Lecture Exam #4 Ch. 51 Flashcards
what do fiddler crabs feed and wave with?
feed with their small claw and wave their large claw
why do male fiddler crabs engage in claw waving?
it’s used to repel other males and to attract females
an action carried out by the muscles under control of the nervous system
behavior
what is behavior subject to?
natural selection
what does discrete sensory inputs stimulate?
both simple and complex behaviors
what did Niko Tinbergen identify the four questions that should be asked about animal behavior were?
1) what stimulus elicits the behavior, and what physiological mechanisms mediate the response?
2) how does the animal’s experience during growth and development influence the response?
3) how does the behavior ay?nd survival and reproduction?
4) what is the behavior’s evolutionary histor
the study of the ecological and evolutionary basis for the animal behavior
behavioral ecology
what does behavioral ecology integrate?
proximate and ultimate explanations for animal behavior
what does proximate causation address?
“how” a behavior occurs or is modified, including Tinbergen’s questions 1 and 2
what does ultimate causation address?
“why” a behavior occurs in the context of natural selection, including Tinbergen’s questions 3 and 4
a sequence of unlearned acts directly linked to a simple stimulus
fixed action patterns
what are fixed actions patterns and what happens once initiated?
unchageable and once initiated usually carried to completion
an external cue that was triggered by a fixed action pattern
sign stimulus
in male stickleback fish, what is the stimulus for attack behavior?
the red underside of an intruder
when presented with unrealistic models what happens to the attack behavior?
it occurs as long as some red is present
what can environmental cue trigger?
a movement in a particular direction
a regular, long-distance change in location
migration
how do animals orient themselves? (3) (PPE)
1) the position of the sun and their circadian clock, an internal 24-hour clock that is an integral part of their nervous system
2) the position of the north star
3) earth’s magnetic field
what is some animal’s behavior affected by?
the animal’s circadian rhythm, a daily cycle of rest and activity
what are behaviors such as migration and reproduction linked to?
changing seasons, or a circannual (yearly) rhythm
what are common seasonal cues in behavioral rhythms?
daylight and darkness
what are some behaviors linked to and what does it affect?
lunar cycles, which affects tidal movements
in behavioral ecology, a behavior that causes a change in another animal’s behavior
signal
the transmission and reception of s ignals
communication
what signals do animals communicate with? (4) (VCTA)
1) visual
2) chemical
3) tactile
4) auditory
what does fruit fly courtship follow?
a three step stimulus-response chain
what is the first step of the three-step stimulus-response chain?
a male identifies a female of the same species and orients towards her
how does the male use chemical communication in the first step of stimulus-response chain?
he smells a female’s chemicals in the air to confirm her identity
how does the male use visual communication in the first step of the stimulus-response chain?
he sees the female and orients his body towards her
what is the second step of the three-step stimulus-response chain?
the male alerts the female to his presence
how does the male use tactile communication in the 2nd step of the stimulus-response chain?
he touches the female with a foreleg
what is the third step of the three-step stimulus-response chain?
the male produces a courtship song to inform the female of his species
how does the male use auditory communication in the 3rd step of the stimulus-response chain?
he extends and vibrates his wing
if all three steps of the stimulus-response chain are successful what happens?
the female will allow the male to copulate
what do honeybees show complex communication with?
symbolic language
what does a bee returning from the field do to communicate information about the distance and direction of food source?
performs a dance
what do many animals that communicate through odors emit?
chemical substances called pheromones
what is some examples of bees emitting pheromones? (3) (FHW)
1) a female moth can attract a male moth several kms away
2) a honeybee queen produces a pheromone that affects the development and behavior of female worker and male drones
3) when a minnow or catfish is injured, an alarm substance in the fish’s skin disperses in water inducing a fright response among fish in the area
what can pheromones be very effective at?
a very low concentration
what do nocturnal animals, such as terrestrial mammals depend on?
olfactory and auditory communication
what do diurnal animals, such as humans and most birds use?
visual and auditory communication
what does learning establish?
specific links between experience and behavior
a behavior that is developmentally fixed and does not vary among individuals. They are born with it. (knows how to eat)
innate behavior
what does cross-fostering studies help behavioral ecologists to identify?
