that is part of the human perceptual endowment in its final state. The aim of this project is to better understand: the ontogenetic origins of A/P loops; their functional contribution to language development. This program will be led by Irene Lorenzini and in collaboration with the maternity service of the Max Fourestier Hospital, Nanterre. This program has been submitted for funding to the ANR AAPG 2024 (selected after first stage of evaluation in February 2024).

SUNNY

Sounding Sensation in Infancy.
Maya Gratier and Rana Esseily.
Partners: University of Geneva (Didier Grandjean), IRCAM (Frédéric Bevilacqua), University of Toulouse (Bahia Guellai).

The goal of this project is to study the perception of cross-sensory correspondences based on sound, mouvement and touch in young infants. Recent studies have shown remarquable cross-sensory perception abilities in infants starting from birth. These abilities may enable infants to associate feeling states they experience from within their own body through interoception with the infant-directed behaviours (speech, social touch or rhythmic mouvements) of their social partners. This project will explore the ways in which multimodal infant-directed communication is attuned to infants’ perceptual abilities in  relation to the development of interoception. Funding for this project is pending evaluation by the Swiss Science Foundation.

MUSICAL BEINGS

Program funded by the ANR.
Coordinator: Rana Esseily. Contributors : Carla Aimé (postdoc), Dalila Bovet, Océane Cossu-Doye (PhD student), Maya Gratier.
Partners: Laboratory Ethos-CNRS, Rennes (Isabelle George, Cécilia Houdelier, Sophie Lumineau), laboratory LNCA-CNRS, University of Strasbourg: (Hélène Meunier), LPNC-CNRS, University of Grenoble (Louise Goupil).

The aim of this program is to better understand the evolutionary roots of musicality (i.e. abilities related to the perception, appreciation and production of music) and its effects on social behaviour by studying birds. Some authors suggest that musicality appeared during evolution to strengthen social bonds and  group cohesion (“social bond hypothesis”). Several studies have revealed that joint musical activities promote prosociality in children. The relationship between music and social behaviour is little explored in other species. However, as a correlate of the "social bond hypothesis", musicality may also have  emerged in other animal taxa as a means of enhancing social bonds, particularly in social species where group cohesion is essential for survival. During the current contract, we observed that listening to music promotes positive social interactions in both preschool children and cockatiels. Thus, musicality may have emerged at least twice during evolution, in humans and in some birds, with similar adaptive functions. The hypothesis in the literature is that musicality is linked to vocal learning abilities. In the current project, we compare the effect of music on prosocial behaviour in species of birds with and without vocal learning abilities (quails vs. cockatiels, canaries and zebra finches) and we also compare these birds with nonhuman primates (gibbons, marmosets, tamarins) and human children. We investigate the conditions in which music promotes positive social interactions (listening together or separately, passive  listening or production), as well as the possible role of interpersonal synchronization as an underlying mechanism to mediate the proximal relationship between music and social interactions.

CHRONOUS

Isochronous rhythms: influence on cognitive and social skills.
Anne Bobin-Bègue

This research program is developed thanks to different collaborations: 1) collaboration on Siham Bouziane's thesis (start 09/2023, supervised by Adrien Meguerditchian and Jennifer Coull, Université Aix-Marseille): temporal prediction in infants and non-human primates: implications for the evolution and ontogeny of rhythm processing; 2) Alexcia Raymand's thesis co-supervision project: benefits of mobilising spontaneous isochronous rhythms on investment in cognitive and social tasks in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (HDR supervision Marie-Hélène Plumet, Université Paris cité - IRESP funding); 3) Project ROCK: vestibular isochronal rhythms influence our temporal interactions with the physical and social environment and our attentional mobilisation. During human development, but also in apes, youngsters are carried and cradled. The idea is to assess the effects of these mothering practices on developmental markers such as pointing, grasping and laterality, but also on engagement in social interactions and more complex skills such as curiosity, using developmental, comparative and clinical approaches.

EVOCAEP

Evolution of interactions between cognitive abilities and emotions in primates.
Dalila Bovet, Eugénie Mortessagne (PhD student).
Partner: MNHN (Emmanuelle Pouydebat, Fabien Pifféri).

