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Psychology degree > Behaviour and evolution > Flashcards

Behaviour and evolution Flashcards

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1
Q

What is ethology?

A

-Scientific study of animals in context (in or close to their natural environment)

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2
Q

What is an ethogram?

A
  • A list of behaviours to categorise animal behaviours
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3
Q

What are Tinbergens four questions?

A
  • Causation (control)
  • Ontogery (Development)
  • Function (adaptation)
  • Evolution
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4
Q

What can Tinbergens four questions be classified as?

A
  • Proximate questions (causation/ontogery)

- Ultimate questions (function/evolution)

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5
Q

What is a behaviour defined as?

A

-All observable processes by which an animal responds to perceived changes in the internal state of its body or in the external world.

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6
Q

What factors cause behaviour?

A
  • Internal
  • External
  • Context dependant
  • Errors
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7
Q

What internal factors influence behaviour with an example?

A
  • Biological rhythms (migration movements, mud-skips and tidal changes)
  • Homeostatic behaviour (kangaroo and body temp)
  • Non-homeostatic behaviour (salmon mating or leking)
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8
Q

What external factors influence behaviour with an example?

A
  • Biotic factors: population density (locust swarming behaviour), Sex ratio (clown fish being hermaphroditic)
  • Abiotic factors: Context dependant factors such as light, temperature, tides, landmarks (starlings migrate via celestial bodies and earths magnetic field, Whooper Swans can predict weather for migration, Woodcock chicks change behaviour based on shadow of other birds)
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9
Q

How do errors in behavioural responses effect behaviour with an example?

A
  • Swans have mistaken motorways for rivers

- Lights from human infrastructure guide hatching turtles away from sea (use light from the moon as direction normally)

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10
Q

What are the four types of learning that can affect behaviour with an example for each?

A
  • Innate (fixed at birth, FAP’s) Tinbergens stickleback fish experiments
  • Maturation (behaviour is refined and ‘matures’ overtime) Bowerbird nest building
  • By chance , Pheasants waddles size and colour based off quality of diet
  • Self learning (self refinement of behaviour) comprises of Imprinting (tit songs), Conditioning (Skinner’s box), Habituation, Discriminative learning (learning different food resources for different seasons, tits and milk bottles), Associative Learning (Pavlov’s dogs)
  • Insight learning (Abstract concept to solve problems, ‘Eureka’ moment) Monkeys using tools to obtain food (stacking boxes, using fishing rods ect)
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11
Q

How does natural selection work?

A
  • Huge numbers of individuals are produced.
  • Insufficient resources for all, so many die before reproducing.
  • Individuals vary in attributes.
  • Individuals with attributes better suited to environment are less likely to die.
  • These individuals will be over represented in next generation.
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12
Q

What is meant by fecundity?

A

-Number of offspring a animal can reproduce

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13
Q

What is meant by the trade off of behaviours in terms of function of behaviour?

A

-The need to survive as well as produce and how behaviours need to promote both but can conflict with one another

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14
Q

How do behaviours increases survival?

A
  • Hiding from predators.
  • Escaping from predators.
  • Increasing amount of food eaten.
  • Reducing energetic costs.
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15
Q

How do behaviours promote re productivity?

A
  • By increasing attractiveness.
  • By increasing access to mates.
  • By increasing fecundity.
  • By increasing survival of young.
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16
Q

What is meant by intra specific and inter specific competition?

A
  • Intra is between individuals in a species (peahens & peacocks)
  • Inter is between species (peacocks & tigers)
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17
Q

What is dysfunctional behaviour and how can it benefit individuals?

A

-Behaviour which may put an animal at more risk but has a advantage, for example lekking, mobbing, salmon migration, spider cannibalism

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18
Q

What is mutual-ism?

A
  • A relationship where both parties benefit or one party benefits with no cost to the other (clown fish and anemones)
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19
Q

What is divergent evolution?

A

-Evolution of different features from a common ancestor; resulting in differences between species. (structure of forearm is different in monkey, whale, pig, birds but are compromised of same components)

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20
Q

What is convergent evolution?

A

-Evolution of similar features in unrelated species due to similar environmental pressures (sun and humming bird)

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21
Q

What does parsimony mean in terms of evolution?

A

-Process that requires least number of changes

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22
Q

What three terms explain how behaviour arises?

A
  • Pre-existing behaviour
  • Pre-existing bias
  • Adaptive co-evolution
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23
Q

What does pre-existing behaviour mean in terms of how a behaviour arises?

A

-Integration of pre-existing behavioural elements into novel contexts. (greebs fishing behaviour (survival) also used attract mates through presenting a caught fish)

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24
Q

What does pre-existing bias mean in terms of how a behaviour arises?