the contribution of environment to an animal’s behavior
a study that places the young from one species in the care of adults from another species
cross-fostering study
what did studies of California mice and white-footed mice uncover?
an influence on social environment on aggressive and parental behaviors
what type of behaviors did cross-fostered mice develop?
ones that were consistent with their foster parents
in humans, what did twin studies allow researchers to compare?
the relative influences of genetics and environment on behavior
when white-footed mice fostered california mice what was the aggression toward the intruder?
reduced
when california mice fostered the white-footed mice what was the aggression toward the intruder?
no difference
when white-footed mice fostered the california mice what was the aggression in a neutral situation?
no difference
when california mice fostered the white-footed mice what was the aggression in a netural situation?
increased
when white-footed mice fostered the california mice what was the parental behavior?
reduced
when california mice fostered the white-footed mice what was the parental behavior?
no difference
the modification of behavior based on specific experiences
learning
what does research into learning seek to understand the contributions of?
BOTH nature and nurture in shaping learning
the establishment of a long-lasting behavioral response to a particular individual or object
imprinting
what does imprinting include?
learning and innate components and is generally ireversable
what is imprinting distinguished by other learning by?
a sensitive period
a limited developmental phase that is the only time when certain behaviors can be learned
sensitive period
what is an example of imprinting?
young geese following their mother
what did Konrad Lorenz show when baby geese spent the first few hours of their life with him?
they imprinted him as their parent
what is the imprint stimulus in greylag geese?
a nearby object that is moving away from the young geese
why have conservation biologists taken advantage of imprinting in programs?
to save the whooping crane from extinction
what can young cranes imprint on humans and what can that lead to?
“crane suits” and can lead to crane migrations using ultralight aircraft
a more complex modificiation of behavior based on experience with the spatial structure of the environment
spatial learning
what did Niko Tinbergen show?
how differ wasps use landmarks to find nest entrances (spatial learning)
an internal representation of spatial relationships between objects in an animal’s surrounding
cognitive maps
what is an example of a cognitive map?
Clark’s nutcrackers can find food hidden in caches located halfway between particular landmarks (difference from learning)
when animals associate one feature of their environment with another
asscoiative learning
what is an example of associative learning?
a blue-jay will avoid eating monarchs and similar-looking butterflies after an experience with a distasteful monarch butterfly
a type of asscoiative learning in which an arbitrary stimulus is associated with a reward or punishment
classical conditioning
what is an example of classical conditioning?
a dog that repeadately hears a bell before being fed will salivate in anticipation at the bell’s sound
type of associative learning in which an animal learns to associate one of its behaviors with a reward or punishment
operant conditioning
what else is operant conditioning called?
trial-and-error learning
what is an example of operent conditioning learning?
a rat is fed after pushing a lever will learn to push the lever in order to receive food
is there some restriction to the type of associations that can be formed between environmental and behavior
yes
what is an example of there being some restriction to the type of associations that can be formed between environmental stimulus and behavior?
rats can learn to avoid illness-inducing foods on the basis of smells, but not on the basis of sights or sounds
a process of knowing that may include awareness, reasoning, recollection and judgement
cognition
what is an example of cognition?
honeybees can distinguish “same” from “different”
the process of devising a strategy to overcome an obstacle
problem solving
what is are 2 examples of problem solving? (CR)
1) chimpanzees can stack boxes in order to reach suspended food
2) ravens obtained food suspended from a branch by a string by pulling up to the string
learning through the observation of others and forms the roots of culture
social learning
what are 2 examples of social learning? (2) (YY)
1) young chimpanzees learn to crack palm nuts with stones by copying other chimpanzees
2) young vervet monkeys learn from older monkeys to give and respond to distinct alarm calls for different predators
a system of information transfer through observation or teaching that influences behavior of individuals in a population
culture
what can culture alter?
behavior and influence the fitness of individuals
what can explain diverse behaviors?
selection for individual survival and reproductive success
what does behavior enhance?
survival and reproductive success in a population
what does natural selection refine?
behaviors that enhance the efficiency of feeding
what does foraging or food-obtaining behavior include? (4) (RSCE)
1) recognizing
2) searching for
3) capturing
4) eating food items
in Drosophila, what does variation in a single gene dictate?
