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BIOL 1902 > Animal Defences > Flashcards

Animal Defences Flashcards

1
Q

What is Natural History?

A

It is the observation of living plants and animals – fauna and flora – and their interactions.

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2
Q

What is a Naturalist?

A

Someone who studies Natural History.

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3
Q

Animal Defences

A

Appearances can be used for this (camouflage). Hair is a defence. Osmeterium is a defence organ.

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4
Q

What is camouflage?

A

Concealment, meaning the thing is hidden from the observer. Used as a defence mechanism.

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5
Q

What is background matching?

A

Having your appearance match whatever background you are in. This is done to hide from predators.

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6
Q

How do sparrows use camouflage?

A

Sparrows have vertical lines on their body to help them blend into their background, such as meadowlands.

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7
Q

What is crypsis?

A

Hiding by not moving.

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8
Q

How does the American Bittern use camouflage?

A

It camouflages using background matching. Vertical stripes on the body blend into cattail backgrounds.

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9
Q

What is mimicry?

A

Copying the background of something. Looking like something else.

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10
Q

How do Gray Tree Frogs camouflage?

A

They change their color to match their background and are considered Bark Mimics.

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11
Q

What is seasonal color change?

A

Changing an animal’s color to match the appropriate season’s background.

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12
Q

How do Snowshoe Hares change color?

A

They change from brown to white for winter, being pure white to help them hide.

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13
Q

What are disruptive patterns?

A

Patterns on the animal that break up its body into parts, making it harder for predators to spot.

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14
Q

How do songbirds use disruptive patterns?

A

They have eyelines/eye stripes helping them hide in trees or certain plants.

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15
Q

What is masquerade in camouflage?

A

Changing the appearance to match the environment for camouflage.

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16
Q

What is dead leaf mimicry?

A

Resembling dead leaves for camouflage, such as moths.

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17
Q

What is live leaf mimicry?

A

Resembling live leaves, as seen in Katydids.

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18
Q

What is twig mimicry?

A

Resembling twigs for camouflage, as seen in Inchworms.

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19
Q

What is thorn mimicry?

A

Resembling thorns on twigs, as seen in Tree Hoppers.

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20
Q

What is bird dropping mimicry?

A

Resembling bird poop to avoid predation, as seen in Giant Swallowtail caterpillars.

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21
Q

What is bicolored camouflage?

A

Using two different colors for background matching from two different surfaces.

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22
Q

How do Whirligig Beetles use bicolored camouflage?

A

They are black above and white below to look like sunshine to predators below water.

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23
Q

What is countershading?

A

Using bicoloration to appear flat and blend in the background during sunshine. Animals who have a dark back and light belly look the same colour when in the sun.

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24
Q

What are startle patterns?

A

Patterns shown to predators when camouflage fails, to startle the predator and allow time for escape.

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25
Q

How do Sphinx Moths use startle patterns?

A

They open up their wings to scare birds if attacked, giving them time to escape.

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26
Q

What are eyespots?

A

Patterns that are always visible to trick predators into believing the animals are larger.

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27
Q

What are distraction/deflection patterns?

A

Patterns that deflect the attack of the animal to a non-vital part.

28
Q

What is autotomy?

A

Having body parts that can be discarded and grown back for distraction.

29
Q

What are hard defenses?

A

Body armour that makes it hard for predators to bite into them, such as shells of snails and clams. (turtle shells have 2 parts: upper = carapace and lower = plastron)

30
Q

What are chemical defenses?

A

Defenses that involve toxins or poisons to deter predators.

31
Q

What is aposematic coloration?

A

Having bright coloration to warn predators that the animal is poisonous.

32
Q

What is Mullerian mimicry?

A

Copying the coloration of dangerous or poisonous animals while being dangerous/poisonous yourself. Both have strong defences. (think bees and wasps)

33
Q

What is Batesian mimicry?

A

Copying the coloration of dangerous or poisonous animals while not being dangerous/poisonous yourself. One animal has defence, other does not. (think Monarch Butterflies and Viceroy Butterflies)

34
Q

What is automimicry?

A

When animals of the same species resemble each other to deter predators.

35
Q

What is bluffing?

A

Animals can inflate themselves to look larger.

36
Q

What is thanatosis?

A

The scientific term for playing dead. The hog nosed snake does this, Opossum also does this.

