Animal Cognition

Flashcards based on lecture notes about animal cognition, covering topics such as biases in animal studies, evolution of behavior, comparative psychology, and sensory perception in animals.

What is the definition of cognition according to Shettleworth (2010)?

The mechanisms by which animals acquire, process, store, and act on information from the environment.

Why is it important to study animal cognition?

Understanding animal cognition can inform us about the evolution of cognition, human cognition, and animal welfare.

Define anthropomorphism and why it is a bias when regarding animals.

Anthropomorphism is attributing human characteristics to animals, which can bias our understanding of their actual behaviors and cognitive abilities.

Define anthropocentrism and why it is a bias when regarding animals.

Anthropocentrism is viewing animals from our own, human perspective, which can limit our understanding of their unique experiences and cognition.

What are the three components of this mechanism for the evolution observations made by Darwin?

Variation, Selection, Adaptation

What was George Romanes' contribution to comparative psychology?

He wrote 'Animal Intelligence' (1882) which was primarily a collection of anecdotes about intelligent behavior in animals.

What is Morgan's Canon?

When explaining animal behavior, the simplest psychological explanation should be preferred.

Who introduced experimental methods to the study of animal behavior?

Thorndike (behaviourism)

Name Tinbergen's 4 questions one should consider when studying animal behavior.

Function, phylogeny, ontogeny, and mechanism.

What does the cephalization index measure?

The size of the brain relative to body size.

What did Pearce (2008) discover during his study of animal learning?

Higher cephalization index does not necessarilly equal faster learning.

What is Bitterman's solution to contextual factors?

Systematic Variation: Training on a task across a range of conditions, varying stimuli, reward size, hunger levels, etc.

Why is perception important when researching animal behaviour?

Perceptual abilities vary between species, which means not all animals can detect the same stimuli. Experiments must consider what animals can and cannot detect.

How do most other species compare to humans in regards to the colour spectrum?

(Most?) other species can see more of the spectrum than humans

What are some uses of smell for animals?

Survival: Find food, avoid predators, finding home and Communication: attracting mates, recognising Individuals.

What is echolocation?

The ability to use sound as if it was vision

How have moths adapted in response to stealth echolocation?

By creating clicks of their own and confuse them

Name multiple animals that are sensitive to magnetic fields

Pigeons, bats, migrating fish, bees, ants, cattle, sea turtles