Editing Ethology (section)

===== Imitation =====

{{main|Imitation}}

[[Imitation]] is an advanced behavior whereby an animal observes and exactly replicates the behavior of another.
The National Institutes of Health reported that capuchin monkeys preferred the company of researchers who imitated them to that of researchers who did not. The monkeys not only spent more time with their imitators but also preferred to engage in a simple task with them even when provided with the option of performing the same task with a non-imitator.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nih.gov/news/health/aug2009/nichd-13.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090822171642/http://www.nih.gov/news/health/aug2009/nichd-13.htm |archive-date=2009-08-22 |title=Imitation Promotes Social Bonding in Primates, August 13, 2009 News Release |publisher=National Institutes of Health |date=2009-08-13 |access-date=2011-11-08}}</ref> Imitation has been observed in recent research on chimpanzees; not only did these chimps copy the actions of another individual, when given a choice, the chimps preferred to imitate the actions of the higher-ranking elder chimpanzee as opposed to the lower-ranking young chimpanzee.<ref name="FerrariHorner2010">{{cite journal |last1=Horner |first1=Victoria  |display-authors=etal |title=Prestige Affects Cultural Learning in Chimpanzees |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=5 |issue=5 |date=19 May 2010 |pages=e10625 |issn=1932-6203 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0010625 |pmid=20502702 |pmc=2873264 |bibcode=2010PLoSO...510625H|doi-access=free }}</ref>