animal behavior exam 1 definitions

behavior

an internally coordinated, externally visible pattern in activity that responds to changing external and internal conditions

ex: elephant dusting, bird nest building

ethogram

chart describing all behaviors observed

research question vs. hypothesis vs. prediction

rq: why? h: idea of an answer to rq p: what we expect to see if h is correct

come up w example

correlation vs comparison

correlation- studies test for a relationship

Comparison- studies test for causation

anthropomorphism

projecting human emotions onto animals

primary literature/ research article

written and read by researchers, includes review

secondary literature/ popular articles

written by journalists for general public, summary of primary

review articles 

summarize and analyze a set of research articles on a certain topic 

meta-analysis, lit. review, hypothesis test, report on current state of knowledge 

the modern synthesis:

fusion of Mendel’s and Darwinian ideas; genes from parents explain varying patterns of inheritance and variation of traits

inclusive fitness

one’s own fitness plus the fitness from genes passed down from close relatives - reason why altruism exists

multilevel selection

In very few cases, selection may be strongest on a group. only in small, long term groups

instinctive/innate behaviors

performed the same way each time, are fully expressed the first time, and are present even if raised in isolation

microarray analysis 

compares gene expression of many genes at once to see which are most active during a behavior 

learning

relatively permanent change in behavior as a result of experience (evolves and is adaptive)

habituation & dear enemy hypothesis

lack of response to a stimulus over time; dear enemy- animals get habituated to territorial signals from neighbors so they can use their energy on new rivals

dendridic spines

dynamic nubs on dendrites that allow for new synapses to grow - allow for neural plasticity

neural plasticity 

neurons continue to grow and change w learning; mostly via growth of dendritic spines and strength of synaptic connections 

social information

any information obtained from watching others

local enhancement

prescence of others directing an animal’s attention to it

public information

knowledge about the quality of a resource acquired by observing the behavior of others

behavioral traditions 

socially learned behaviors that differ across populations 

culture

differences in multiple behavioral traditions across populations

cognition

ability to generate and store mental representations of the environment to motivate behavior or solve problems

communication

when specialized signal from one individual influences the behavior of another

cue

anything that gives off information; may or may not influence others

signal

packet of energy or matter that travels to a reciever because it evolved to do so

communication modes (4)

acoustical, chemical, tactile, visual

channel partitioning

within modes, signals have evolved to avoid competition (we cant hear some communication between other animals)

when do signals evolve?

when the signaler and receiever benefit

when are signals good indicators?

when the interests are aligned, when it cannot be faked, when it is costly to maintain or make

comparative psychology

analysis of animal behavior to better understand humans

ethology

focused on instinctive behaviors observed in nature in a variety of wild animals