Questions and Answers

What is parental investment?

is any effort by a parent that increases offspring survival at the cost of the parent’s ability to invest in other offspring or future reproduction.

What is parent-offspring conflict?

arises because offspring benefit from more care to themselves, while parents must divide care between all offspring and future reproduction.

What is the signal-of-need hypothesis?

states that begging intensity reflects the hunger of an offspring and encourages parents to feed the neediest chick.

What is the signal-of-quality hypothesis?

states that displays show an offspring’s intrinsic condition or viability, encouraging parents to feed higher-quality chicks when resources are scarce.

What drives sibling competition to escalate into siblicide?

Sibling competition can escalate into siblicide when resources are limited.

What is brood parasitism?

is when one species lays its eggs in another species’ nest, forcing the host to care for its offspring.

What is the biological distinction between sex and gender?

Sex is a biological category based on characteristics such as chromosomes, gametes, and anatomy, while gender is a human sociocultural identity and set of roles.

What is anisogamy?

refers to the difference in gamete size between males and females, with females producing few large gametes and males producing many small gametes.

What is the difference between intersexual and intrasexual selection?

Intersexual selection is mate choice between sexes, while intrasexual selection is competition within one sex.

What are alternative mating tactics?

are flexible, condition-dependent behaviours used by males that are not dominant.

What is sex-role reversal?

occurs when males provide extensive parental care, making them a limiting resource for reproduction.

What is sperm competition?

occurs when females mate with multiple males.

What are direct benefits of polyandry for females?

include fertility assurance, resources such as nuptial gifts and nutrients from sexual cannibalism.

What defines monogamy?

is where one male mates with one female.

What is the mate guarding hypothesis?

suggests males stay with one female to prevent rivals from mating with her.

What is social monogamy?

is when a pair bond is observed, but the genetic offspring may come from other mates.

What are potential costs of extra-pair copulations for females?

Costs include the risk of mate desertion, aggression, and disease.

What is utilitarianism in the context of animal research?

weighs the harms against the benefits and aims to maximize overall welfare.

What are the Three Rs in animal behaviour research?

Replacement means using non-animal methods where possible, Reduction means minimising the number of animals used, and Refinement means improving methods to reduce pain, stress, or suffering.

What defines polygyny?

is a mating system where one male mates with multiple females.