Animal Behaviour Exam

crypsis

Camouflage

uniform camouflage

matches background

disruptive camouflage

breaks the visual line of the body

flight initiation distance (FID)

how close the predator can get before an animal starts running (can be calculated)

approaching predators

• information seeking

• turning towards feline predators (to not expose neck)

feigning death

opossums, some beetles, goats

• predator won’t be interested in a dead prey/takes the attention away from the rest of the heard

aposematism

warning colouration to show toxicity

• ie monarch butterflies (induce non lethal sickness)

mimicry

looking like a naturally unpalatable toxic species

batesian mimicry

palatable species tend to look like unpalatable species

mullerian mimicry

unpalatable species tend to look similar

signals

evolved body part or behaviour of the SENDER that changes the behaviour of the RECEIVER

(Cooperative/classic) definition of communication

• transfer of information between a sender + receiver

• both must gain fitness benefits

• sender —> signal —> receiver

manipulator/mind reader definition

• selection would favour senders to maximise their own fitness at the expense of the receiver using signals

• selection favour receivers to detect manipulation (“mind readers”)

  —> manipulator gets better at sending signals that only benefit them, mind reader gets better at deciphering these signals

classical communication

not exaggerated (conspirational whispers)

manipulated communication

exaggerated (like a car salesman)

deceit

• no intent

• animal behaviour

• cross-species (anti predator)

lying

• implies intent

• theory of mind (knowing what other individuals know)

• beneficial if everyone else is honest (or is assumed to be)

kill deer deceit

pretending to look injured (feigning)

• look vulnerable seperate from nest (distract predators from baby)

Lordosis

• weird primate pose w ass up

• signals fertility, but not all species do this in association w fertility

discrete communication

signal can only be on or off (ie fireflies)

continuous/graded communication

varying intensity of a signal

composite signals

combined signals

• ie cat airplane ears

context dependent signals

same signal w different meaning

meta communication

communication abt context behaviours that follow

• ie play bow in dogs

• play smile in gorillas to differentiate aggression vs playfulness

odours/olfactory communication

seen in almost all animals except birds

PROS:

• long lasting, low cost (often waste), works at night, long range, dont have to be around after

CONS:

• slow transmission rate, difficult to identify sender

pheremones

chemicals secreted that trigger social response in members of the same species

signalling pheremones

communicates information about the sender

orienting pheremones

attract and orients (scent trail)

flehmen response

receiver responds to olfactory communication signals with this face, especially in mammals

• cats open mouth after smelling

sound/auditory communication

used by almost all animals

PROS:

• long range, variety, works at night, can identify sender

CONS:

• fades quickly, predators can hear too

varies in loudness/frequency:

—> high frequency: bats, rats, dolphins

—> low frequency: kangaroo rats, elephants

Touch/tactile communication

PROS:

• works at night, can idenfity sender, low cost

CONS:

• short range, fades quickly

ie: grooming in primates, bee waggle dance

Visual communication

used by most animals

PROS:

• medium range, variety, transmits quickly, can id sender

CONS:

• fades quickly, medium cost (predator can also see sender), does not often work at night

incipient behaviour

indication about subsequent action

• cat chirping before pouncing, still performs chirping when barriers to prey

displacement behaviour

doing something “out of context” in conflict situations

coordination feeding

in social animals, communicating food location to others

aggressiveness/social status communication

saves animals from having to fight if they have a signal that identifies their “quality”

• most animals will avoid fighting if they can

ideal free distribution model (resource matching rule)

V1/N1=V2/N2 predicts where animals will be found based on resource availability

the bigger the value of the resource, the more individuals it can support

• once you get individuals in patch B, the next will go to patch A, bc it has more resources than when B started

parasite avoidance

natural selection strongly selects for behaviour that reduces exposure to disease (avoid pathogen heavy habitats, avoid sick/infefcted individuals)

spatial memory

important in selecting habitats, remembering cache sites, predator location, how to move around the habitat

• stressful habitats negatively affect this

territory

area that is defended; the bigger the more costly it is to defend

home range

area visited regularly but not defended (shared space)

free ranging

animals without home range or territory

all purpose territory

all the life history of the individual can occur here

specialized territory

used for mating, lekking, nesting, roosting, wintering etc

conspecific cueing

copying territorial choice of who was there before

torpor

like hibernation, but animals occasionally wake up

• bears do this!

negative phototaxis

moves away from light (ie nematodes)

positive phototaxis

moves towards light (ie moths)

zungunruhe

migratory restlessness at night

• very heritable

• powerful internal clock

true navigation (homing)

animal knows where they are and where they need to go

Fixed cues (homing)

landmarks associated with destinations (creates a mental map of surroundings)

ant pedometer

when ants cant use scent to create trails (ie in sand), they count steps

aggression

intention to inflict noxious stimulation/destruction on another organism, or exclusion from resources

agonistic behaviours

conflict among conspecifics (NOT predation)