foraging behavior in larvae
what travels further than larvae with the other allele?
larvae with one allele
what do larvae in high-density population benefit from?
foraging farther for food
what do larvae in low-density population benefit from?
short-distance foraging
what does natural selection favoring different alleles depend on?
the density of the population
what was observed of two alleles over several generations under labratory?
evolutionary changes
views foraging behavior as a compromise between benefits of nutrition and costs of obtaining food
optimal foraging model
what does the costs of obtaining food include? (2) (ER)
1) energy expendenture
2) risk of being eaten while foraging
what type of foraging behavior should natural selection favor?
one that minimizes the cost and maximizes the benefits
what is an example of risk of predation affecting foraging behavior?
mule deer are more likely to feed in open forests areas where they are less likely to be killed by mountain lions
what plays a major role in determining reproductive success?
mating behavior and mate choice
what does mating behavior include? (4) (SCCC)
1) seeking or attracting mates
2) choosing among potential mates
3) competing for mates
4) caring for offspring
what defines a number of distinct mating systems?
mating relationships
relationships that some species have with no strong pair-bonds or lasting relationships
promiscious relationship
relationships that some species have where one male mates with one female
monogamous relationship
what similarity do males and females with monogamous mating have?
external morphologies
relationships that some species have where an individual of one sex mates with several individuals of the other sex
polygamous
what are species with polygamous usually? (2) (SM)
1) sexually dimorphic
2) males and female have different external morphologies
types of polygamous relationships
1) polygenous
2) polyandrous
one male mates with many females
polygyny
what are the males usually in polygynous relationships?
more showy and larger than the females
one female mates with many males
polyandry
what are females usually in polyandrous relationships?
more showy than males
what is an important factor constraining evolution of mating systems?
needs of the young
how does a male bird maxamize his reproductive success when they need a continuous supply of food?
by staying with his mate and caring for his chicks (monogamy)
how does a male bird maxamize his reprdocutive success where chicks are soon able to feed and care for themselves?
by seeking additional mates (polygyny)
what does certainty of paternity influence?
parental care and mating behavior
what can females be certain about her young?
that eggs laid or young born contain her genes
what does paternity certainty depend on?
mating behavior
what type of species is paternal certainty relatviely low and why?
ones with internal fertizliation because mating and birth are separated over time
when is certainty of paternity much higher?
when egg laying and mating occur together, as in external fertizliation
when is parent care at least likely to be by males as by female
in species with external fertilization
what does sexual dimophism result from?
sexual section (form of natural selection)
members of one sex choose mates on the basis of certain traits
intersexual selection
involves competition between members of the same sex for mates
intrasexual selection
what type of sexual selection is female choice?
intersexual
how can females drive sexual selection?
by choosing males with specific behaviors or features of anatomy
what is an example of female driving sexual selection?
female stalk-eyed flies choose males with relatively long eyestalks
what do ornaments, such as long eyestalks often correlate with?
health and vitality
what are female chicks that impring on ornamented fathers more likely to select?
ornamented mates
what does experiments suggest that mate choice by female zebra finches played a key role in?
evolution of ornamentation in male zebra finches
a behavior in which individuals copy the mate choice other others (peer pressure)
mate-choice copying
what is an example of mate-choice copying?
in an experiment with guppies the choice of female models influenced the choice of other females
what is male competition for mates a source of and what can it reduce?
intrasexual selection that can reduce variation among males
what does intrasexual, male competition involve?
agnostic behavior
what is agnostic behavior in intrasexual competition often?
ritualized contest that determines which competitor gains access to the resource
in some species, what does sexual selection drive?
the evolution of alternative mating behavior and morpohology in males
what does the fitness of a particular phenotype (behavior or morphology) depend on?
the phenotypes of other individuals in the population
evalutates the alternative strategies where the outcome depends on each individuals’s strategy and the strategy of other individuals
game theory
what is an example of a game theory?
each side-blotched lizard has a blue, orange or yellow throat
what is each color of the lizard’s throat associated with?
a sepcific strategy for obtaining mates
what do orange-throated male lizards do?
the most aggressive and defend large territories
what do the blue-throated lizards do?
