Exam III Flashcards
alturistic behavior
behavior that is costly to self but beneficial to others
kinship
a family relationship; center on the probability that individuals share copies of alleles that they have inherited from common ancestors
identical by descent
alleles that are shared because of common ancestry
inclusive fitness
when both direct and indirect components are components of overall fitness
inclusive fitness model
addition to the “classical” models of natural selection; considers the effect of an allele, not only on the individual in which it resides, but on individuals carrying alleles that are identical by descent
Hamilton’s Rule
the decision to aid family members is a function of how related individuals are, and how high/low the costs and benefits associated with the trait turn out to be
ecological constraints theory
examines dispersal options of mature offspring and specifically the conditions that favor dispersal from home rather than remaining on a natal territory
reproductive skew theory
examines how reproductive opportunities are divided among potential breeders by predicting conditions that should favor conflict or cooperation with respect to breeding decisions
worker policing in honeybees
worker bees use information associated with genetic relatedness to “police” their hive and destroy eggs that have low genetic relatedness to them, resulting in an increase in their inclusive fitness
parent-offspring conflict
arises with respect to a parent’s decisions about how much to aid to give to any particular offspring
kin recognition matching models
the basic concept is that Individual 1 attempts to assess whether Individual 2 is kin or nonkin, depending on how closely individual 2 matches the internal template of individual 1.
alliances
when coalitions exist of a long period of time
Byproduct mutualism
-When cooperation is a byproduct of the theoretical cost incurred if the individual did not act in a cooperative manner
-The benefits of acting cooperatively here outweigh the costs, and there is less of a temptation to cheat than present in reciprocity
-More likely to evolve in harsher environments
coalition behavior
cooperative action by two or more individuals or groups against another individual/group; the formation of rival “teams”.
conspecific mutualism
cooperation between individuals of the same species where both participants benefit
cooperation
An outcome that, despite possible costs to the individual, provides some benefits to others; to behave in a way that makes cooperation possible
cooperative signaling
natural selection should favor less exaggerated signals; favors minimizing signaling costs through conspirational whispers, which reduces the conspicuousness of the communication itself
dyadic interactions
happen when two individuals interact in such a way that the fitness of each is affected by both its own action and the action of its partner
Evolutionary Stable Strategy (ESS)
A strategy that when it is used by a large part of the population is the most successful strategy and can’t be replaced.
Four paths of cooperation
- Byproct mutualism
- Reciprocity
- Group selection
- Kin selection
game theory
A parable for the difficulty of solving problems by acting in their own self-interest, find themselves with greater penalty than they would face if they worked together
Implicit information
both parties usually benefit from the information exchange; there is little selection pressure for either to be deceitful: the signaler and receiver have common interests, and selection favors the most economical way to share information
manipulator/mind-reader type communication
signals employed should be exaggerated, similar to a salesman trying to convince someone to buy something
natal area
place of birth
neuroeconomics
a collaborative research effort between economists, neurobiologists and evolutionary biologists that uses brain-imaging technology to understand questions regarding behavior
Optimal Foraging Theory (OFT)
Model which mathematically describes food sources in order to pinpoint the most optimal (or worthy) choice
parental investment
the amount of energy parents invest in raising their offspring
phylogeny
the study of the evolutionary history of a group of organisms
polyadic interaction
interaction that involves more than 2 individuals
predator inspection
a behavior in which an individual approaches a potential predator to assess the threat it poses
Prisoner’s dilemma
a game theory payoff model that is used to study the evolution of cooperation
reciprocal altruism
an organism acts in a manner that temporarily reduces its fitness while increasing another organism’s fitness, with the expectation that the other organism will act in a similar manner at a later time
search theory
the more an organism encounters a target, the more it becomes familiar with its attributes; will be more successful in locating a target
social grooming
when one individual grooms another, considered a cooperative behavior
Tit for Tat (TFT) strategy
-A cooperation strategy based on the “if-then” rule with three main characteristics:
1. “Niceness”- The individual is never the instigator of cheating
2. “Retaliation”- If the partner cheats or defects, the individual using TFT will do the same
3. “Forgiveness”- If the partner goes back to cooperating, the individual will not hold a grudge
Trait-group selection
selection for trait groups based on a group where individuals affect one another’s fitness
Waggle dance
A unique form of behavior in which a bee, deep inside her colony’s nest, performs a miniaturized reenactment of her recent journey to a patch of flowers
