Lecture 21: Species Specific Behaviour Companion 2

Question 1

What is the origin of dogs?

Answer 1

-Canidae (dog family) -> Caninae (subfamily)-> Canis (genus)
-Adapted for chasing prey (long limbs, lithe bodies)
-Elongated muzzle, sagittal crest (ridge along the skull attachment for big chewing muscles)
-Digitigrade (walk on toes not bottom of foot)
-Domestication and artificial selection –> >400 breeds of domestic

Question 2

What is the feeding and foraging like for dogs?

Answer 2

Wild
-Wild/feral canidae= opportunistic scavengers/hunting
-Hunt alone or in groups
-Eat wide range of animal and plant material (opportunistic)

Pet
-pet dogs: diet and feeding behaviour under human control
-Hunting/stalking-prey drive (vary depending on breed)

Question 3

What are social behaviours of dogs?

Answer 3

Wild
-Propensity to develop and dwell in large groups (packs)- group composition varies with species, individual populations (social carnivore but benefits for group living, hierarchy not as strict come and go)

Pets
-Spend much of their time in company of humans
-Develop less of a ‘pack mentality’ than feral/wild canids
-Complex social relationships with human caregivers

Article
-wolves that lead pack more Oakley to be infected with parasite makes more bold and behaviour

Question 4

What is the communication through vision like for dogs?

Answer 4

-Not particularity vision-driven (6x poorer detail than humans)
-Colour perception os limited (almost like having colour mindless human to R&G)
-But good ability to see in dim light and detect subtle motion
-Positioning of body, ears, tail, and eye gaze convey important information about behavioural intention
-Humans not always adept at interpreting these cues (why have dog trainer/behaviourist)

Question 5

What is the communication through olfaction like for dogs?

Answer 5

-10,000-100,000x better than humans
-Distinguish doors of own species, other species, match odours to sample (can also arrange chronically)
-Nostril bias (start with right nostril and then use left if familiar, but if unfamiliar or non-threatening stay right)
-Olfactory signals: urine, glandular secretions, feces (individual status, anal glands and glands on head)

Question 6

What is the communication through audition like for dogs?

Answer 6

-Humans: 64-23,000Hz
-Dogs: 64-47,500Hz
-Increased ear mobility (move to increase sound)
-Cupped shape (to help hear)
-Vocalizations- grunts, growls, whines, yelps, coughs, barks (barking usually seen in domestication only 2% in wolves)

Question 7

What are referential gestures?

Answer 7

-Referential gestures (pointing) = used by signaller to draw recipients attention to a specific object, individual, or event in environment
-Unique relations with humans centers on non-verbal communication
-Study identified 19 referential gestures that dogs use when communicating with humans
-Pretty big tool box (roll over, paw, shuffle etc)

Question 8

What is sleep like for dogs?

Answer 8

pets
-Domestic dogs are diurnal (sleep when owner does) revolve around humans
-Polyphasic - several sleep ‘bouts’ per night
-Frequent sleep periods during day
-Non-REM and REM sleep
-REM- paddle legs, vocalize dream?

Question 9

What is the origin of cats?

Answer 9

-First species to be domesticated solely for pest control

Question 10

What does hunting and object play look like for cats?

Answer 10

-Difficult to breed cats with little inclination to hunt
-Nutritional requirements of Felidae are met easiest when consuming raw carcasses (until nutritionally balanced modern pet food)
-linked to desire of outdoor cats to maintain a homerange (hunting territory in feral)
-Perhaps not always efficient, but effective killers of small animals and birds

Question 11

What does hunting look like for domestic cats?

Answer 11

-Cats do not hunt cooperativley- restricted to small prey
-SO- if they rely on hunting for food, they need to seat hunting before they get hungry–> feeding, hunger, and predation loosely connected (inclination to hunt when not hungry)
-If cat not very hungry, may appear to ‘play’ with their prey (maybe not hungry but wanted to hunt)
-Effective cat toys resemble typical prey; size, texture, movement
-Intensity of play and size of preferred toy increases with hunger

Question 12

What are social behaviours b/w undomesticated and domesticated cats?