defend small territories
what do the yellow-throated lizards do?
nonterritorial, mimic females and usually use “sneaky” strategies to mate
like rock-paper scissors, what is each strategy of the game theory do?
outcompete one strategy but be outcompeted by the other strategy
what does the success of each strategy in the game theory depend on and what does it drive?
the frequency of all the strategies and it drives frequency-dependent selection
what does genetic analyses and the concept of inclusive fitness provide a basis for?
studying the evolution of behavior
what is animal behavior governed by?
complex interactions between genetic and environmental factors
what can selfless behavior be explained by?
inclusive fitness
what can control many behaviors?
a master regulatory gene
what is an example of a master regulatory gene controlling many behaviors?
a single gene controls many behaviors of the male fruit fly courtship ritual
what can variation in the activity or amount of gene product have a large effect on?
behavior
what is an example of variation having an effect on behavior?
male prarie voles pair-bond with their maters, wile male meadow voles do not
what does the level of a specific receptor for a neurotransmitter determine?
which behavioral pattern develops
when behavioral variation within a species corresponds to environmental variation, what may it be?
evidence of past evolution
what varies by population accordingto the case study: variation in prey selection?
the natural diet of western garter snakes
according to the case study: variation in prey selection, what do coastal populations and inland population feed on?
Coastal: mostly on abundant banana slugs
inland: NO banana slugs because they’re rare in their habitat
according to the case study: variation in prey selection what what are the difference in diet?
genetic
according to the case study: variation in prey selection, what do the two population differ in?
their ability to detect and respond to specific odor molecules produced by the banana slugs
according to the case study: variation in migratory patterns where do most blackcaps (birds) that breed in Germany winter?
Africa, but some winter in Britain
according to case study: variation in migratory patterns, under lab conditions, what does each migratory population exhibit?
different migratory behaviors
according to the case study: variation in migratory patterns, what does migratory behaviors reflect?
genetic differences between population
what does natural selection favor?
behavior that maxamizes an indivual’s survival and reproduction
what are behaviors that maxamize an individual’s survival and reproduction usually?
selfish
on occasion when animals behave in ways that reduce their individual fitness but increase the fitness of others
altruism
what is an example of altruism?
under threat from a predator, an individual Belding’s ground squirrel will make an alarm call to warn others, even though calling increases the chances of the called being killed
what is another example of altruism?
in naked mole rat populations, non reproductive individuals may sacrifice their lives protecting their reproductive queen and kings from predators
when does natural selection favor altruism?
when rB is greater than C rb>c
what is the inequality when rB is greater than C called?
Hamilton’s rule
the natural selection that favors the kind of altruistic behavior by enhancing reproductive success of relatives
kin selection
what is an example of the relationship between kin selection and altruism??
the warning behavior in Belding’s ground squirrels
what kin selection in a group of females what are they usually?
related to each other
who are most alarm calls given by?
females who are likely aiding close relatives
where do mole rats live and what are they?
within a colony and they’re closely related
how do nonreproductive individuals increase their inclusive fitness by?
helping the reproductive queen and kings (their close relatives) to pass their genes to the next generation
altruistic behavior toward unrelated individuals can be adaptive if the aided individual returns the favor in the future
reciprocal altruism
what is reciprocal altruism limited to?
species with stable groups where individuals meet repatadly and cheaters (who don’t reciprocate) are punished
what has reciprocal altruism been used to explain?
altruism between unrelated individuals in humans
in game theory what are the rules for a tit-for-tat strategy? (2) (II)
1) indivuals always cooperate on first encounter
2) an individual treats another the same way it was treated last time they met
whhen will individuals no treat another the same way it was treated lasttime?
if their oponent cheated them the last time they met
what does the tit-for-tat strategy explain?
how reciprocal altruism could have evolved
what do individuals who engage in a tit-for-tat strategy have?
a higher fitness than individuals who are always selfish
what do no other species come close to that occurs in humans?
matching the social learning and cultural transmission
what is human culture related to evolutionary theory in?
the distinct discipline of sociobiology
what does human behavior, like that of other species result from?
interaction between genes and environment
what may our social and cultural institutions provide?
the only feature in which there is no continuoum between humans and other animals
