Observing and Measuring Animal Behaviour – Lecture 2

30 Q&A flashcards covering key ideas from Lecture 2 on systematic observation and measurement of animal behaviour.

What is an ethogram?

A systematic table or inventory listing an animal’s behaviours, their descriptions, and shorthand codes for recording.

Why are short letter codes (not numbers) recommended in ethograms?

They are easier to remember and write quickly while observing, reducing recording errors.

Name the three main ways to describe a behaviour.

Structure (physical form), Consequences/Function, and Spatial relationships.

Why should you avoid using the same word in both the behaviour name and its description?

Because it fails to clarify what the behaviour actually looks like, making it ambiguous for other observers.

Define an "event" behaviour.

A brief, instantaneous action best recorded by frequency (e.g., a duck take-off).

Define a "state" behaviour.

A behaviour that lasts for a measurable duration (e.g., sleeping) and is best recorded by start and stop times.

What quantitative measure records the length of time a behaviour lasts?

Duration.

Which quantitative measure counts how many times a brief behaviour occurs in a set period?

Frequency.

What is latency in behavioural studies?

The time between a stimulus or reference point and the start of the behaviour of interest.

Why is intensity rarely used in simple field studies?

Because measuring the force or strength of a behaviour usually requires specialised equipment and can be subjective.

Describe ad libitum (ad-lib) sampling.

Recording any and all behaviours that seem relevant without a formal structure; useful for preliminary observations and rare acts.

Give one major drawback of ad-lib sampling.

It is prone to observer bias and does not allow reliable quantitative analyses.

Describe focal-animal sampling.

Observing one identified individual for a set period and recording all (or selected) behaviours it performs.

List one advantage and one disadvantage of focal-animal sampling.

Advantage: Provides detailed data on an individual; Disadvantage: Requires many sessions to sample an entire group and can be biased if individuals aren’t chosen randomly.

Describe scan sampling.

At regular intervals, quickly scan an entire group and record the current behaviour of every visible individual.

When is scan sampling most useful?

When you need proportions of a group engaged in different behaviour states at given moments (e.g., vigilance vs. foraging).

Describe behaviour sampling.

Focusing on one specific behaviour across all visible individuals, recording every occurrence of that behaviour.

Which sampling rule is best for comparing the proportion of geese foraging vs. vigilant at one moment?

Scan sampling.

Which sampling rule is best for measuring the full daily activity budget of one adult and one juvenile duck?

Focal-animal sampling.

Which sampling rule is best for recording every flight by beetles to compare flight frequencies between size classes?

Behaviour sampling.

Explain continuous recording.

The observer notes the exact start and end (or occurrence) of every behaviour; gives precise durations, sequences, and frequencies.

Explain instantaneous (time-point) sampling.

The observation period is divided into equal intervals and the behaviour occurring at each instant is recorded, yielding proportional data.

What is one–zero sampling and why is it rarely recommended?

Within each interval you record only whether a behaviour occurred (1) or not (0); it over- or underestimates frequency and gives no duration.

Name two common observer-related problems that can bias behavioural data.

Observer effect (animals change behaviour due to human presence) and Observer drift (definitions or scoring change over time).

What is the "Clever Hans" effect in behavioural studies?

Unintentional cues from humans influencing an animal’s behaviour, leading to false interpretations of its abilities.

Give two strategies to minimise observer bias and drift.

Use blinds/distance to reduce animal awareness; conduct training sessions and inter-observer reliability checks before real data collection.

Why are preliminary observations essential before formal data collection?

They help you learn the animal’s schedule, refine your ethogram, choose appropriate sampling rules, and avoid picking inactive or nocturnal species.

Why should behavioural descriptions avoid human emotions or intentions?

Because attributing motives (e.g., "playing peekaboo") introduces assumptions; objective, structural descriptions are more reliable for analysis.