Intro Animal Behavior Exam 1

what is behavior…. a

Any internally coordinated, externally visible \n pattern of activity that responds to changing \n external or internal conditions

behavior is ….. t

the observable actions and activities of \n individual animals

streamline chub fish

intolerant of organic pollution and habitat degradation

bluntnose fish

tolerant of organic pollution and habitat degradation

Knowledge of behavior improves profitability in \n

farming, hunting, and ecotourism

Knowledge of natural breeding behavior can improve

captive breeding programs\`

Evolutionary psychologists have studied the

potential evolution of human behavior

charles darwin and the theory of

evolution by natural and sexual selection

science is

the systematic description & explanation of natural phenomena

scientific method

a logical, stepwise approach to scientific research

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steps to scientific method

1\. Observation \n 2. Question \n 3. Hypothesis \n 4. Prediction \n 5. Test \n 6. Conclusion

1. observation

Careful observation and description of phenomenon

2. question

Formal statement of an unknown that one would like to understand

3. hypothesis

Tentative explanation based on assumptions that makes a testable prediction

4. prediction

(If, then) statement of what should occur if the hypothesis is correct; ideally, will have mutually exclusive predictions for \n alternative hypotheses – “strong inference”

5. test

design experiments or observations to test the prediction(s)

conclusion

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– if the prediction is substantiated by the data, we report that we have support for our hypothesis \n – if the prediction is not supported by the data, we reject our hypothesis \n – if we reject our hypothesis, we begin the process again, until we \n find one that is supported \n – in science, we cannot prove hypotheses, only reject or support them

Null hypothesis…. st

Statistical hypothesis that observations result from \n chance

null hypothesis… shtorfc

If alternative hypothesis is not supported, then \n often conclude that you do not reject the null \n hypothesis

Alternative hypothesis

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Statistical hypothesis that observations are NOT \n due to chance

alternative hypothesis

can never 100% prove

Owls -

Represents "Observation." Imagine wise owls observing the world \n around them.

Quietly -

Stands for "Question." Owls quietly contemplate and ask questions \n about what they see.

Hunt -

Represents "Hypothesis." Just as owls hunt for their prey, scientists \n hunt for answers by forming hypotheses.

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Prey -

Stands for "Prediction." Owls predict where their prey might be, and scientists predict outcomes based on their hypotheses.

To -

Represents "Test." Owls need to test their hunting strategies, and \n scientists need to test their hypotheses through experiments.

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Conquer -

Stands for "Conclusion." After hunting, owls conquer their prey, \n and scientists conquer the mysteries by drawing conclusions from their experiments.

Research hypothesis

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Explanation based on assumptions that makes a \n testable prediction

Scientific theory

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Hypothesis that makes many predictions, has \n been tested hundreds or thousands of times by \n many different scientists, and has not been \n rejected

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Anthropomorphism

The attribution of human feelings and emotional states \n to animals.

more on anthropomorphism

We have to be careful about inferring animals’ \n feelings when we cannot be sure they share the \n same experiences that we do. \n Anthropomorphism

anecdote

Short narrative of an interesting, amusing or \n biographical incident (Webster definition) AKA Informal observations of behavior

scientific study of behavior step 1

Begin by observing and describing phenomenon

ethogram

complete descriptive inventory of an animal’s behavior

**scientific study of behavior step 2**

clearly state your question

scientific study of behavior step 3

generate hypotheses

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scientific study of behavior step 4

generate testable predictions

scientific study of behavior step 5

test predictions

scientific study of behavior step 6

draw conclusions

correlation

Two variables that vary together \n predictably

Artificial Selection

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Process whereby humans selectively breed some \n varieties over others, causing one or more varieties \n to increase in frequency

more on artificial selection

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\-Humans allow only the plants and animals with desirable \n characteristics to reproduce \n • People (instead of nature) select which organisms get to \n reproduce

adaptation………..t

the process by which a species becomes fitted to its \n environment; it is the result of natural selection acting upon heritable \n variation over several generations.

Natural selection

In nature, individuals with beneficial traits survive and \n reproduce more frequently on average than individuals \n with less favorable traits

fitness

the relative reproductive success of \n individuals (whether they leave offspring in the next \n generation)

If you survive to reproduce,

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you will have achieved greater fitness

It’s not enough to survive–

if you don’t pass on your genes, it’s like you \n were never there!

charles darwin

Thinking about natural \n selection & collecting \n supporting evidence

charles darwin on voyage of

HMS beagle

Alfred Russel Wallace

Wrote a letter to Darwin \n explaining his idea of \n natural selection

Alfred Russel Wallace went on

Natural history collecting \n trips to Brazil and SE Asia

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Evolution via Natural Selection

Process whereby heritable traits that confer the \n highest relative reproductive success increase in \n frequency over evolutionary time

Lamarckism

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‘Inheritance of acquired characters’

Lamarckism is when

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Useful characters are acquired during the lifetime of an organism \n and passed on to offspring. Characters that are not useful are \n diminished.

