BOHA - 2

Question 1

How does the behaviour of bird singing develop?

Answer 1

partly innate template and partly learnt - has to hear it from a ‘tutor’

Question 2

Describe what bill thorpe found out about imprinting and the critical period in chaffinches?

Answer 2

Imprinting = sensitive period a couple hours after being born - if nothing is seen they wont imprint
Critical period = a couple months after they left the nest to hear songs of chaffinches and learn the most

Question 3

what is a proximate mechanism causing behaviour?

Answer 3

linked with causation

Question 4

what is an ultimate mechanism causing behaviour?

Answer 4

linked with evolution

Question 5

what are the 2 current functions for bird song?

Answer 5

1) territory defence

2) mate acquisition

Question 6

how are phylogenies created?

Answer 6

using molecular tools

Question 7

how is the evolutionary history of bird song studied but what is the problem?

Answer 7

1) comparative studies
2) phylogeny
- currently not enough information to understand the evolutionary history of song

Question 8

what are the 4 important rules of behaviour?

Answer 8

1) causation
2) ontogeny
3) evolutionary history
4) adaptive significance

Question 9

what is the proximate stimulus for bird song?

Answer 9

1) Light stimulates GnRH which stimulate testes to produce more sperm and testosterone stimulating them to sing
2) Light and day length associated with when particular species breed
3) Day length is the proximate (extrinsic) stimulus for song

Question 10

what are the 2 parts of the brain to do with bird song?

Answer 10

RA connected to the HVC which send impulses to the syrinx

Question 11

what are the 3 groups of birds that sing?

Answer 11

1) hummingbirds
2) parrots
3) passerines

Question 12

what is different about all 3 groups of birds that sing?

Answer 12

the areas that control song in the brain aren’t the same suggests they havent all evolved from a common ancestor

Question 13

what questions can ultimate and proximite behaviour replace in tinbergens 4 questions?

Answer 13

1) Proximate - same as causation - immediate causes

2) ultimate - same as function / adaptive significance of behaviour

Question 14

what is the big question about the evolutionary history of bird song?

Answer 14

did it evolve once from a common ancestor or did it evolve on 3 separate occasions