Animal behaviour

NIko's four questions about animal behavior

• What stimulus, what physiological mechanisms? 

•  How does experience influence behavior? 

• How does behaviour affect survival & reproduction? 

• What is a behavior’s evolutionary history?

Simple behaviors

Actions triggered by straightforward stimuli that typically proceed to completion once initiated, caused by a simple sign stimulus.

Fixed action patterns

Sequences of behavior in a logical order, like male three-spined sticklebacks building caves for females to lay eggs.

Migration as animal behavior

Regular movements driven by environmental cues for accessing resources, breeding grounds, or escaping unfavorable conditions.

Courtship

Complex behavior sequences communicating critical information between courting males and females through signals.

what are the 4 Forms of stimulus response behavior

Visual = colour shape movement olfactory (smell) = using phermones to communicate and chemical signals ,

tactil = exchange of physical touch

auditory communication = transmission of messages through sound ex whale calls

between animals, adapting based on the environment.

Pheromones

Secreted substances triggering specific responses in receiving individuals, used by mammals and insects for communication.

Turbidity impact on signal transmission

Cloudiness affecting signal transmission, altering the spectrum of colors that can transmit effectively.

Associative learning

Linking cause and effect, like blue jays learning to avoid toxic monarch butterflies.

Imprinting

Building a deep bond, often irreversible, between animals, critical for survival.

Sexual imprinting

Learning species-specific traits for potential mates, guided by parental role models.

Environment's impact on animal intelligence

Animals are as smart as necessary for survival.

Foraging behavior

Searching, obtaining, and consuming food, studied to understand its impact on individual fitness.

Optimality models

Predicting optimal foraging strategies based on factors like energy gain curve and travel time between food patches.

Energy gain curve in foraging

Shows diminishing returns in food patches, determining the optimal time to leave for maximum energy gain.

Sexual selection components

Sex and mate choice, with females often being choosier for higher reproductive success.

Alternative behaviors

Traits like size, ornamentation, and aggression for mating success, including sneak copulations and genetic polymorphism.

Parental care diversity

Varies due to reproductive strategies and environmental conditions, involving providing resources and protection to offspring.

Diminishing returns in parental investment

More investment yielding less offspring success, illustrated by an S-shaped curve in optimality models.

Optimal parental investment

Parents optimize for fitness considering diminishing returns, while offspring benefit from higher investment for success.