Key Area 6-Social Behaviour Flashcards

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1
Q

What is a social hierarchy?

A

A system where members of a social group are organised in rank order resulting from aggressive behaviour

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2
Q

What are the advantages of social hierarchy?

A
  • aggression is minimised
  • energy is conserved
  • most successful individuals pass on their genes
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3
Q

What is cooperative hunting?

A

When mammals hunt working together using different strategies to maximise their success

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4
Q

What are the strategies of cooperative hunting?

A

Ambush-driving prey towards hidden members

Running down-exhausting prey (targets weak)

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5
Q

What are the advantages of cooperative hunting?

A
  • More food is gathered than if they were hunting alone

- Larger prey can be tackled

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6
Q

What is the condition for cooperative hunting to continue?

A

Only continues if more food is gathered than if hunting alone

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7
Q

Who gets the most share of gathered food?

A

Dominant members

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8
Q

How do social groups benefit in defence?

A
  • safety in numbers: staying together they are protected from predators
  • more eyes to look out for predators and warn the group
  • they can form defends formations for further protection
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9
Q

What is altruism?

A

Altruism is when an animal (the donor) behaves in a disadvantageous way towards itself that’s beneficial to another animal (the recipient)

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10
Q

What is reciprocal altruism?

A

When an individual helps another (altruistic behaviour) with the trust that the favour will be payed back at a later date

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11
Q

What is kin selection?

A

Altruistic behaviour towards closely related individuals

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12
Q

What is the advantage of kind selection?

A

Shared genes are passed on

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13
Q

What are the four types of social insect?

A

Ants
Termites
Bees
Wasps

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14
Q

How are bees categorised?

A

Queen bee-produce eggs that drones fertilise
Workers-maintaining and defending the hive
Drones-fertilise the eggs

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15
Q

What are the advantages of bees and wasps for humans?

A

Bees pollinate plants to give us crops

Wasps are used as biological control

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16
Q

What is a keystone species?

A

A species that plays a critical role in the structure and working of an ecosystem

17
Q

What is a primate?

A

A primate is an animal from the placental mammal group

18
Q

Give examples of primates?

A

Monkeys
Apes
Humans
Lemurs

19
Q

Why are long periods of parental care important in primates?

A

In order for the offspring to learn complex behaviour and social structures
Offspring are almost helpless initially

20
Q

What are the ways to reduce conflict in primates?

A
  • ritualistic display
  • appeasement behaviour
  • grooming
  • facial expressions
  • sexual presentation
  • body posture
21
Q

What is ritualistic display?

A

Making the primate look fiercer and larger than normal so that eventually one will concede defeat
e.g. chest beating, arms open, eyes staring

22
Q

What is appeasement behaviour?

A

Used to concede behaviour to a primate

e.g. small, flat, unthreatening

23
Q

What is grooming?

A

When one animal picks fleas and plant material off the fur of another animal
Forms relationships between primates

24
Q

What is facial expressions?

A

In a social group of monkeys
Open and closing lips rapidly is a friendly greeting
Wide mouth grin signals fear

25
Q

What is sexual presentation?

A

Females display behaviours that signal they are ready to mate
Reducing male conflict

26
Q

What is body posture?

A

Lowering body posture and bowing repeatedly emphasises the position in dominance hierarchy

27
Q

What are the factors that effect the complexity of social structure?

A
  • Ecological niche: roles played
  • Distribution of resources: more resources the bigger the group
  • Taxonomic group: type of species