Socialization and the Life Course Flashcards
What is the Life History Theory?
The timing of key events have been shaped organisms by natural selection to maximize the number of surviving offspring and maximize fitness
Give me examples of Life History Theory
- The timing of different juvenile development
- Timing of sexual maturity
- Timing of death
- Timing of senescence
- Number of offsprings you have and the degree of parental investment you give
Life History Theory - Trade offs
- The idea of balancing energy outputs. Quality vs quantity of offsprings
- Current vs future reproduction
Life History Theory - Energy Allocation (2)
1) Survival
2) Reproduction
Life History Theory - Energy Allocation - Survival (2)
1) Growth
2) Maintenance
Life History Theory - Energy Allocation - Reproduction (2)
1) Making babies
2) Caring for babies
Life History Model in a nutshell
The idea that the animal has a maximum energy output
Life History Model in a nutshell - An animal could either
1) Put more energy in reproduction
2) Put less energy in reproduction
Life History Theory - Fast Life History vs Slow Life History - Fast Life History
- more energy into reproduction
- Short life & breeds a lot
- Low quality offsprings
Life History Theory - Fast Life History vs Slow Life History - Slow Life History
- More energy into survival
- Long life & breeds and extensive parental care
- Modest reproduction rates
Life History Theory - Fast Life History vs Slow Life History
Survival vs Energy use for reproduction
What is r vs k selected?
K is more like humans
r is like a rodent
R selected
- reproduce early in life
- small body / brain
- Large litters
- High Mortality rates
- Short lifes
K selected
Reproduce later in life
larger brains/ bodies
- smaller litter size
-Long lifes
In general primates have longer lives Exceptions:
- Sterpsirrhines: relative fast life history compared to happlorhines
- Apes very slow life history
Why are primates slow life history species?
Because of the variation in food seasons and its availability.
Altricial vs Precocial
Ability to sustain itself at the point of birth
Altricial?
1) Undeveloped at birth
2) Physically helpless
Precocial
1) Well developed at birth
2) Active or physically mobile at birth
What are more altricial, Strepsirhini or Haplorhini’s?
More - Haplorhini- more useless at birth
Less - Strepsirhini - less useless at birth
Birth in primates are called
Singletons
Birth in primates - Singletons - When not parked are they carried and if so why? AND Are they assited
Yes, and to provide learning opportunity through observation and NEVER assisted they pop that baby on their own
Birth in primates - Singletons - When not parked are they carried and if so why? exception to the singletons and them being assisted
Callitrichids
Why can’t humans have unassisted births?
Obstetrical Dilemma
Why can’t humans have unassisted births - Obstetrical Dilemma
Human have very large brain and small birth canals
Why can’t humans have unassisted births - Obstetrical Dilemma - Adaptatitions
1) Very early birth
2) Skull plate fusion
3) Flexible Perlvis
4) Assited birth
What is the definition of primate infancy
from birth to weaning
Is the growth phase-controlled y the mother in primate infancy?
Yes, infants do not forage
Why is socialization important?
- Altricial state at birth = need to learn
- Long period of dependency
- Slow maturity
- Heavy reliance on learning rather than relying on instinct
WHo are the main care takers and the main socializers?
Mother - Maternal care
- strong bond bewteen offspring and child
-child often dies without mom
Variability in maternal care - Parity
Experience of momma
Variability in maternal care - Parity - Nulliparous
Never given birth
Variability in maternal care - Parity - Primiparous
Given birth once
Variability in maternal care - Parity - Multiparous
Having given birth more than once
Variability in maternal care - Rank of mother
Macaque mothers who receive more aggressive energy spend time with the child
Variability in maternal care - Temperament of the Mother
mothers upbringing
Variability in maternal care - presence of new males
Can be weaned faster
Variability in maternal care - sex of infant
varies
Parking vs Carrying - Mother Parkers
- Lemurs, Lorises, and Tarsiers
- Short lactation
- Higher quality milk
- Postpartum mating
Parking vs Carrying - Mother Carriers
Most Haplorhinis
Long lacatation
poorer milk quality
No-post partum mating
Paternal Care - Indirect vs Direct - Indirect
Tolerance, detection and defence against predators, resource defence for the group
Paternal Care - Indirect vs Direct - direct
Favourable when favourable when infant require a lot of care
- Male care can be attributed to monogamy and certainty of the males child to be his
Types of male & Infant interactions - Continium -
1) Intense care taking
2) Affiliation
3) Occasional affliation
4) Tolerance
5) USe and abuse
Why do males care for infants? (2)
1) Sexual Selection
2) Kin selection
Why do males care for infants? - Sexual Selection (2)
1) If parental certainty is assured - high paternity may occur
2) Female choice - choose good baby daddys
Why do males care for infants? - KIn Selection
- Helping siblings or maternal kins
- if paternity is likely - mate then care
Alloparent
Any form of parental care provided by a individual towards a non descendant
WHo mostly does alloparenting?
Juvenile females
Why is alloparenting a thing? (3)
1) Learn to mother (individual selection)
2) Relief to mother (kin)
Who is handles the most?
Infant youngest
Who do the most handling?
Sub adult / Nulliparous females
Why is aunting to death a thing (2)
A Non adaptive Hypothesis
An Adaptive Hypothesis
Why is aunting to death a thing - A non-adaptive hypothesis
Inexperience females do not know how to take care of an infant
Why is aunting to death a thing - An adaptive hypothesis
Trying to get rid of competition - resources
Peers and Play importance
1) Youngs interact with other aged mates
2) First opportunity to learn who’s the most dominant and who will fight back
Weaning
Switching mammals diet of milk to other food - removes independence
Weaning Conflict evolutionary perspective
Cost of continued nursing to the mother, perhaps in terms of reduced to raise future offsprings, exceeding the benefits to the mother in terms of increased survival of the current infant
while lactating females cannot become pregnant as they’re not estrus and performing maternal duties
The sooner the mother can start ovulating the sooner again she can become pregnant. The child want to latch on to her as a resource this conflict
Juvenile period is between…
weaning and sexual maturity
Juvenile period issues(3)
- Juveniles are too old to be treated like infants and to young to behave like adults
- EASILY preyed upon
- Smaller absolute food requirements but spend a lot of time = energy into forging
- Lower feeding efficiency
- Growth is energetically expensive
- Higher BMR
What are the two strategies to survive the juvenile period?
1) Grow quickly - Strepsirhini
2) Grow slowly - Haplorhini
What are the two strategies to survive the juvenile period? - Grow quickly - Strepsirhini -benefit/cost
Benefit: Minimize time spend in vulnerable stage
Cost: Rapid growth requires A LOT of energy which means if born in a bad season you are fucked
What are the two strategies to survive the juvenile period? - Grow slowly - Haplorhini -benefit/cost
Benefits: Reduce risk of dying from starvation & reduced food requirements
cost: Stuck in a kid stage - which is very vulnerable to prey! Also, have to wait longer to reproduce
Sex is not always about reproducing?
Stress relief Affiliation Confirmation of Social Relationships Practice Paternity Confusion
Reproductive Seasonality - Nonseasonal breeders
Breed whenever
Reproductive Seasonality - Seasonal breeder (3)
1) Certain times of year
2) Tied to food supply
3) May lower stress of raising infant
Male vs Female lifespan
Females lives more
Male vs Female lifespan - why?
Males live riskier lives
-Dispersal
-Higher inter-sexual competition
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