In humans, most cognitive processes are affected by emotional state. The links between emotions and cognition are much less known in nonhuman primates and studies on the relation between emotion and cognition in primates are carried out on too few species. For this project, we will work on 5 species representative of primates’ phylogeny: mouse lemurs, capuchins, Guinea baboons, chimpanzees and humans. To evaluate the direct link between emotional state and cognitive performance, learning and memory tests with cues of various emotional value will be conducted. We will also develop a device based on AI (Artificial Intelligence) to quantify the emotions of nonhuman primates. Thus, the goal of this PhD project is to study the evolution of interactions between cognitive abilities and emotions in primates, in order to highlight the human origins of these interactions and to put forward potential common  mechanisms with other primates.

EMOLEARN

Program funded by the ANR.
Coordinator: Lauriane Rat-Fischer. Members of the LECD involved in this program: Margot Poirier (PhD student), Romain di Stasi (PhD student), Rana Esseily.

Humor is present in all cultures and in many social contexts. Few studies, however, have been carried out on babies who nevertheless develop a sense of humor very early on. Humor has two main functions explaining why it appears so early in development: strengthening social relationships and emotional development (“laughing for love”), and strengthening individuals' learning and cognitive development (“laughing to learn”). Numerous studies have demonstrated a positive effect of humor on learning in adults and school-age children and in human babies by two researchers of our team. We started to investigate whether it is humor in itself which induces this effect on learning, or whether one or more of the components associated with humor play a particular role, such as laughter, surprise, positive emotions, or even the increase in affiliation induced by humor (PhD thesis of Margot Poirier & Romain di Stasi co-supervised by Lauriane Rat-Fischer & Rana Esseily).

TWINCOOP

Program funded by the university of Sao Paolo.
Members of the LECD involved: Timon Lebaron-Kherif (cotutelle University of Sao Paolo and University Paris Nanterre) and Rana Esseily (co-supervisor).
Partner : Emma Otta, University of Sao Paolo, co-supervisor.

The aim of this project is to study cooperation in twin children taking into account zygosity, age, gender and culture. It is a participative research in the sense that parents film their twins’ doing a drawing activity together at home and send the movie to the research team for analysis. Parents also fill a questionnaire on twin interaction and temperament.

LEAR

Learning and Exploring in Babies and Robots.
Lauriane Rat-Fischer
Partner: Pierre-Yves Oudeyer (Laboratoire Flowers, INRIA Bordeaux) and Alex Kacelnik (Department of Biology, University of Oxford).

Children are curious and active learners. They spontaneously play, driven by an intrinsic motivation to explore their environment. The aim of this project is to explore how children autonomously select their own goals and actions depending on task difficulty, which may in turn influence their performance at the  chosen task. We will then compare these results with those from artificial agents with intrinsic motivations, that explore through self-generating and experimenting autonomous goals (e.g. Forestier et al. 2022).

Human-other animal relationships
ELEPHANT

PhD thesis of Annaëlle Surreault-Châble supervised by Gérard Leboucher, emeritus. Funded by a CIFRE-grant. Partner: Parc Le Pal, Saint-Pourçain-sur-Besbre, France. The Asian elephant is facing environmental changes, due to the growth of the human population and the reduction in natural habitat areas. The study of social learning strategies is becoming a major concern to mitigate human-elephant conflicts. Understanding the mechanisms (how, when, what and by whom) could help develop effective alternative strategies for the conservation and management of wild and  captive populations. The aim of this PhD research, based on observational and experimental approaches, is to provide a complete analysis of the characteristics of intraspecies social learning and inter-species transmission as well as the influence of social relationships on learning strategies.

HAPNESS

Program funded by the ANR. Members of the LECD involved in this program: Dalila Bovet, Hillary Jean-Joseph (postdoc).
Partners: Atomic Energy and Alternative Energies Commission (coordinator: Christine Mégard).

The goal of this program is to develop an haptic harness for communication with security dogs. Canine brigades contribute to the overall security by preventing and protecting property and people. In doubt removal, the dog ensures the safety of the intervention team through prior exploration of  the environment. The HAPNESS project aims to 1) explore haptic communication between dog handlers and their dogs for doubt removal activities and 2) assess the impact of vibrotactile signals on dogs’ welfare. Messages delivered to the dog via vibratory interfaces have many advantages.  For instance, maintaining communication when the dog is out of sight and voice, eliminating differences in signaling between two handlers in charge of the same animal, and ensuring consistency in orders from the same handler. However, it is imperative to guarantee that this new communication tool does not impede dog welfare. Hence, the project will monitor the dogs behaviourally and physiologically.

