Exam 2 Flashcards
Communication
an action on the part of one organism that alters the probability of a behavior occurring in another organism in a manner that is adaptive to either one or both
Communication is dependent on…
the structure and function of the sense organs
Order the major sensory systems begin functioning:
Tactile –> Vestibular –> Chemical (Olfactory) –> Auditory –> Visual
Mammals mark their territories with…
chemical signals.
Ex: Gas, pee
Discrete signals
present messages in an “on /off” manner
Little variability in intensity and duration "yes" "no" "present" "absent" "hot" "cold" "Day" "night"
Graded signals
Communicate a continuum of arousal or motivational states
Vary in intensity and/or duration as the motivation or arousal of the animal changes
Redundancy
use of different modalities to communicate the same information
Guarantee that communication will succeed in the event that one form fails or is inperfect
Advantages of Visual Communication
- Instantaneous rate of transmission
- Short signal fade-out time
- Instantaneous location sender
Disadvantages of Visual Communication
- Not as effective in dark hours
- Not as effective in topographically diverse environments
- Greater risk of exploitation by illegitimate receivers
Advantages of Auditory communication
- Communicate info over short & long distances
- Effective in darkness
- Risk of exploitation isn’t as great as visual cues
Disadvantages of auditory communication
Location of sender is not as good as in visual communication
Advantages of Olfactory Communcation
- Provide info over short
& long distances - Not impeded by physical barriers
- Slow fade-out time in certain circumstances
Disadvantages of Olfactory Communcation
- Slow-fade out time
- Location of sender can be difficult
- Lingering smells can be exploited by predators
Advantages of tactile communication
- Transmitted quickly day & night
- Fast fade-out time
- Location of sender is very easy
- Risk of exploitation = very low
Disadvantages of tactile communication
Only useful when conspecifics are in physical contact
Antithesis
Opposition - Contrast - Resistance
2nd stage of a dialectic process
Darwin documented:
When an animal reverses its motivation…
the associated communicatory signals are also reversed
Impediments to visual communication are ___ important when animals are ___ in captivity.
Less
Maintained
Visual Acuity
involves the degree of detail that can be seen
Cone cells
Perceive both well-defined and color images
Rod cells
More sensitive to light
Provide images that are coarse and poorly defined
IMAGES AREN’T OUT OF FOCUS, LACK DETAIL
Visual Acuity: Domestic Cats
Retinas with proportionately more rods than cones
Their pupils can enlarge by 170% in dark to capture more light
Excellent night vision
Aggressive dogs stature:
maximizes the size of its profile
Submissive dogs stature:
cowards down
becomes small and low
