Social relationships promote access to food and information in wild jackdaws

Abstract Many animals form differentiated social relationships that can influence fitness, but the mechanisms behind these benefits are often unclear. How does the presence of social partners during foraging enhance access to food or information? Might individuals also incur short-term costs, for example, by foregoing feeding opportunities to remain with and support social partners? Here, we investigated how social relationships shape foraging decisions and outcomes in wild jackdaws (Corvus monedula) using automated radio frequency identification (RFID) feeding stations where two birds could perch but only one could feed, with the other queueing behind (‘dyadic events’). Bonded social partners (pair-bonded mates and kin) engaged in these dyadic events more frequently than other dyads and they coordinated their visits, as shown by shorter dyadic arrival latencies. Bonded partners also showed higher social tolerance and possibly social support, with feeding individuals benefitting from a lower probability of being displaced when a partner was present. Queuing individuals accepted short-term time costs to remain with their social partners. For juveniles, following their parents probably promoted access to social information about feeder use. These findings show that social relationships influence decision-making and foraging performance in the wild, revealing both benefits and costs of maintaining close bonds. Short-term effects on foraging success may therefore contribute to long-term fitness advantages of strong social relationships.