Individuals often vary in their problem-solving performance, and animal personality may help explain such interindividual variation because it affects how individuals perceive and interact with their environment. Proximate factors (behavioural variety, persistence, selectivity and experience) provide behavioural mechanisms that also affect problem-solving performance. Our aim was to assess the link between personality and problem-solving performance in wild-caught, common brushtail possums, Trichosurus vulpecula, and to assess their learning capability. We tested how possums, a native marsupial inhabiting the inner urban environment of Sydney, Australia, solved an escape box problem in the field. Possums could solve this problem by either pushing (easy) or pulling (difficult) a door. We quantified personality traits, including exploration, activity and vigilance, in a separate arena test. We found that personality traits affected problem solving. Exploratory animals were more likely to succeed in their first trial irrespective of task type, but only highly exploratory individuals were likely to solve the difficult task. More active and more vigilant individuals were also more likely to succeed, regardless of task type. For mechanistic behaviours employed during the problem-solving test, individuals spending more time engaged (persistent) were less likely to succeed in the easy task, because they focused more on nonfunctional parts of the box. In contrast, persistent individuals were more likely to succeed in the difficult task. Possums learnt effectively, solving tasks substantially faster on their second attempt. Our study provides the first demonstration of problem solving in free-ranging marsupials using an ecologically relevant test. This allows future comparison of behavioural commonalities and tests of convergent evolution in problem solving among taxa. Furthermore, while personality traits influenced problem-solving capability, we suggest that the rapid improvement in problem solving by all possums through experience and learning helps explain their success in dealing with artificial or novel problems associated with the urban environment.

中文翻译：

---

将动物个性与城市常见刷尾负鼠解决问题的表现联系起来

个体在解决问题的表现上往往各不相同，而动物性格可能有助于解释这种个体间差异，因为它会影响个体对环境的感知和互动方式。直接因素（行为多样性、持久性、选择性和经验）提供了也会影响解决问题绩效的行为机制。我们的目的是评估野生捕获的常见刷尾负鼠 Trichosurus vulpecula 的个性与解决问题能力之间的联系，并评估它们的学习能力。我们测试了负鼠（一种栖息在澳大利亚悉尼市中心环境的本地有袋动物）如何解决野外逃生箱问题。负鼠可以通过推（容易）或拉（难）门来解决这个问题。我们量化了人格特质，包括探索、活动和警惕性，在单独的舞台上测试。我们发现人格特质会影响问题的解决。无论任务类型如何，探索性动物在第一次试验中都更有可能成功，但只有高度探索性的个体才有可能解决困难的任务。无论任务类型如何，更积极、更警觉的人也更有可能成功。对于在解决问题测试中采用的机械行为，花费更多时间（坚持）的人不太可能在简单的任务中取得成功，因为他们更多地关注盒子的非功能部分。相比之下，坚持不懈的人更有可能在艰巨的任务中取得成功。负鼠学习有效，在第二次尝试时解决任务的速度大大加快。我们的研究首次展示了使用生态相关测试解决自由放养有袋动物的问题。这允许未来在分类群之间的问题解决中比较行为的共性和趋同进化的测试。此外，虽然个性特征影响了解决问题的能力，但我们认为，所有负鼠通过经验和学习在解决问题的能力方面的迅速提高有助于解释它们在处理与城市环境相关的人为或新问题方面的成功。