37
Q
A
38
Q

What is vigilance in animals?

A

Being careful and looking out for danger.

39
Q

What do animals do when escaping from predators?

A

Animals raise flags to signal predators that they have been seen and there is no point in pursuing them, or to alert other animals about the presence of a predator.

40
Q

What is vigilance in animals?

A

Vigilance is the behavior of being careful and looking out for danger.

41
Q

What role do large ears play in animals?

A

Large external ears capture sound and help animals like rabbits and deer to magnify and detect danger.

42
Q

How do ears help animals detect danger?

A

Ears can pivot in different directions to scan the area without moving the head.

43
Q

Why do beavers have small ears?

A

Beavers have small ears because large ears would hinder their ability to swim.

44
Q

How do tiger moths hear?

A

Tiger moths have ears in the form of membranes on their thorax, which they use to detect bat calls and escape.

45
Q

How do snakes compensate for their inability to hear?

A

Snakes have Jacobson’s Organ, special sensory cells in the roof of their mouth that analyze their forked tongue.

46
Q

What is the Flemen response in animals?

A

Flemen is the posture assumed by animals to expose their Jacobson’s Organ for analyzing smells.

47
Q

What is the visual advantage of having eyes on the side of the head?

A

Eyes on the side provide a 360-degree field of vision but inferior depth perception.

48
Q

What is the advantage of having eyes positioned at the front of the head?

A

Eyes on the front result in superior depth perception, which is beneficial for hunting.

49
Q

How does eye placement relate to an animal’s habitat?

A

Eye placement is affected by habitat, allowing animals to adapt to their environment.

50
Q

Why do beavers have their eyes positioned near the top of their head?

A

This positioning allows beavers to see, hear, and smell while remaining mostly submerged.

51
Q

What is the purpose of sandpipers’ eye placement?

A

Sandpipers have eyes placed high on their heads to see above ground while probing for food.

52
Q

What is the function of large eyes in nocturnal animals?

A

Large eyes help nocturnal animals gather more light for better vision at night.

53
Q

What is eyeshine?

A

Eyeshine is the reflection in an animal’s eyes at night, appearing as a white shine.

54
Q

What is the tapetum lucidum?

A

The tapetum lucidum is a reflective layer in the eyes that helps capture light for better night vision.

55
Q

What is the benefit of having more eyes in a group of animals?

A

More eyes provide better protection through increased vigilance and safety in numbers.

56
Q

What defines a single-species flock?

A

A single-species flock consists of only one type of bird. Visually confuses predators, odds of being caught decreases.

57
Q

What is a mixed-species flock?

A

A mixed-species flock is composed of multiple species of birds.

58
Q

How do flocks of birds survive in terms of food gathering?

A

Flocks survive by minimizing conflict over food resources, allowing them to gather food efficiently.

59
Q

What is the feeding strategy of single species flocks?

A

Single species flocks fly for food in large quantities to avoid competition.

60
Q

How do mixed species flocks gather food?

A

Mixed species flocks extract different resources found in small quantities, resulting in little competition.

61
Q

What are startle structures?

A

Used as plan B when camouflage doesn’t work. Is a structure that the animal uses to scare off the predator. (Osmeterium - Swallowtail caterpillar and snake-like tongue that shoots out)

62
Q

What is Osmeterium?

A

A defence organ that can be everted when the animal feels threatened. It is used to deceive the predator into thinking prey is a more dangerous animal.

63
Q

What is a deflection structure?

A

It is used to deflect predator. (Lizard losing a limb, Butterfly having wings shaped like antennae to diverge predator from their head.)

64
Q

Hairs as Defence

A

Some bugs and animals use hairs to defend themselves from predators. Prickly hairs keep animals at bay and soft hairs make animals not want to eat them.

65
Q

Models and Mimicry

A

There must be more models than mimics or else the system doesn’t work. Because if the animal does not learn that eating an animal of that coloration is harmful the colors wont deter. The model and the mimic must also exist during the same time of season.

66
Q

Bufotalin

A

A toxin that is found in the skin glands of American toads.

67
Q

Behavioural Defence

A

A behavioural non physiological measure that an animal displays in order to defend its self. For example when toads are attacked they suck In air to make themselves look bigger, this is an example of a behavioural defence. Some animals play dead in order to deter predators.

BIOL 1902 (4 decks)

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