Final Exam Flashcards
Traits may not be perfectly adaptive because of:
all of the above
In order for a trait to qualify as an adaptation, it must
develop as a result of natural selection
Measures of reproductive success that do not actually involve looking at relative reproductive success across many generations are called:
proxies
The comparative method of behavioral investigation will often use phylogenetic analysis
true
Your text suggests that the fact that ground-nesting black-headed gulls engage in mobbing behavior while closely related kittiwake (that are cliff-nesting) do not mob illustrates an example of:
Divergent evolution
Observations of peppered moths by H.B.D. Kettlewell provided striking evidence of natural selection operating on different color morphs in the species
true
Optimality theory is associated with analysis of costs and benefits
true
Meire and Ervynck developed a highly accurate optimal foraging model for oystercatchers. They predicted that the most optimal targets were the largest mussels because those animals yielded “the most bang for the buck.”
false
Frequency-dependent selection
refers to selection that tends to increase rarer forms of a trail
The principle of parsimony suggests that
the simplest explanation is often the best
Idea free distribution theory predicts
individuals will select different habitats based on maximizing fitness
Gordon Orians tested the ideal free distribution theory using red-winged blackbirds. He studied other females of this species choose lower quality territories when higher quality territories were occupied
true
Marler and Moore tested the costs of territoriality by implanting testosterone beneath the skin of Yarrow’s spiny lizard during a non-breeding time of the year. They found that:
Implanted lizards began exhibiting territorial behaviors and sought out females to mate with
Animals occupying a particular area but not engaging territorial defense behaviors are
said to occupy a home range
Kemp and Wiklund modified Nick Davies experiments on speckled wood butterflies in their efforts to test the prediction that:
Residents generally prevail in territorial contests with intruders
Your text describes a hypothesis that predicts animals may tolerate familiar or neighboring competitors to a greater degree than unfamiliar competitors. This hypothesis is based on an idea called
Dear enemy effect
Debra Sheir and Ron Swaisgood moved 99 kangaroo rats, permitting about half to retain their familiar neighbors and mixing unfamiliar pairs for the remainder. They found that once rats were established in their new spaces, those in familiar groups reproduced more successfully
true
Dispersal in mammals is
more often seen in males
Bar-tailed godwits are listed by Alcock as an example of a long-distance migrating species because they migrate from Alaska to New Zealand
true
As an example of how energetic costs influence migration success, your text describes that case of red knots that feast on aborted seal pups in Delaware Bay. In order to secure enough of this essential protein source the birds exhibit a highly aggressive form of territorial defense that involves direct attempts to blind their competitors via spitting into sand and a chemical irritant into their eyes
false
Given the safety benefits, migrating birds will most always seek routes over land, even if an over-water route will save them time
false
Darwin developed ideas to explain the elaborate and often costly displays observed among some sexually breeding species. These ideas are called:
Sexual selection theory
Alcock described research that predicted that bower-building bird species would exhibit relatively larger brains
true
According to Alcock, females generally enjoy a greater sense of assurace that their offspring cary their genes
true
The theory of sex differences suggests
competition for mates can be influenced by the operational sex ratio
Simply counting the number of matings that males have does not accurately assess their fitness owing to
The ned to account for survival of offspring
Sperm competition
Matings among birds that are not with their nest partners are called
extra-pair copulations
In general, the benefits of mate guarding increase with the probability that unguarded females will mate again
true
Alcock suggests that many behavioral ecologists now see reproduction as an activity in which the two sexes battle for maximum genetic advantage
true
The term for a mating system whereby females copulate with two or more males in a breeding system, sometimes using the sperm of more than one male to fertilize eggs is called
polyandry
Most mammal species are monogamous
false
The mate-assistance hypothesis provides a possible explanation for
monogamy
Your text describes interactions between male and female buring beetles in which males unsuccessfully attempt to attract a second female to the site of a dead mammal. The principle being illustrated is
female-enforced monogamy
Your text describes paternal care on the part of Djungarian hamsters in which male hamsters assist in the birth process
True
in contrast to mammals, most bird species are monogamous
false
The genetic compatibility hypothesis predicts
females will seek multiple males in order to increase the chances of a genetically compatible mating
Polyandry can be found in insect species
true
Benefits that females secure by mating with males beyond quality sperm are called
Material benefits
The polygyny threshold hyothesis as tested in red-winged blackbirds predicts
females will shift from a preference for monogamous males if territory quality offered by polygynous males is significantly better
Female caecilians will allow their offspring to eat their own skin
true
In general, although both sexes pay a price for being paternal, the costs of brood care are generally greater for male than females
true
Bird species that “trick” other species into raising their young are called
brood parasites
Female cattle egrets adjust the amount of androgen they supply to their eggs in relation to the egg’s position in the nest
false
Belostomids (waterbugs) need to lay large eggs because:
producing larger eggs is the only way to produce larger sized adults
Male paternal care is particularly common among fish species
true
