Publications

Under review / Preprints

26. Bhattacharjee, D., Zijlstra, T.W., Roth, T.S., Belli, E., Calis, S.E., Escriche Chova, P., Cousin, E., de Jong, J.A., de Laat, E.J.A.M., Guðjónsdóttir, A.R., Janmaat, K.R.L., Jeunink, E.J., Kluiver, C.E., Kuijer, P.E.N., Middelburg, E., Pflüger, L.S., Schroderus, V.I., van Dijk, E.S.J., Verspeek, J., Waasdorp, S., Zeeman, A.N., Sterck, E.H.M., van Leeuwen, E.J.C., and Massen, J.J.M., 2025. Despotism promotes cooperation through enhanced interdependencies in non-human primate societies. (under review)

25. Bhattacharjee, D., Flay, K.J., Mumby, H.S., and McElligott, A.G., 2025. Adaptive behavioural strategies to seasonal challenges by a semi-urban feral ungulate. (under review)

24. Yang, D.*, Bhattacharjee, D.*, Flay, K.J., Wang, Y., Mumby H.S., and McElligott, A.G., 2024. Public attitudes and values regarding a semi-urban feral megaherbivore. (*co-first authors) (under review)

Published in peer-reviewed journals

2025

23. Gill, T., Gautam, A., Massen, J.J.M., and Bhattacharjee, D., 2025. Personality assessment of synanthropic rhesus macaques: implications and challenges. American Journal of Primatology, 87:e70034.

22. De Moor, D., Skelton, M., MacaqueNet.,..Bhattacharjee, D..., Schülke, O., Ostner, J., Neumann, C., Duboscq, J., and Brent, L.J.N., 2025. MacaqueNet: Advancing comparative behavioural research through large-scale collaboration. Journal of Animal Ecology, 94(4)

2024

21. Bhattacharjee, D., Flay, K.J., and McElligott, A.G., 2024. Personality homophily drives female friendships in a feral ungulate. iScience, 27(12), 111419.

20. Bhattacharjee, D., Waasdorp, S., Middelburg, E., Sterck, E.H.M., and Massen, J.J.M., 2024. Personality heterophily and friendship as drivers for successful cooperation. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 291: 20232730.

19. Bhattacharjee, D.*, Sau, S.*, Das, J., and Bhadra, A., 2024. Does novelty influence the foraging decisions of a scavenger? PeerJ, 12:e17121. (*co-first authors) 

18. Bhattacharjee, D.*, Guðjónsdóttir, A.R.*, Escriche Chova, P., Middelburg, E., Jäckels, J., de Groot, N.G., Wallner, B., Massen, J.J.M., and Pflüger, L.S., 2024. Behavioral, physiological, and genetic drivers of coping in a non-human primate. iScience, 27(2), 108890. (*co-first authors)

2023

17. van Dijk, E.*, Bhattacharjee, D.*, Belli, E., and Massen, J.J.M., 2023. Hand preference predicts behavioral responses to threats in Barbary macaques. American Journal of Primatology, e23499 (*co-first authors)

16. Bhattacharjee, D., Cousin, E., Pfluger, L.S., and Massen, J.J.M., 2023. Prosociality in a despotic society. iScience, 26(5), 106587.

2022

15. Kluiver, C.E., de Jong, J.A., Massen, J.J.M., and Bhattacharjee, D., 2022. Personality as a predictor of time-activity budget in lion-tailed macaques (Macaca silenus). Animals, 12(12), 1495. 

14. Bhattacharjee, D. and Bhadra, A., 2022. Adjustment in the point-following behaviour of free-ranging dogs – roles of social petting and informative-deceptive nature of cues. Animal Cognition, 25.

2021

13. Bhattacharjee, D. and Bhadra, A., 2021. Response to short-lived human overcrowding by free-ranging dogs. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 75, 111. 

2020

12. Bhattacharjee, D. and Bhadra, A., 2020. Humans dominate the social interaction networks of urban free ranging dogs in India. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, p.2153.

11. Bhattacharjee, D., Sarkar, S., Sau, S. and Bhadra, A., 2020. Sociability of Indian free-ranging dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) varies with human movement in urban areas. Journal of Comparative Psychology. 135(1), 89–97. 

10. Bhattacharjee, D., Sau, S. and Bhadra, A., 2020. ‘Bolder’together—response to human social cues in groups of free-ranging dogs. Behaviour, 157(3-4), pp.363-384. 

9. Bhattacharjee, D., Mandal, S., Shit, P., Varghese, M.G., Vishnoi, A. and Bhadra, A., 2020. Free-Ranging dogs are capable of utilizing complex human pointing cues. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, p.2818. 

2019

8. Brubaker, L., Bhattacharjee, D*., Ghaste, P., Babu, D., Shit, P., Bhadra, A. and Udell, M.A., 2019. The effects of human attentional state on canine gazing behaviour: a comparison of free-ranging, shelter, and pet dogs.  Animal cognition, 22(6), pp.1129-1139. (*co-first authors) 

2018

7. Bhattacharjee, D., Sau, S. and Bhadra, A., 2018. Free-ranging dogs understand human intentions and adjust their behavioral responses accordingly. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 6, p.232. 

2017

6. Bhattacharjee, D., Sau, S., Das, J. and Bhadra, A., 2017. Free-ranging dogs prefer petting over food in repeated interactions with unfamiliar humans. Journal of Experimental Biology, 220(24), pp.4654-4660. 

5. Bhattacharjee, D., Dasgupta, S., Biswas, A., Deheria, J., Gupta, S., Dev, N.N., Udell, M. and Bhadra, A., 2017. Practice makes perfect: familiarity of task determines success in solvable tasks for free-ranging dogs (Canis lupus familiaris). Animal cognition, 20(4), pp.771-776. 

4. Brubaker, L., Dasgupta, S., Bhattacharjee, D., Bhadra, A. and Udell, M.A., 2017. Differences in problem-solving between canid populations: Do domestication and lifetime experience affect persistence?. Animal Cognition, 20(4), pp.717-723. 

3. Bhattacharjee, D., Dev, N., Gupta, S., Sau, S., Sarkar, R., Biswas, A., Banerjee, A., Babu, D., Mehta, D. and Bhadra, A., 2017. Free-ranging dogs show age related plasticity in their ability to follow human pointing. PloS one, 12(7). 

2016

2. Bhadra, A., Bhattacharjee, D., Paul, M., Singh, A., Gade, P.R., Shrestha, P. and Bhadra, A., 2016. The meat of the matter: a rule of thumb for scavenging dogs?. Ethology Ecology & Evolution, 28(4), pp.427-440. 

2014

1. Sen Majumder, S., Bhadra, A., Ghosh, A., Mitra, S., Bhattacharjee, D., Chatterjee, J., Nandi, A.K. and Bhadra, A., 2014.  To be or not to be social: foraging associations of free-ranging dogs in an urban ecosystem. acta ethologica, 17(1), pp.1-8.