Behavioral Ecology

Flashcards covering key concepts in behavioral ecology, including types of behavior, learning processes, and social structures in animals.

Proximate Causes of Behavior

How questions related to behavior, such as physiological and developmental systems.

Ultimate Causes of Behavior

Why questions that explore the evolutionary benefits of certain behaviors.

Fitness

The ability to reproduce and produce offspring that survive to reproduce.

Kin Selection

A behavior that promotes the survival of one's close kin.

Inclusive Fitness

The sum of an individual's personal fitness and the fitness of close relatives.

Reciprocal Altruism

A behavior in which a favor is given with the expectation of future reciprocity.

Fixed Action Pattern

An innate behavior triggered by a specific stimulus, resulting in a sequence of actions.

Imprinting

A process in which young animals form attachments to a parent or other figures during critical periods.

Operant Conditioning

A type of learning involving trial and error, where an organism learns to associate a behavior with a consequence.

Cognitive Learning

A form of learning that involves thinking, problem-solving, and the understanding of concepts.

Sociobiology

The study of social behavior from an evolutionary perspective.

Eusocial Insects

Insects that live in organized societies with a single breeding female and various castes.

Tool Use

The ability of animals to make and use tools for specific purposes.