• territorial dispute, dominance, sexual, etc

exploitation/scramble competition

passively taking up a resource

interference/contest competition

active interaction to reduce another’s access to resources

dominance hierarchy/pecking order

in social groups, one animal controls the behaviours of others and gets access to resources first (dominant and subordinate)

• if X is dominant, Y is subordinate to X

linear dominance hierarchy

X—>Y—> Z

reconciliation

increased probability of contact between individuals following agnostic interactions (special behaviour patterns after a fight, ie: hugging, kissing, grooming, etc)

war of attrition

how long will displays last (standoffs) before moving on to a fight? standoffs can lead to missing out on other opportunities/resources

• the longer you go, the shorter the probability of displays lasts

• the bigger the value of the resource, the bigger the dropoff is

sequential assessment

individuals assess their opponents fighting ability over a number of bouts, increasing the levels of aggression over the bouts

(mouth wresting in fish)

testosterone

plays an important role in aggression, does not cause it but can amplify it

vertebrate high serotonin levels causes

low aggression

invertebrate high serotonin levels causes

high aggression

winner/loser effects

winners of one fight tend to win in the future, and losers tend to lose in the future (previous social experiences can amplify aggression)

bystander effect

learning about potential opponents through seeing their aggression, learning whos good/bad to fight against

audience effect

having others watching during aggressive behaviours can change opponents behaviours (also changes based on who is in the audience)

5 criteria of play

1. NOT fully functional in its form or context (not directly contributing to survival)

2. autotelic - done for own sake/self-reinforcing

3. exaggerated, awkward sequencing, or incomplete when compared to ethotypic (“serious”) behaviours

4. repeated by flexible and not rigidly stereotypic behaviours and movements

5. done in a low stress setting

object play

using inanimate objects to push, throw, tear, manipulate, etc

locomotor/rotational play

running, jumping, rolling, etc

• body movements

social play

with others, generally directed towards conspecific

• more common in “cognitively complex” species

the 5 freedoms of animal welfare

1. freedom from hunger + thirst

2. freedom from discomfort

3. freedom from injury, pain, disease

4. freedom to express normal behaviour

5. freedom from fear + distress

arousal signs

• heart rate variability (HRV)

• adrenaline/cortisol (hormones)

• activity levels

• communication signals

valence

how much you enjoy the feeling

• positive/negative

ethogram

operational definitions of behaviours (based on observation)

• behaviours must be functional and mutually exclusive

phenotypic plasticity

phenotypes (esp behaviours) can change within the lifespan of an animal

• environments change, therefore behaviour must be flexible and able to respond

learning

a relatively permanent change in behaviour as a result of experience

habituation/sensitsation

strength of a behaviour/response towards the stimulus is decreased with repeated presentation/exposure to stimulus

“getting used to something”

neophilia

approaches and explores new things

neophobia

avoids new things

sensitisation

increase in strength of response with repeated presentation of stimulus

unconditioned stimulus (US)

biologically salient object/event, already has a response associated with it (ie food, shock)

conditioned stimulus (CS)

initially a neutral stimulus (NS) (ie chime/bell), becomes a ____ _________ after being paired with US

unconditioned response (UR)

reflex behaviour (ie salivation, blinking, startling, etc)

conditioned response (CR)

same behaviour as the unconditioned response (UR), elicited by CS with enough pairing between CS and US

Appetitive stimulus

stimulus that the animal finds pleasant (ie food, play, scratching)

aversive stimulus

stimulus that the animal finds unpleasant (ie shock, poison)

operant conditioning

goal oriented learning

• responses to stimuli come to be controlled by their consequences

law of effect

if a response, in the presence of a stimulus, is followed by a satisfying state of affairs, the bond between stimulus + response will be strengthened

• organisms tend to repeat behaviours that are followed by favourable consequences

discriminative stimulus

any stimulus that signals the availability of reinforcement

positive reinforcement

add appetitive stimulus (increased probability of behaviour)

negative reinforcement

remove aversive stimulus (increased probability of behaviour)

positive punishment

add aversive stimulus (decrease probability of behaviour)

negative punishment

remove appatitive stimulus (decrease probability of behaviour)

shaping

behaviours dont start off perfect, need successive reinforcement of approximate behaviours towards a final ideal response

chaining

reinforce each response with the opportunity to perform the next response (develops a sequence of behaviours)

extinction

ending an association

in classical conditioning: CS no longer predicts US, CR weaks

operant conditioning:

• response no longer followed by reinforcement, response decreases