Elastic motivation for circuit running behaviour in captive African striped mice Rhabdomys dilectus: A consumer demand approach

Abstract

Captive environments often result in repetitive locomotor behaviours in animals, yet the motivation for these behaviours remains poorly understood. We investigated whether circuit running in African striped mice Rhabdomys dilectus represents a necessary coping mechanism or a flexible, cost-sensitive behaviour, which we tested using a consumer demand framework. Twenty mice displaying circuit running were individually housed in cages that limited this behaviour. Mice accessed a test chamber by travelling through a short (low-cost, Lc) or long (high-cost, Hc) connecting pipe, with the incentive value manipulated to create either a large (high, Hi) or small (low, Li) space, creating four treatments: LcHi, LcLi, HcHi, and HcLi. Mice displayed a higher proportion of circuit running in treatments with greater incentives (LcHi, HcHi) compared to those with restricted space (LcLi, HcLi), and the duration spent in the test chamber followed a graded pattern (LcHi > LcLi > HcHi > HcLi). Demand was classified as elastic or inelastic based on changes in behaviour relative to cost. Circuit running decreased as costs increased, indicating an elastic demand. Our findings indicate that circuit running in R. dilectus is flexible rather than fixed, challenging the interpretations of repetitive behaviour as an inflexible coping response. Our study also demonstrates the value of economic models for assessing behavioural motivation in captivity and suggest that repetitive locomotor behaviours may serve adaptive, facultative functions under constrained conditions.