A

-Stimulating physiological, neurological and psychological biases previously evolved in a different context (Cichlid fish uses spotted fin to take advantage of female looking to lay eggs ,the bias, by tricking her to lay eggs in his nest)

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25
Q

What does adaptive co-evolution mean in terms of how a behaviour arises?

A

-Coordinated change between two (or more) elements of ecology/morphology/behaviour.” (Ape teste size, larger for multiple matings chimpanzees and smaller for gorillas where one male mates with females and mating is few)

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26
Q

What are three complicating factors when studying evolution of behaviour and an example of each?

A
  • Missing species (humans and speaking)
  • Changed environment (tigers and swimming in water)
  • Changed selection pressure (effects of beavers building dams on other species)
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27
Q

What does primary defence and secondary defence refer to?

A
  • Primary: Reducing the probability of an attack

- Secondary: Reducing probability of a successful attack

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28
Q

Give three examples of primary defence

A
  • Remaining hidden (being inconspicuous).
  • Pretending to be dangerous (mimicry).
  • Reducing your odds of being selected (living in a group).
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29
Q

What can mimicry be broken down into?

A
  • Honest (Mullerian) signalling, animal is actually dangerous (poisonous)
  • Dishonest (Batesion) signalling, animal is pretending to be dangerous
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30
Q

How does living in a group reduce odds of successful predation?

A
  • Dilution (makes selection difficult)
  • Confusion.
  • Selfish herding (living in a group means its more likely someone else gets attacked)
  • Vigilance.
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31
Q

What examples are there of secondary defence?

A
  • Fighting back/mobbing (crows, wilder beasts)
  • Distraction (fake eye on butterfly fish)
  • Alarm calls
  • Showing off (stotting/pronking)
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32
Q

Whats the cost of living in groups?

A

-Less resources available

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33
Q

Give an example of a primary defence that also acts as a secondary one?

A

-Subittern has camouflaged feathers that also can be displayed to make the bird look bigger scaring off predators

34
Q

What are the two types of foragers and what comprises of each?

A
  • Generalist: wide range of food and foraging strategies (Fox)
  • Specialist: Highly selective and limited number of foraging strategies (Panda)
35
Q

How does selecting foods differ?

A
  • Bulk feeders: quantity over quality

- Selector: selects high quality nutritious content

36
Q

How does BMR effect foraging?

A
  • High BMR (hummingbird) has to repeatedly forage to keep up with energy demand
  • Low BMR (crocodile) does not have to meet demand regularly
37
Q

What does endotherm and ectotherm refer to?

A
  • Endotherm (warm blooded) regulates its own internal physiology
  • Ectotherm (cold blooded) relies on environment to regulate internal phsiology
38
Q

How can food itself make itself appealing to eat?

A

-Colour can indicate nutritional value, red and black berries don’t indicate nutritional value but are easy to spot (does increase competition) while rarer colouring’s (yellow) indicate high nutritional value

39
Q

How does group size affect the eating of novel foods?

A

-Larger groups equals greater consumption

40
Q

How do animals work out not to eat?

A

-Will avoid foods that induce sickness, generalists will pay attention to sickness inducing foods. Specialists do not suffer from this issue

41
Q

What is optimal foraging theory?

A
  • Larger items reward more energy however they cost more energy to find and obtain
  • Therefore optimal foraging theory comprises of biggest reward for lowest cost
42
Q

Do all animals eat optimally?

A

-No, some will choose to eat regular smaller amounts rather than risk expending energy foraging

43
Q

What is marginal value theorem?

A
  • Refers to the decision over whether to remain in a habitat or move to access new food resources
  • The theorem consists of how much energy is available in the current habitat compared to the amount available in another feeding site and the energy it would cost to move there
44
Q

What is a time activity budget?

A

-Considers motivation, behavioural need and energy (time) to calculate how important that behaviour is

45
Q

Give three types of sampling methods for data collection of animal behaviour

A
  • Event sampling to count, and determine the frequency or rate of, event behaviours.
  • Continuous sampling over a specific time period to record accurate time spent on specific behaviours by an individual
  • Scan sampling (at intervals) to see what a large group of animals is doing.
46
Q

What is the purpose of sexual reproduction?

A

-Allows for coping of future environmental change

47
Q

What is the red queen hypothesis?

A

-Sexual reproduction allows evolution to occur so a species can keep its place in the ecosystem (‘running to stay in the same place’ also refer to parasites)

48
Q

Describe male and female gametes

A
  • Males gametes: Produced in large numbers, cheap, mobile & easily replenished
  • Female gametes: Produced in restricted numbers, finite supply & immobile
49
Q

How is sexual reproduction a form of natural selection?

A

-It is a evolutionary process where by some individuals gain an advantage over others in relation to reproduction.

50
Q

What is gene flow?

A

-The movement of alleles between (within) populations

51
Q

What is the difference between intersexual selection and intrasexual selection

A
  • Intrasexual selection: male vs male competition

- Intersexual selection:female choice

52
Q

What can intersexual selection be broken down into with an example?

