Lecture 1: introduction

Question 1

the adaptationist approach:

Answer 1

animals life is adapted to the environment to which it lives

• natural selection
• adaptation

Question 2

adaptationists examples: Social organisation of weavers

Answer 2

– different species of weavers live in different types of nests, some 10 pairs/tree, 100/200 nests in 1 tree, 100 of birds one nest etc

Question 3

who is John Crook?

Answer 3

• first to take true adaptationists approach
• 1964 paper on social organisation of weavers
• lots of q to answer (sexual question/social)
• results from paper: primary drive of social organisation was FOOD (more likely to be social when feeding on grasslands seeds rather than insects)
• social organisation is a function of food supply

Question 4

to complete a comparative analysis u need:

Answer 4

• you need to know phylogeny
• compare multiple species
• studies interspecific traits

Question 5

Individual variation: Ruff:

Answer 5

• White headed dominant to black (most mating)
• satellite males (hang around)
• female mimics

Question 6

individual variation studied between ___ a few examples

Answer 6

• Intraspecific traits (behavioural)
• Infanticide
• male pregnancy (seahorse)
• sexual cannibalism

Question 7

long term studies of marked individuals pros and cons

Answer 7

pros:
-fitness consequences of behaviour
cons:
-long time (elephant similar life to human)

Question 8

experimental work field example

Answer 8

-long tail study in window birds

Question 9

study of individuals is

Answer 9

infraspecific variation

Question 10

2 types for studying individuals

Answer 10

• observation in field / lab

- experimental studies

Question 11

evolutionary theory:

Answer 11

• framework allowing us to interpret behaviours we see

- Charles Darwin: Origin of species 1850s-1870s

Question 12

Ronald Fisher: 1930s-1940’s

Answer 12

statistician, mathematician and biologist

-how genetics work combining eve theory and mendelian genetics

Question 13

Bill Hamilton 1960’s - 1990’s

& George Williams 1960’s - 1990’s

Answer 13

Inclusive fitness theory

–selection doesn’t work on groups but as finer level

Question 14

John Maynard Smith 1960’s - 1990’s

Answer 14

Game theory and study of behaviour

Question 15

Geoff Parker 1970-2000

Answer 15

sperm competitions and sexual selection

Question 16

adaptationist approach includes:

Answer 16

• evolutionary theory
• animal behaviour
• ecology

Weigh up the COSTS and BENEFITS of a behaviour to determine its ADAPTIVE SIGNIFICANCE

WHY has it evolved?

Question 17

what biological unit does natural selection act on?

Answer 17

GENES and INDIVIDUALS

- individuals die, survive and reproduce but consequence is that gene frequencies in population change

Question 18

Natural selection acts on ____ to produce organisms that are designed to ___ their inclusive fitness

Answer 18

GENES, MAXIMISE

some ultra-selfish genes e.g. sex ration distorters though do exist

Question 19

we expect genes and individuals to be ___ resulting in conflict

Answer 19

selfish

Question 20

why doesnt group selection work?

Answer 20

any mutant selfish genes spread v v quick through population
-lemmings, water, rubber ring

Question 21

3 types of conflict were studying

Answer 21

• sexual
• parent-offspring
• sibling

Question 22

cooperation is vulnerable to exploitation, illustrated by

Answer 22

PUBLIC GOODS GAME

-cooperators contribute to public good, they gain benefits, BUT so do the free riders

Question 23

group of cooperators outcompete

Answer 23

non cooperators

• non-cooperators DO BETTER than cooperators within groups
• –> temptation to defect

Question 24

Tragedy of Commons

Answer 24

Hardin 1968,

• shared benefits or a ‘public good’ that individuals contribute to, there will be temptation to cheat or free load
• e.g. sociable weaver (large nest)

Question 25

cooperation interspecific

Answer 25

• cleaner shrimp and fish

- giving blood

Question 26

cooperation intraspecific

Answer 26

• worker termites and queen termites