CBD

The goal of this project is to measure the interest in using cannabidiol (CBD) in pets. Funded by a CIFREgrant.
Partner: association AVA. Members of the LECD involved in this program: Audrey Besegher (PhD student), Dalila Bovet, Sarah Jeannin (research associate). Veterinary medicine has increased the longevity of pets and as the population ages, there is an increase in age-related diseases that can ompromise their quality of life. Age-influenced osteoarthritis is the most common cause of chronic pain in dogs, and canine cognitive dysfunction represents a considerable health problem for older dogs. Cannabidiol (CBD) is a molecule naturally present in Cannabis Sativa, which is  developing on the world market. Medically, this chemical substance is being studied for its potential therapeutic effects, particularly on the immune and central nervous systems. The aim of this project is to gain a better understanding of the use of CBD for pets, as well as the effects of CBD on  elderly dogs suffering from osteoarthritis and cognitive dysfunction, with the ultimate goal of improving their quality of life.

ARMYDOG

The goal of this project is to study the factors influencing the effectiveness of the search and detection dog of the Army and the Gendarmerie. Members of the LECD involved in this program: Dalila Bovet, Stéphanie Michenaud (PhD student). Partner: University of Picardie (Vanessa Laguette).

For several thousand years, domestic dogs have been carrying out tasks alongside humans, using their olfactory abilities (hunting, guarding…) These superior sensory abilities compared to ours has led to the formation of a human-dog partnership in law enforcement and military contexts. The  thesis examines the specific arrangement of humandog cooperation in these contexts to identify factors that may influence the performance of canine teams. To achieve this goal, human-dog relationships and interactions are explored through a methodological triangulation, allowing for  investigation from both human and canine perspectives.

PETGAME

member of the LECD involved in this program: Nathalie Béguin. Partners at the UPN: laboratories LAPPS, (Corinne Mazé), CLIPSYD (Lucia Romo), MODAL’X (Nathalie Cheze). This program recently got funded by the GIS games and societies. The objectives of this research project are plural. This will involve, through a multidisciplinary approach combining the perspectives of social psychology and ethology, to study various aspects of human-animal companion interactions during play, on the one hand through testimonies collected from owners and systematic observations  qualitative approach) and, on the other hand, through selfadministered questionnaires (quantitative approach) integrating indicators of perceived well-being linked to certain characteristics of the animal and the owner (type of animal, games, time and duration of play, socioeconomic factors, number of people in the household, age, sex, etc.). The data provided by these two types of approach will allow us to more precisely identify the predominant factors involved in human-animal
companion relationships influencing the perceived well-being of the owner during the qualitative approach and to confirm these results statistically using the quantitative approach.

Life sciences + human and social sciences
  • Dalila Bovet co-supervises the PhD thesis of Marie Calmon with Albert Piette (laboratory LESC, UPN) entitled: “Patterns of presence of great apes (chimpanzees, bonobos) and humans. For a comparative primatography in anthropology”. Through detailed observations and descriptions of  humans’, chimpanzee’s and bonobo’s attentional behaviour during daily activities, we highlight similarities and differences in these species. These qualitative observations are complemented by quantitative measurements of frequencies and duration of gazes and glances as cues of attentional  level. The results of this study on patterns of presence are interpreted in light of the human selfdomestication hypothesis.
  • Pascal Mallet supervise a program funded by the UPL in collaboration with the laboratory PARAGRAPH (Raphaële Miljkovitch, University Paris 8) and the Museum of Quai Branly (Philippe Charlier). This program is focused on empathy of elementary school-age children and adolescents toward  non-human animals, and the function of this emotion and eco-anxiety in foreseing and preparing their future adult life and occupational career. One of the issues adressed by the program is about the role of knowledge about other civilizations in youth’s awareness that our relationship with other  living beings could be different, as well as our way of life.
  • We will continue to promote ethology in “animal studies” and as already mentioned, the installation of the Institut Francilien d’Ethologie on the Condorcet campus will facilitate the interface with human and social sciences (e.g. printemps des humanités in spring 2024).

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Mis à jour le 13 mai 2025