Cooperation and Altruism

Question 1

Altruism

Answer 1

Animals provide aid to others at a cost to themselves

Question 2

What could have caused altruism to evolve?

Answer 2

Kin selection and Mutualism: benefits of genetics, suggests genetic selfishness

Manipulation: Suggests altruism is form of deception or deceit(manipulation through aid benefits themselves)

Reciprocity: Suggests altruism is form of self-sacrifice(animals help others in good faith, with expectation to pay back later)

Ecological constraints

Question 3

Kin selection

Answer 3

By providing aid to others, animal indirectly helps their genes advance to next generation

Question 4

Diploid

Answer 4

2 sets of chromosomes

1 set comes from each set of haploid parent

Question 5

Coefficient of relatedness (r)

Answer 5

Probability that individuals share an allele with a common relative
Addressing how they are genetically linked

Question 6

What is the probability that an allele comes from mom or dad?

Answer 6

50%

Question 7

Do diploid animals distinguish aid by coefficient of relatedness?

Answer 7

NO

Question 8

Direct fitness vs Indirect fitness

Answer 8

direct fitness has their own offspring survive, while indirect fitness has distant relatives survive

Question 9

Inclusive fitness

Answer 9

having all relatives that animal is related to survive

Question 10

What should animals decide to provide aid? (Do I help them?)

Answer 10

• evaluated using mathematical prediction called Hamilton’s rule

Question 11

Define the variables of Hamilton’s rule

Answer 11

Donor: animal who offers aid
Recipient: animal who receives aid
C = cost to donor for giving aid
B = benefit to donor for providing aid
r1 = coefficient of relatedness between donor and own offspring

r2 = coefficient of relatedness between donor and recipients offspring

Formula: B/C > r1/r2

Question 12

Ultimate altruism

Answer 12

When animals provide aid for severe cost to themselves
Example: bees sting to protect nearby hive, will cause their death

Question 13

Describe an example of incidental/accidental altruism

Answer 13

• alarm calls to run home to safety is used by colonies other than their own
• so altruism wasn’t intended, but did indeed happen

Question 14

How do animals know who is kin?

Answer 14

Phenotype matching: if its like me, it is kin (physical, behavioral, or genetic markers)

Treating anybody near or in my home as kin

Learning to treat who they grow up with as kin

Most likely from behavior and genetic markers

Question 15

Mutualism

Answer 15

association between two organisms where they both benefit

Question 16

Describe how cheetahs use mutualism

Answer 16

Prey too big to take on own, rely on others to accomplish goal

Need cooperation, whether related or not

Question 17

Describe manipulation in the South America tropical ant

Answer 17

Animal performs altruistic act and this alters behavior of animal receiving aid

Parasitic roundworm has relationship with tropical ant (central of south America)

Ant consumes roundworm, roundworm creates bright red belly, attractive to bird to eat and consumed by bird

When bird poops it out, larvae comes out too and this creates roundworm population

Question 18

Tit for tat concept

Answer 18

Do onto others what you expect to get in return

If you cheat out another organism, expect to get cheated on

High probability of encounter each other

Question 19

Describe how Tit for tat concept works for the Hamlet fish

Answer 19

True hermaphrodite

Participates in egg-trading

Fish a deposits some eggs, and Fish B will fertilize eggs

Then will trade roles, swap them

Done since eggs are expensive to produce

Question 20

Describe the Tit for tat concept in Vampire bats

Answer 20

Severely high metabolism

Need blood meals overnight to get through night and next day

Begging behavior can happen, through relatives and such

Unfamiliar bats (ones not seen often or living in same “roost’) not likely to give w/ begging behavior

Question 21

Describe how Florida Scrub Jay uses altruism

Answer 21

• altruism used due to ecological constraints/kin selection

Owner of land has a couple of helpers, help raise young

As helpers get older, they will secure territory/land in the future

Question 22

Social insects

Answer 22

class of organisms

in class you have one reproductive individual aka the queen

Question 23

Name three groups of social insects and examples

Answer 23

Hymenoptera: bees, wasps, ants

Isoptera: termites

Humoptera: true insects (aphids, grasshoppers, cicadas)

Question 24

Describe the structure of a class of social insects

Answer 24

Other members are all sterile individuals aka castes OR chemically/behaviorally inhibited from reproduction

Works spend life rearing young, taking care of colony, and serve queen

Cycle: queen –>lay eggs –> larvae –> adult (who forage for food, protect and serve queen, protect colony/all female)

Question 25

Why are social insects set up in the system this way?

Answer 25

Genetic reasons

Ecological reasons: always needs work, colony will make it successful colony

Physiological reasons: polysaccharide; taken from friends in “friendly” way

Question 26

Describe haploid males in social insects

Answer 26

Develop from unfertilized eggs

Get one set (or 100%) of his chromosomes (genes) from a diploid queen female
r = 1.0
Contribution of genes received represents 50% of the queen’s genome

Males get 0% of his chromosomes from his father (males don’t have a father)
r = 0

Question 27

Describe diploid females in social insects

Answer 27

Develop from fertilized eggs

Get one set (or 50%) of her chromosomes (genes) from a diploid queen female
r = .50
Contribution of genes received represents 50% of the queen’s genome.

Get one set (or 50%) of her chromosomes (genes) from her father
r = .50
Contribution of genes received represents 100% of the father’s genome

Question 28

What is the only know social mammal?

Answer 28

• Naked mole rat
• Only known social mammal
• Same colony structure as social insects
• Behaviorally and chemically infertile
• Female chooses who to mate with
• Despite being social, no preferential treatment seen
• Burrow animals, dig with huge front teeth, travel together
• Studied for many traits, such as why they thrive in low oxygen environments and why they never have cancer
• 3-4 inches big (tinyyyy)

Question 29

Here is listed all the charts that should be studied and understood when it comes to math on this exam

Answer 29

coefficient of relatedness (slide 6)
- ex: parent(mom or dad) & offspring (slide 7)
- ex: grandparent and in relation to half siblings (slide 8)
- full siblings and full cousins (slide 9)
- brothers less related than sisters (slide 30)
- brother and sister vs sister and brother (slide 31)

Hamilton’s rule (slide 13)
- 2 scenarios (slide 13-14)