Answer 12

-Social behaviour: main difference b/w wild ancestors(solitary) and domestic cats (groups)
-F. silestris= solitary, territorial
-F. catus can live in much bigger groups -presumably selected for during domestication

Question 13

What are social behaviours in general b/w cats?

Answer 13

-Most knowledge of cat social behaviour comes form free-ranging/feral groups
-Form around predictable, plentiful supplies of food
-Cooperative behaviour amount females, males nomadic (come and go as please)
-Cooperative breeding: shared nests, kittens nursed indiscriminately
-Cooperative defence of nests

Question 14

What are cooperative behaviours of cats?

Answer 14

-Allorubbing
-Allogrooming

-usually occurs b/w cats of same social group, domestic can relate to humans

Question 15

What communication do cats display physically?

Answer 15

-Ancestral solitary lifestyle- visual signals less important (especially compared to dogs)
-Vertical tail- precursor to allorubbing, indicates affiliative intent
-Pinnae (external ears) most expressive
-Pushed forward and erect=confident
-Backwards=intent to withdraw
-Flattening=expecting to fight
-Pulled back and flat= defensive (accompanied by hissing)
-Agonistic-stand at full height, rated fur on back (max apparent size) may lash tail, growl
-Less confident individuals may hunch heads and flatten bodies
-Lack signals to indicate acceptance of defeat- fights difficult to de-escalate. loser usually creeps away slowly

Question 16

How is communication from cats by auditory or olfactory?

Answer 16

-Highly developed olfactory and hearing
-Vision insensitive to colour but highly tuned to detect movement (hunting)
-Scent marks for territorial boundaries/significant locations
-Urine–> spray marking
-Feces- if left uncovered
-Check gland secretions- deposited at head height on objects (bunting)
-Reproductively active male cats do this often- usually urine (high levels of suffer-containing compounds)
-Social odours perceived through olfactory receptors and vomeronasal organ (cats show the flehmen posture too)

Question 17

How do cats vocalize?

Answer 17

-Vocalizations used too- but less so in wild/feral cats (reserved for sexual/aggressive encounters or mother-kitten interactions)
-Pet cats much more social-especially certain breed (Siamese)
-‘Meow’ more frequently likely a learned response
-May have repertoire of ‘meows’
-Purring- care-eliciting signal

Question 18

What are sexual and reproductive behaviour in cats?

Answer 18

-Female cats will reject all sexual advances except during the breeding season
-Start by increasing home range and rubbing on objects (pro-oestrus) (males also increase patrol range)
-1-2d after coming into oestrus female will indicate sexual receptivity
-Rolling, purring, starching displays
-Rhythmic prostration/retraction of claws
-Lordosis posture
-Females typical polyandrous (mate with multiple males around her)

Question 19

What is the origin of rats and mice?

Answer 19

-Largest and most diverse group of mammals (40% of mammals species)
-Rodents inhabit virtually every type of terrestrial habitat
-Common feature: gnawing action= huge master muscles and ever-growing incisors
-House mouse and Norway rat =extreme habitat generalists
-Adaptability facilitated human habitation –> export rich food sources
-Predisposed them for use as lab animals
-Mice and rats account for 85% of all animals used in research

Question 20

What is the origin of lab mice?

Answer 20

-Relationship with humans for 1000s of years- spread with human migration
-Inbred lab mouse (as we know it today) appeared ~100 years ago
-Now over 1,000 inbred strains and altered strains (gene insertions or deletions)
-Adaptability, short reproductive cycle, short life-span, small body size, lost cost of maintain = ‘successful’ lab animals

Question 21

What is the origin of the lab rat?

Answer 21

-Lab rats established in 1895 from a population of albino rats at Clark University
-Calmer, less likely to bite than wild ancestors
-Tolerate greater crowding, breed earlier, produce more offspring
-Believed to model human physiology closer than mice

Question 22

What is the general activity of rats and mice?

Answer 22

-Creatures of habit-visual landmarks, familiar routes, territory patrol
-Extremely agile, excellent climbers, can swim
-Thigmotactic and typically avoid clear areas (stick close to walls and floors)

Question 23

What are feeding and forage behaviours for mice?

