What is Behavioral Ecology? Flashcards
How do we define behavioral ecology? Is this a perfect definition?
The study of the evolutionary basis for organismal behavior due to ecological pressures
ie. behavior is subject to natural selection
NO! Very vague and will probably change, but hard to agree on what behavior is
What are the 4 requirements for natural selection to occur?
- phenotypic (behavioral) variation
- competition for resources among individuals
- differential survival/ reproduction based on phenotype (behavior)
- variation is heritable
who first described evolution by natural selection?
Charles Darwin and Russel Wallace both independently described evolution by natural selection in 1858
- Al-Jahiz was an Islamic scholar in the 8th century who described something like evolution by natural selection in his book “the animal”
t/f
variance in behavior is heritable even if it cannot evolve
false!
what does blending heritance mean?
neither is dominant
*** i don’t really know
Are there any examples of Mendelian inheritance of behaviors?
It’s rare that it’s that simple
2 examples though:
- Hygenic behavior in bees
- rovers/ sitters in fruit flies
phenotypic gambit=
the assumption that phenotypic patterns are good predictors of genetic patterns
Is it true that behavioral differences are associated with genetic differences?
yes!
- heritability, there is lots of evidence of this
t/f
there can be thousands of genes contributing to a behavior, not just one
true
What are 4 methods to demonstrate the genetic basis of behavior?
- GWAS (genome-wide association study)
- genome editing
- selection experiments
- estimating heritability
which genetic method allows you to look for many small effects simultaneously?
GWAS
genome-wide association study
How does genome editing work?
- insert, remove, duplicate, after specific genes (eg CRISPR) and see what happens to it
*possible/ ethical only in certain species like drosophila and zebrafish)
Selection experiments are feasible for organisms with ____ (short or long) generation times
short
Describe what the estimating heritability method tells us and a benefit/ drawback
(ie the proportion of phenotypic variation that can be explained by genetic variation)
- can be done on a very short time frame, but requires a way to tease apart the effect of shared genes from shared environment
t/f
heritability= how important genes are
false
____ experiments and _____ estimates are low- tech approaches
selection experiments and heritability estimates= low tech
heritability estimates are done in a much ___ time frame than selection experiments. They also require teasing apart the effect of _____ ____ vs _____ ____
shorter
shared genes vs shared environment
heritability=
the proportion of phenotypic variation that can be explained by genetic variation
Even though most humans have 5 fingers, heritability is very low. Explain this
genes are at play but selection has been so strong that there’s little variation left (most people have 5 fingers!)
*variation in # of fingers is usually due to enviro (like a saw accident)
t/f
variation in genes being correlated with variation in behavior does not imply that behavior is solely genetically determined
true!
phenotypes are shaped by both ___ and ____
genes and environment
t/f
if you have certain genes, your behavior will be fixed (unable to be shaped by enviro)
false
method of acquiring knowledge that consists of systematic observation, measurement, and experiment, and the foundation of testing, and modification of hypotheses
= ?
the scientific method
What is science?
a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions
Explain inductive reasoning
- start with information (observations)
- notice patterns
- form a tentative hypothesis
- once that’s tested lots & well supported = theory
explain deductive reasoning
start with a theory and form a hypothesis (could just start with hypothesis)
- make observations
- get confirmation (or not)
t/f
to get the best explanation, you should stick with just one of either inductive or deductive reasoning
false
- go back and forth between the 2 to get the best explanation
behavioral ecology is based on hypothetico-deductive reasoning. Explain the steps
start with observations –> question –> hypothesis –> prediction –> test: experiment or additional observation
- if test DOES support hypothesis: make additional predictions and test them
- if test does NOT support hypothesis: revise hypothesis or pose a new one
ad hoc observation=
no plan before observing
____= a proposed explanation for a phenomenon based on previous observation. Must be testable
hypothesis
What are Tinbergen’s 4 questions?
- mechanism
- ontogeny
- phylogeny
- function
explain Tinbergen’s “mechanism” explanation
- proximate or evolutionary?
structure of the trait/ how it works
- physiology, anatomy, regulation, and how the trait works to accomplish a function
- proximate
explain timbergen’s “ontogeny” explanation
- proximate or evolutionary?
explains how the behavior develops in individuals
- proximate
explain timbergen’s “phylogeny” explanation
- proximate or evolutionary?
explains how the behavior develops over evolutionary time (phylogenetic history of the trait)
- evolutionary/ ultimate
explain timbergen’s “function” explanation
= adaptive value
- descriptions of how variations in the trait have influenced fitness
What’s a proximate explanation?
explains how organisms work by describing their mechanisms and ontogeny
What is an evolutionary/ ultimate explanation?
explains how a species came to its current form by describing how they were influenced by selection/ other evolutionary factors
Gulls sometimes steal food (kleptoparasitism). Give explanations for why they might do this behavior.