Lamarckism is continuous,

gradual change within lifetime

Natural selection:

Differential reproduction \n and survivorship among individuals within \n a population

Fitness:

relative lifetime reproductive success \n • Survival & Reproduction

Adaptation: trait

trait that increases the fitness \n of an individual, relative to its competitors, \n in a population.

Gene:

segment of protein- encoding DNA

Allele:

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variant of a gene

Gene pool:

sum of all alleles in the population

Evolution:

change in the allelic frequency of a population

Heritable:

(A genetically-based trait that) can be passed from parents to their offspring

evolution

Change through time in living organisms

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what affects variation

natural selection, genetic drift, mutation, gene flow

Sexual Selection

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Type of natural selection where individuals of the same \n sex compete with each other for success in attracting a \n mate

Intrasexual selection (within a sex) – \n

males usually compete for females

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Intersexual selection (between \n sexes) –

females usually choose mates

Sexual dimorphism –

distinctive differences between males and females of the same species as a consequence of secondary sexual characteristics

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Positive frequency-

dependent selection: the fitness of a trait increases as it becomes \n more common

Negative frequency- \n

dependent selection: the fitness of a trait decreases as it becomes \n more common

Origin of new traits

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Originate by random changes in \n genetic material (e.g., mutation, \n sexual recombination)

more on origin of new traits

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• Survive or disappear due to selection by environmental factors (thus affecting the composition of the population as a whole) \n • Sometimes this results in entirely new species!

speciation

Separate species cannot breed and produce viable offspring

Populations evolve into separate species \n

o Allopatric speciation \n o Reproductive isolation

more on speciation

• Explosion or radiation of species \n o Separate species cannot breed \n and produce viable offspring

what is an animal

any organism that is multicellular, eukaryotic, motile, has a fixed body plan, heterotrophic

Why study Animal Behavior 1

Interface of ecology, physiology, & evolution

Why study Animal Behavior 2

Indication of environmental degradation

Why study Animal Behavior 3

Economic value

Why study Animal Behavior 4

Animal welfare

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Why study Animal Behavior 5

Wildlife conservation

Why study Animal Behavior 6

Understanding of human \n social behavior

umwelt

the world as it is experienced by a particular organism.

observational science

a science where it is not possible to construct controlled experiments in the area under study

explanatory science

a research method that explores why something occurs when limited information is available

correlation does not equal

causation

adaptationist approach

It attempts to frame the existence and persistence of traits, assuming that each of them arose independently and improved the reproductive success of the organism's ancestors.

heritabilty 1. Parent-offspring regression analysis:

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\-Examines the similarity \n between parents and their \n offspring in terms of the \n traits they possess \n • If a trait has a genetic basis, then \n the trait values of offspring \n should be similar to the trait \n values of their parents: there \n should be a positive relationship \n between offspring and parent \n trait values \n

heritability 2. Selection experiment method:

\-Different groups of individuals are subjected to \n differential selection on the trait in question \n -If artificial selection acting on a trait results in changes in \n that trait value in subsequent generations, then the trait \n has a genetic basis

Selection experiment \n

• Over four generations of selection, found strong changes in \n exploratory behavior

heritabilty 3. Cross-fostering experiment\`

– often involves removing young individuals from their \n parent(s), and having them raised by adults that are not \n their genetic relatives

Constraints on Adaptive Perfection

1\. Time lag –

evolutionary adaptations were \n optimal for past conditions (e.g., “traps”) \n • Selection can’t keep up with environmental change

Constraints on Adaptive Perfection

2\. Pleiotropy \n

• Most genes have multiple developmental effects \n • Selection acts on the entire phenotype/some genes \n get inherited in pairs or groups

Constraints on Adaptive Perfection

3\. Coevolution

flowering plants and pollinators

predators and prey

How do we measure fitness?

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direct and indirect measures

How can infanticide be adaptive?

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• The benefits have to outweigh the costs \n • (usually) fathers cannot afford to take care of offspring that they \n did not sire

How do we know whether traits are adaptive?

Cost – Benefit Approach

– Evaluate costs (damaging effects on fitness) \n – Evaluate benefits (positive effects on fitness) \n – For a trait to be adaptive, its beneficial effects must \n exceed its damaging effects \n – However, its net beneficial effect must also exceed that \n of all alternative phenotypes

costs of mobbing behavior

Time, energy, make self conspicuous, \n can get caught, have left young unattended

benefits of mobbing behavior

Distract predators so they are \n less efficient at finding eggs & young \n