Lecture 12

Question 1

Rotation in guards appear to be linked to independent optimization of activity. How?

Answer 1

Heavily influenced by a nutritional status and the presence of a raised guard.

Question 2

Guards inform all group members of the approach of potential predators, but guards…?

Answer 2

don’t appear to suffer increased risks of predation.

Question 3

Learning appears to play a role in _______ behavior

Answer 3

guarding (difference between areas with high rates of predation vs. low)

Question 4

What did Cluttonbrock say about Bednekoff’s selfish sentinel model?

Answer 4

Guarding may be an individual’s optimal behavior if satiated and no other individual is on guard, it might be supported, but doesn’t explain everything.

Question 5

Meerkats also perform bipedal vigilance. What is that?

Answer 5

While foraging, individuals will stand on their hind legs and scan the area
as an increased form of vigilance. These individuals will join in producing
the ‘all clear’ signal to the group

Question 6

Did females or males perform more bipedal vigilance?

Answer 6

Females.

Question 7

T/F: Males and females spent less time foraging and eating in close proximity to pups.

Answer 7

true

Question 8

In mixed species flocks, sentinels appear to rely on the _________ ________ abilities of the other species within the flock.

Answer 8

insect flushing

Question 9

When an arthropod is flying away, what will a sentinel do?

Answer 9

will chase after it as the foraging species chases after it.

Question 10

What are the steps to assessing reliability when eavesdropping?

Answer 10

Relevance
Discrimination
Deception

Question 11

In eavesdropping, symmetric characteristics are?

Answer 11

-Each species is equally
reliable to the other
-Risks of predation are equal between the two species

Question 12

In eavesdropping, asymmetric characteristics are?

Answer 12

If one species is smaller than the other, the risk of predation may be different
from the same predator
Small species find all alarms by larger species valuable, but not vice versa

Question 13

Unreliable alarm calls pose a challenge to learning. Why is that?

Answer 13

Associative learning happens faster with a novel stimulus and a reliable consequence

Question 14

Infrequently heard alarm calls are difficult to learn. Why is that?

Answer 14

Lack of exposure to unique alarm calls if species do not
interact often
 Difficult to learn flee alarm calls versus mobbing calls (due to inherent
characteristics)
 Flee alarm calls are associated with transient danger

Question 15

Fairy wrens and scrub-wrens are…?

Answer 15

Social
vulnerable to the same threats
join mixed species flocks

Question 16

Honeyeaters are?

Answer 16

Pair breeders

Don’t form mixed species flocks.

Question 17

Fairy wrens and scrubwrens share what characteristics?

Answer 17

small cooperative passerines

overlapping territories.

Question 18

What were the findings of Magrath’s eavesdropping study?

Answer 18

All three species give areal alarm calls
 Fairy-wrens mean peak frequency 9.1 kHz;
 Scrubwrens mean peak frequency 7.1 kHz;
 Honeyeaters mean peak frequency 4.0 kHz;
 Areal alarms consist of a series of similar elements rapidly
repeated
 Playback of multi-element calls induce scanning and fleeing in all species

Question 19

What are some characteristics of Honeyeaters?

Answer 19

Larger than wrens
Similar breeding seasons
Consume nectar supplemented with bugs
Feed from ground level to canopy.

Question 20

What are the predators for wrens/honeyeater natural habitats?

Answer 20

Raptors and large avian omnivores (both groups prompt alarm calling in prey species.)

Question 21

_________ ________ preys on

birds up to 25g

Answer 21

Collard Sparrowhawk

Question 22

_______ _________ is omnivorous
and preys on eggs, nestlings,
and fledglings of all 3 species

Answer 22

Pied currawong

Question 23

_____ __________ active

predators of small passerines

Answer 23

Grey butcherbirds

Question 24

When recorded alarm calls were played, what were the findings?

Answer 24

Each species fled to cover after playback of alarm calls of conspecifics and at least 1 heterospecific call
No individuals fled to control calls
Fairy-wrens and scrubwrens were equally likely to flee to
conspecific and heterospecific alarm calls at natural amplitudes
Reduced amplitude honeyeater calls still induced fleeing
behavior in all three species, but with a slightly reduced response

Question 25

What kind of alarm calls were used?

Answer 25

Alarm call were single element recorded at
natural spacings
single elements with high signalto-noise
ratios, minimal reverberation, and no prominent overlapping sounds
Fairy-wren and scrubwren alarm calls consisted of 4 elements; honeyeater alarms consisted of 8 elements

Question 26

When did the playbacks occur?

Answer 26

during breeding season when these species
were not in mixed-flocks
 All playbacks occurred while the focal animal was actively
foraging and no other species of bird was visible

Question 27

What is the perspective on the fairy wrens from the honeyeaters?

Answer 27

The give false alarm calls at a high rate.

Question 28

From the scrubwren’s perspective…?

Answer 28

both other species were

reliable

Question 29

Fairy wrens and scrubwrens alerted to honeyeater calls despite what?

Answer 29

Despite not socializing with this species.

Question 30

Honeyeaters responded to scrubwren calls ______ ________ as they
respond to conspecific calls

Answer 30

as reliably

Question 31

Honeyeaters did not respond reliably to _______ _______ calls

Answer 31

fairy wren