Answer 23

-Incorporate foraging into routine movements around environment
-Many (~200) small meals per night from up to 30 different locations
-Generally cautious about new foods
-Aquire food preferences from their mothers and other mice through transfer of odour cues during allogrooming (remember social behaviour lecture)
-Eat 20% of body weight daily

Question 24

What are feeding and foraging behaviours of rats?

Answer 24

-opportunistic omnivores; diverse foods, many foraging methods
-Forage even when full- learn whereabouts of food for future
-Locate food mainly through olfactory –> digging, climbing, diving
-Prefer sweet, caloric, high-protein foods (like humans)
-Neophobic- will initially eat only very small amounts of unfamiliar foods, and if any ill effects they will avoid for a long period of time (one-trail learning)
-Social learning- prefer novel foods after smelling on conspecifics breath

Question 25

What are social behaviour for rats and mice?

Answer 25

-Social structure can vary- can be highly social (colonies)
-Actively seek contact with conspecifics
-Play-like behaviour (even as adults) - resembles aggression but no injuries or pilo-erection
-Play sessions usually end with allogrooming

Question 26

What does aggression in rats and mice look like?

Answer 26

-Aggression can occur to establish hierarchy
-Territorial males will chase out intruders-bite at rear (kick)
-Subordinates stand, raise forepaws, and expose belly
-Strongly mediated through scent
-Offensive attack: lateral attack, rump bites, chasing and pinning
-Defense attack: face bites

Question 27

What does communication look like in rats and mice?

Answer 27

-Regular, predictable movement facilitates investigation of communication cues
-Large role in individual recognition-info about gender, reproductive state, relatedness, dominance, health, identity
-Urine, feces, gland secretions
-Dominant mass use urine to delineate territory
-Alarm or reward odours-deposit in harmful or beneficial environments
-Vocalizations - audible to humans and ultrasonic

Question 28

What is the grinch scale and how does it relate to mice and rats?

Answer 28

-postures and expressions for positive and negative emotions
-Ears: pinker and wider angle for positive stimuli
-Grimace scale to identify pain/discomfort (orbital tightening, ear changes, whisker changes etc)

Question 29

What is sexual and reproductive behaviour for rats and mice?

Answer 29

-Prolific breeders (mice 50+ pups per year)
-Prefer unfamiliar partners (Coolidge effect) with more dominant characteristics
-Females indicate receptivity by hopping, darting, ear-wiggling, and ultrasonic vocalizations
-Male responds with own vocalizations (“song”)

Question 30

Are rabbits the same as hares? Are they both rodents?

Answer 30

-Lagomorpha–> leporidae
-NOT RODENTS
-includes rabbits AND hares (different)
-Rabbits: smaller, underground nest, live in numbers
-Hares: taller legs, nests, solitary

Question 31

What is the origin of the rabbit?

Answer 31

-Pet rabbits mainly descended from European wild rabbit
-Hunted–> domesticated for meat
-Selective breeding for different fur and meat quality
-Started being kept as pets during renaissance but mostly livestock until mid 1800’s
-1850’s: intrest in shape and colour
-1900’s: different breeds designed and established- show and pets
-1970’s: more breeds, appearance/temperament –> increased demand as pets

Question 32

How do rabbits breed and forage?

Answer 32

-herbivores- graze on grass/leafy plants
-Diets contains high amount of cellos (hard to digest)–> hind gut fermenters
-Most digestion occurs in large intestine and cecum (rabbit cecum is 10x bigger than stomach)
-Chewed plant material collects in cecum that has lots of symbiotic bacteria to help digest cellulose and produce some B vitamins

Question 33

What is cecotrophy?

Answer 33

-Produce cecotrophs separate from feces
-Rich in nutrients after fermentation in the hindgut
-Makes nutrients available that would otherwise be lost
-Consumed directly from the rectum

Question 34

What is social behaviour of rabbits look like?

Answer 34

-Large colonies divided into smaller groups
-Gregarious- sleep, eat, play groom together
-Increased vigilance
-Intricate tunnel system requires some cooperation (“traffic rules”)
-Pet rabbits not always housed in groups
-BUT even cohabiting Paris not always compatible

Question 35

What does rabbit communication look like?

Answer 35

-Generally silent animals
-Use smell, body postures
-Grimace scale (also used as lab animals)