ABSTRACT
Whitehead and co-authors address the increasing evidence that culture is an important determinant of behavior in apes and cetaceans (whales and dolphins). They note that culture transmitted within generations (“horizontal” culture) may assist animals to deal with anthropogenic changes. In contrast, culture transmitted principally between generations (“vertical” culture) may impede adaptation to environmental change. The authors argue that non-human culture should be integrated in conservation biology when addressing species with these characteristics.
