Intro To Communication Flashcards
What does communication mean
Animal communication is the transfer of information from an individual animal or a group to another individual or group
Types of communication
Visual
Peacocks use their elaborate tails during courting rituals
Auditory
Male whales use their song to communicate with females
Tactile
Baboons use touch to show affection and groom each other
Chemical
Skunks use their signature smell to determine predators
Reasons for communication
~to assert dominance
~as a warning e.g. presence of predators
~initiate mating/courtship behaviour
~as a stress signal
~to locate conspecifics or offspring
~to intimidate predators
~to share resources e.g. indicate the location of food
Signal production
Animals communicate by sending signals
The most appropriate signal to use is dependable on various factors, such as:
~the environment
~the distance between the sender and the receiver
~chances of interference
Auditory signalling pros and cons
Pros
~can be used to signal to large groups at any time
~the receiver and sender dont have to be in direct line of vision
~sender doesn’t have to already have the receivers attention
Cons
~signals may be lost in noisy environments
~can give away an animals location to predators
~speed of sound varies depending on environment
Releasers
Lorenz studied animal communication and devised the term “releasers”
A releaser is a stimulus, signal sent from one animal to another, which prompts a specific response from another.
Pheromones
Chemical substance produced and released into the environment affecting the behaviour and physiology of others of its species
Ectohormones- any hormone that is secreted into an individual’s environment and affects the behaviour or activity of another individual…produced by glands on the skin or by ducts within the body, leading to the external areas of the animal
Role of pheromones
Pheromones work externally outside of the body
Pheromones cause a response from other animals e.g. sexual arousal
Many insects use pheromones as their primary method of communication
Pheromones are produced in and released from a variety of specialised skin glands
Can be used to trigger many behavioural repsonse,such as:
~as a warning
~to raise alarm
~to from bonds between a mother and her offspring
~to signal a food trail