Although we say ‘taking the dog for a walk’ in some cases clearly the dog is taking us for a walk. You will find the big dog pulling its owner along in a quest for a squirrel as well as the dog who has found some very intriguing smell and simply will not budge until their owner is yanking at their lease.
In an analogous way we could say that evolution sometimes proceeds through genes dragging culture behind it and sometimes cultures drags genes. ‘Culture’ here being defined as any learned skills or habit, not just an appreciation for Chopin.
The Prairie Dog that learns borrowing from its mother is learning via culture. Selective genetic pressure on claws suited to dig strengthens the value of this learned behavior as a survival advantage. In other instances, mutations resulting in favorable phenotypes leads the way and learned behavior supports a new life style for the animal based on that phenotype.
