Social Behaviour 3.6 Flashcards
Many animals live in social groups and have behaviours that are adapted to group living such as…
Social Hierarchy
Cooperative hunting
Social Defence
What is social hierarchy?
A rank order within a group of animals consisting of a dominant and subordinate members.
How is the dominant position established?
By ritualistic (threat) display behaviour.
How are the subordinate positions established?
They carry out appeasement behaviour to reduce conflict.
Why are animals form alliances in social hierarchies?
To increase their social status within the group.
(With the example of wolves) what type of privileges will the dominant male have?
First choice of food, sleeping locations and mates.
(With the example of wolves) What threat gestures are used to show his powers?
Raising of ears, baring of teeth and widening eyes.
(with the example of wolves) what submissive behaviour is used by the subordinates?
All body parts lowered, covering teeth and averting gaze.
What is a pecking order in birds?
The dominant individual can peck all the others but does not get pecked in return.
The bird below this one can peck all the birds except the first and so on.
What are the advantages of social hierarchy?
- There is an increased chance of species survival
- Increased chance of the dominant animals’ favourable genes being passed to offspring
- Reduces aggression between group members
- Guaranteed experienced leadership
What is Cooperative Hunting?
It involves a group of animals working together to find and catch prey.
How does cooperative hunting benefit the group?
- More likely to successfully kill prey
- Sharing of food so all members gain more energy than by -foraging alone
- Energy used per individual is decreased
- Allows larger prey to be brought down
What are some examples of animals that use cooperative hunting?
Dogs/Wolves
Lions
Chimps
Dolphins
What is social defence?
Involves a group of animals acting together to defend.
What are some ways of social defence? (4)
- Some individuals can watch for predators whilst others can forage for food
- Many individuals can better fend off predator attacks
- Many ears, eyes and noses are more likely to detect predators
- Travelling as a group makes it more difficult for predators to pick off an individual and can protect vulnerable individuals. Groups adopt specialised formations when under attack protecting their young
What do social defence strategies do?
Increase the chance of survival
What is an Altruistic Behaviour?
It is one which harms the donor but benefits the recipient.
What is reciprocal altruism?
Often occurs in social animals. It relies on the idea that the roles of the donor and recipient will later reverse.
(Favour returned)
What is Kin Selection and how is it beneficial?
Altruistic between related individuals. The donor will benefit indirectly in terms of the increased chances of survival of shared genes in the recipient’s offspring or future offspring.
What are social insects and what do they do?
Social insects exhibit social behaviours which means that they live together in large organised family groups and exhibit a range of complex behaviour like:
- Cooperative care young
- Parents and their offspring living together
- The development of a caste system
What are some examples of social insects?
Bees, wasps, ants and termites
What does the reproduction and survival of a colony depend on?
All members working together
Who is responsible for reproduction?
Only a few fertile individuals (namely queens and drones) contribute reproductively to the group
Who is responsible for food gathering, rearing young and defence? (Social insects)
These roles are carried out by lots of sterile members of the colony. These workers cooperate with close relatives to raise relatives. By helping raise relatives, sterile workers increase survival of shared genes.
What are the three castes of honey bee within a hive?
Queen - 1 in a colony produces all the eggs
Workers - thousands of females build the nest, collect food and rear young
Drones - few hundred males that fertilise the queen eggs
Why do bees do the ‘waggle dance’
To show the direction of the food to other colony members who can also then successfully gather food.
What are the four castes of ant within a colony?
Queen - 1 in a colony produces all the eggs
Workers - many sterile females build the nest, collect food and rear young
Soldiers - many sterile females defend the colony
Drones - many males that mate with the queen
Benefits of insect social behaviour
Social insects display kin selection - they behave altruistically towards other members of the colony to help survival of shared gens to the next generation
What are primates?
Primates are mammals that usually posses dexterous hands and feet with opposable digits.
Primate societies have ____ social behaviours to support the social hierarchy
Complex
What happens during the long periods of parental care?
Young primates learn the complex social behaviours required for survival such as hunting, foraging and recognising danger.
They can learn through observation
(Gorillas) Care to offspring
Until the age of 5 months the infant is in physical contact with its mother. After she will gradually allow the infant to leave her but by the age of a year they will only move as far as 5m away
(Gorilla’s) Communication
Gorillas have at least 22 distinct sounds used to communicate to eachother
(Gorillas) Facial Expressions
Aggression is often displayed by a stern fixed stare with lips pressed together.
Fearful with open mouth, exposed canines and eyes shifting nervously
Playful with open mouth, no teeth showing and relaxed eyes
(Gorillas) Play
Allows juveniles to practise skills from eachother are from the silverback.
What does the silverback gorilla do when young are playing?
Keeps them in line and also protect younger from older juveniles when rough and tumble play becomes annoying.
How is conflict reduced in Primates?
Ritualistic displays and appeasement behaviour. (Social hierarchy)
What appeasement behaviours do Gorillas show?
Grooming, facial expression, sexual presentation and body posture.
(Gorillas) grooming
Grooming removes parasites such as lice and is an important social activity. It occurs between all members of the troop, reinforcing relationships and is an effective way f reducing tension within the group.
How can social status be increased (primates, gorillas)
Forming alliances between individuals
What does the grooming alliance mean?
E.g. in velvet monkeys
Males leave the group at puberty but females remain and will inherit their mothers social status. This status is maintained by grooming behaviours.
If a mother produces female offspring who there ar e few other babes other females are keen to groom the new born regardless of the rank of the mother - THIS INCREASES THE MOTHERS SOCIAL STATUS
Alliances to raise rank?
Individuals may become allies in order to maintain or improve their social status. The more a male chimpanzee for example can form, the more chance he has at being dominant.
