Chapter 7 book (exam3) - Ellen Flashcards
Ideal Free Distribution Theory
Enables behavioral biologists to predict what animals should do when choosing between alternate habitats of different quality in the face of competition for space, food, and other critical resources.
- An individual could gain higher fitness by settling for a lower-ranked habitat that had fewer occupants.
Density-Dependent Habitat Selection
when settlement decisions are influenced by the intensity of intraspecific competition as reflected by the intensity of conspecifics in the location
Resource Selection Functions
functions that are proportional to the probability of use in a resource unit.
- Red-winged Blackbird females distribute themselves freely across male territories to maximize fitness
- Male Red-wings should compete for the best territories in order to attract the most females
- Defending territories have high costs of energy expenditure and risk of injury
Economic Defensibility
The trade-off in costs versus benefits for maintaining a territory
- Individual only predicted to defend territories when the benefits outweigh the costs
- IN several species, males reduce or forgo foraging during the breeding season when they are guarding territories throughout the day
- Hyperterritorial lizards (implanted with testosterone) used up energy reserves and died sooner than others with normal testosterone concentrations
Resource Holding Potential
Ability of a territorial animal to win a fight
Telomeres
Repetitive DNA sequences at the end of each chromosome that protects the chromosome during cell replication and play a role in cellular aging.
- Differ in length between Redstarts wintering in two different habitats.
Birds with longer telomeres have…
a greater return rate
- Suggests they live longer
Early migrators (north) produce the most…
Fledging in Redstarts
Male Ground Squirrels gain a fertilization pay-off for their investment in
territorial behavior
Migratory Connectivity
movement of an individual between summer and winter populations includes stopover sites between breeding and winter ground
Winners of territory competition gain:
Reproductive success
When intruders challenge a territory holder, the intruder…
gives up, often within seconds rather than fight intensely
Resource Holding Potential Hypothesis
popular hypothesis - residence have an edge in physical combat
War of Attrition
winner outlasts the other and ability to continue flying is related to individual energy reserves
Payoff Symmetry Hypothesis
suggests that the value a resident places on a territory is linked to males familiarity with a location (an intruder would not have this)