A
  • Female choice co-evolved with trait exaggeration (Fisher’s process).
  • Females that are choosy gain direct benefits.
  • Female are choosy because of sensory bias.
53
Q

How does Fishers process work?

A
  • Phase 1:Female preferences initially evolve because the preferred trait is favoured by natural selection and hence the offspring are more likely to carry the beneficial trait
  • Phase 2: ‘run away selection’ trait choice established increases in sexual selection for the selected trait, leads to development of more extreme trait
54
Q

What is the fixed relative performance model

A

-Relationship between change in trait and mating frequency / success. (stickleback fish, sons have red bellies and daughters have preference for stronger colouring)

55
Q

What does cost of courtships refer to?

A
  • The pressures a individual is exposed to when making mating endeavours
  • Aerobic capacity for example demonstrates how fit an animal is and is judged by females (peacock spider and red deer)
56
Q

What does assortative mating refer to?

A

-The idea that ‘like chooses like’

57
Q

What is a monogamous relationships?

A
  • 1 male, 1 female both do parenting (geese/ swans)
58
Q

What is a polygamous relationships?

A

-1 male, 1+ females Females carry out parenting (Deer/ Gorillas)

59
Q

What is a polygynandrous relationship?

A

-Both parents have constant ‘affairs’ (Dunnocks)

60
Q

What is a polyandrous relationship?

A

-1 female, 1+ males swapped sex roles (Jacanna)

61
Q

What is a promiscuous relationships

A
  • Male and Female briefly meet and mate, no bond formed (birds of paradise)
  • Male defends mating area and has no interaction with offspring
62
Q

What is lekking?

A
  • Males make themselves the only resource (stand in barren areas)
  • Also may be subject to zones (most desirable is centre where relatives may be placed around to increase gene flow)
  • Females may disrupt other females to mate with male
63
Q

What is sexual dimorphism?

A

-Males and females look different (mandarin duck)

64
Q

What does procreatal and altricial mean?

A

-P= look after themselves as infants A= can’t look after themselves as infants

65
Q

What is MHC?

A
  • A set of genes that can show how diverse a persons genes are. More genetically diverse people will seek also seek out more genetically diverse people.
66
Q

How do parents invest in young?

A
  • invest in number
  • invest in egg production
  • invest in care of eggs
  • invest in care of young
  • investment in post dependant young
  • cooperative investment
  • abandonment investment (cuckoo)
67
Q

What is evolution?

A

-descent with modification

68
Q

What is a species?

A

-Species are groups of interbreeding natural populations that are re-productively isolated from other such groups

69
Q

What is the Phenotypic Species Concept?

A

-A species is a set of organisms that are sufficiently similar to one another and sufficiently different from members of other species

70
Q

How has small scale evolution been observed?

A

-Moths and pollution

71
Q

How has evolutionary resistance been observed?

A

-DDT and house flies

72
Q

What is a ring species and what does it show?

A
  • Species that exist in a ring around an unfavourable habitat, overtime they become more isolated. Through this isolation they evolve differently due to environmental constraints. The species as a result hybridises with the ends of the ring become so differently evolved they can no longer interbreed (Salamanders)
  • This shows that inter specific differences can be large enough to produce different species
73
Q

What is uniformitiarianism?

A

-Past interaction and events can help explain the present

74
Q

What are vestigial structures?

A

-Areas used for limbs that have no function anymore but are evidence of previous function (whales)

75
Q

Why do we need a species definition?

A

-To define between variations in same population, between populations and between sibling species (similar except to a genetic level)

76
Q

What is a pamitic population?

A

-Population where everyone can mate with everyone

77
Q

What is a cline?

A

-A gradual change in character (or in allele frequencies over geographic distance). Deer in North America

78
Q

What is a pre-zygotic barrier?

A

-Prevents transfer of gametes to members of another species through ecological and behavioural isolation (differing feet colours of boobies)

79
Q

What is a post-zygotic barrier?

A

-Prevents non-combat able offspring from being fertile (such as mules)

80
Q

What is gamete isolation?

A

-Gametes can be selective, cell surface can determine whether sperm can can penetrate egg

81
Q

What are the four ways species form?

A
  • Allopatric
  • Peripatric
  • Parapatric
  • Sympatric
82
Q

Explain each of the terms for ‘how species form’

A
  • Allopatric- Species form in different geographic areas (birds of paradise) never meet and remain isolated (barrier present)
  • Peripative- similar to allopatric but one species is smaller in population (bears, polar & grizzly)
  • Parapatric- Evolution along a gradient, gradual variation as species gradually move further apart (ring species)
  • Sympatric- Co-existing species but behavioural differences keep them apart (i.e. eat different food sources) occurs in ecological niches

Psychology degree (6 decks)

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