L7 - Play Flashcards
Give 2 examples of literature on reptiles showing play behaviour before 1980
1) Hill 1954 - described a komodo dragon manipulating material in a form of play
2) Lazell and Spitzer 1977 - observed an American Crocodile snapping at dripping water, and kept returning to this
Give the first recorded video/photographic evidence of a reptile playing
‘Pigface’ the Nile soft shelled turtle 1996
In a zoo in Burghards, was very depressed to the point of self harm and not mating with females
Was given balls into his enclosure, he showed great interest, snapping and biting them. After this there was a large decrease in self harm and he mated with females
Give animals that play is sometimes present in
Sharks rays and skates Ray finned fish Frogs and toads Turtles and tortoises Crocodiles and relatives Lizards, snakes and relatives Egg laying mammals
Give 5 animals where play is unknown in
Hagfish and Lampreys Coelacanths Lungfish Caecilians Salamanders and newts
Give 3 problems with the theory of play
1) it traditionally relies on pet owners and zookeepers anecdotes - these tend to be over exaggerated, there is no systematic method for collecting data. Therefore it is difficult to a build a theory on these
2) We tend to study behaviour that (we think) has a function
3) Few controlled studies that relate to the theory
Who defined play with this quote and when:
“Play is all motor activity performed postnatally that appears to be purposeless, in which motor patters from other contexts may often be used in modified forms and altered temporal sequencing. If the activity directed toward another living being is called social play.”
Bekoff and Byers - 1981
Give 3 problems with ‘purposelessness’ as a reason for play behaviour
1) we fail to see any immediate benefit
2) May occur long after we observed - hard to draw links
3) There may be multiple benefits
So may have to adopt a ‘wait and see’ approach to play behaviour as a lot of data is required form many species
What are the 3 types of play?
Object play, locomotor play and social play
Give 2 examples of Object play and what is learnt
1) Ravens:
Juveniles were supplied with novel items to supplement regular items. They quickly started to interact with the novel items. They selected out food items from the novel items. - Object play helps learning about food
2) Cheetahs
Cheetah cubs spend less time playing the more they age. Object play such as biting, pawing and kicking is low cost and very little injury acquired. Object play transferred to interacting with live prey mother provided as cubs
What are the 3 benefits of locomotor play?
1) Provides exercise - increased endurance etc.
2) Training of later life skills
3) Muscle fibre differentiation - fast or slow differentiation occurs very quickly after birth - important for foraging and anti-predator behaviour
What changes in the brain occur by taking part in locomotor play?
The brain is most plastic at a young age:
increase synapse creation,
cerebellum involved in limb coordination, movement and postural changes
Evidence: Cerebellar synapse formation peaks about the time mice start playing
What are the 3 functions of social play?
1) Long lasting social bonds: male-male play is especially prevalent in chimps. Facilitates coalitions formed later in adulthood, and maybe facilitate access to resources
2)Promotes fine tuning of physical skills - fight/foraging
E.g.: Male bighorn sheep - adults fight a lot more than females, but also male children play a lot more. Rotational movements used to invite paly, play only initiated after invite and relationship is formed
3) Aid in development of cognitive skills - permits self assessment of developmental stage
E.g.: sable antelope calves preferentially associate with the same aged play partners. This permits calves to self determine hoe far along their development they are relative to other calves
What is the effect of play on environmental stress? Give an example
Squirrel monkeys:
During dry season infants reduce the time spent playing
Play is linked to low food availability and low energy - it is the first casualty of environmental stress
Why don’t reptiles play?
Is it a question of resources?
- Reptiles experience a lack of parental care compared to mammals
- cold blooded therefore metabolically constrained
- lack a ‘boring’ well resourced environment
How do animals know if it is a play or real fight?
Gorillas:
Have 2 types of play fighting - gentle and rough. When it gets to rough stage they have a ‘play fight face’ where they bear their teeth and make eye contact
