2.20 – Carnivoran Brains: Effects of Sociality on Inter- and Intraspecific Comparisons of Regional Brain Volumes

The social brain hypothesis posits that neural processing of complex social information selectively drives the evolution of large brains, particularly the frontal cortex. This idea is explored in selected carnivore species exhibiting social behaviors based on analysis of virtual endocasts created from computed tomographic scans of skulls. Overall, there is evidence to suggest that differences in sociality and life history influence regional brain volume including the frontal cortex in some carnivore species.