Chapter 51: Animal Behavior

Question 1

Behavior

Answer 1

• An action carried out by muscles under control of the nervous system
• Essential part in collecting nutrients and finding a mate

Question 2

Behavioral Ecology

Answer 2

The study of the ecological and evolutionary basis for animal behavior

Question 3

Fixed Action Pattern

Answer 3

• Sequence of unlearned acts directly linked to a simple stimulus
• Once this action has begun, it will not stop until it has run its course

Question 4

Sign Stimulus

Answer 4

External cue that triggers a behavior

Question 5

Migration

Answer 5

Regular, long-distance change in location

Question 6

Signal

Answer 6

A stimulus transmitted from one organism to another

Question 7

Communicate

Answer 7

Transmission and reception of signals between animals

Question 8

Pheromones

Answer 8

Chemical substances emitted to communicate through odors or tastes

Question 9

Innate Behavior

Answer 9

• Behavior that is developmentally fixed

- Doesn’t vary with experience

Question 10

Cross-Fostering Study

Answer 10

• The young of one species are placed in the care of adults from another species
• The extent of the offspring’s change in behavior provides a measure of how the social and physical environment influences the behavior

Question 11

Twin Study

Answer 11

Researchers compare the behavior of identical twins raised apart with the behavior of those raised in the same household

Question 12

Learning

Answer 12

Modification of behavior as a result of specific experiences

Question 13

Imprinting

Answer 13

• The establishment of a long-lasting behavioral response to a particular individual or object
• Can take place during the sensitive period

Question 14

Spatial Learning

Answer 14

Establishment of a memory that reflects the environment’s spatial structure

Question 15

Cognitive Map

Answer 15

A representation in an animal’s nervous system of the spatial relationship between objects in its surroundings

Question 16

Associative Learning

Answer 16

The ability to associate one environmental feature (such as color) with another (i.e. a foul taste)

Question 17

Cognition

Answer 17

The process of knowing that involves awareness, reasoning, recollection, and judgement

Question 18

Problem Solving

Answer 18

Cognitive activity of devising a method to proceed from one state to another in the face of real or apparent obstacles

Question 19

Social Learning

Answer 19

Type of learning through observing others

Question 20

Culture

Answer 20

System of information transfer through social learning or teaching that influences the behavior of individuals in a population

Question 21

Foraging

Answer 21

The seeking and obtaining of food

Question 22

Optimal Foraging Model

Answer 22

Natural selection favors a foraging behavior that minimizes the costs (mainly predation) of foraging and maximizes the benefits

Question 23

Monogamous

Answer 23

One male mating with one female

Question 24

Polygamous

Answer 24

• An individual of one sex mating with several of the other
• Polygyny = 1 male and several females
• Polyandry = 1 female and several males

Question 25

Mate-Choice Copying

Answer 25

• Individuals in a population copy the mate choice of others

- Result of social learning

Question 26

Game Theory

Answer 26

An approach to evaluating alternative strategies in situations where the outcome of a particular strategy depends on the strategies used by other individuals

Question 27

Altruism

Answer 27

A behavior that reduces an animal’s individual fitness but increases the fitness of other individuals within the population

Question 28

Inclusive Fitness

Answer 28

The total effect an individual has on proliferating its genes by producing its own offspring and by providing aid that enables other close relatives to produce offspring

Question 29

Coefficient of Relatedness

Answer 29

• r

- The fraction of genes that, on average, are shared

Question 30

Hamilton’s Rule

Answer 30

• Natural selection favors altruism when the benefit to the recipient multiplied by the coefficient of relatedness exceeds the cost to the altruist
• rB >C
• B = benefit ; C = cost

Question 31

Kin Selection

Answer 31

• Natural selection that favors altruism by enhancing the reproductive success of relatives
• Weakens with hereditary distance

Question 32

Reciprocal Altruism

Answer 32

• Altruistic behavior between unrelated individuals, whereby the altruistic individual benefits in the future when the beneficiary reciprocates
• Mainly found with humans

Question 33

Sociobiology

Answer 33

• The study of social behavior based on evolutionary theory
• Certain behavioral characteristics exist because they are expressions of genes that have been perpetuated by natural selection

Question 34

Ethology

Answer 34

• Study of animal behavior

- Less ecological / evolutionary analysis than behavioral ecology

Question 35

Classical Conditioning

Answer 35

• Behavioral procedure in which a biologically potent stimulus (i.e. food) is paired with a previously neutral stimulus (i.e. a bell)
• Ivan Pavlov used this procedure with dogs

Question 36

Observational Learning

Answer 36

The ability of an organism to learn how to do something by watching another individual do it first, even if they have never attempted it before themselves

Question 37

Operant Conditioning

Answer 37

Type of associative learning that is based on trial and error

Question 38

Kinesis

Answer 38

• Seemingly random

- Change in the speed of a movement in response to a stimulus

Question 39

Taxis

Answer 39

A reflex movement toward or away from a stimulus

Question 40

Agonistic Behavior

Answer 40

• Behavior that results from conflicts over resources

- Often involves intimidation and submission