exam 3 - animal behavior

Question 1

what is behavior? an example

Answer 1

action carried out by muscles under control of the nervous system.
animal uses its throat muscles to produce a song

Question 2

Nike Tinberger, and what did he contribute?

Answer 2

identified 4 questions that should be answered to understand animal behavior

Question 3

try to remember the questions created by Niko

Answer 3

What stimulus clitics the behavior, and how do various body systems bring it about?
how does the animal experience during growth and development influence the response

Question 4

what is fixed action pattern (FAP) w/ example

Answer 4

Sequence of unlearned acts directly linked to an external cue called a sign stimulus
sticklebakcs fixed action pattern to act the color red

(it is unchangeable and once initiated it has to be carried through)

Question 5

what is human FAP?

Answer 5

yawning

Question 6

what is migration?

Answer 6

Regular long-distance change in location guided by environmental cues

Question 7

bird, fish and mammal that migrates

Answer 7

Bird
mammal - hunch back whale
fish - salmon

Question 8

what cues or tools do some animals use to orient themselves during migration

Answer 8

sun, north star, earth magnetic field

Question 9

what animal has the longest migration, breed and spend winter?

Answer 9

artic term migration, 71,000km
breed along the northern Atlantic coast
spend winter -

Question 10

Circadian rhythm, how can it be disrupted?

Answer 10

daily cycle of rest and activity, usually synchronized with light and dark cycles

Question 11

What is signal, what is communication?

Answer 11

signal - Stimulus generated by on animal that guides behavior of another
communication - transmission and reception of signals between animals

Question 12

what are four common modes of communication?

Answer 12

visual, chemical, tactile and auditory

Question 13

what is innate behavior?

Answer 13

fixed action pattern or pheromone signaling - unlearned behavior preformed by all individuals the same way each time
[building a web is an innate behavior for a spider]

Question 14

associative learning

Answer 14

animals associate one feature of their environment (such as a color) with another (foul taste)

Question 15

classical conditioning

Answer 15

type of associative learning in which obituary stimulus is associated with a reward or punishment, has an subconscious response , dogs start to salivate at the sound of a bell

Question 16

operant conditioning

Answer 16

associative learning in which an animal learns to associate one of its behaviors with rewards or punishment
- also trail and error learning, rat pushes lever and is feed, will learn to push to receive food

Question 17

what is cognition?

Answer 17

Process of knowing that involves awareness, reasoning, recollection and judgment
belileved that only primates and some marine mammals exhibited cognition
- other groups such as insects show signs of cognition

Question 18

optimal foraging model

Answer 18

views foraging behavior as a compromise between the benefits of nutrition and the cost of obtaining food
cost: energy expenditure, risk of being eaten
- natural selection should favor foraging behaviors minimizes costs and maximizes benefits

Question 19

Foraging Northwestern crow:

Answer 19

A crow will drop a whelk from a height to break its shell and feed on its soft parts
- crows face a pay off between the height from which it drops the whelk and the number of times it must drop the whelk

Question 20

what is imprinting?

Answer 20

establishment of a long-lasting behavioral response to a particular individual or object
- can only take place during a specific time of development called the sensitive period

Question 21

imprinting: Konrad Lorenz

Answer 21

Recognized as one of the founding father of the field of ethology, best known for his research of the principle of attachment or imprinting

Question 22

how was imprinting used to save the whooping crane?

Answer 22

Humans would wear crane suits so birds would imprin on the bird, which lead their migration in an ultralight aircraft

Question 23

mating systems:

Answer 23

plays major role in determining reproductive success - behaviors include seeking or attracting mates, choosing among potential mates, competing for mates and caring for offspring

Question 24

monogamy (monogamous)

Answer 24

Mates form a relationship of some duration that is monogamous (one male and one female)
- males and females look very similar to each other
examples: wolf, bald eagle

Question 25

polygyny (polygamous)

Answer 25

individual of one sex mates with several individuals of the other sex
- usually sexually dimorphic: males and females differ in appearance
males more showy and larger then females

Question 26

Polyandry

Answer 26

one female and many males
- females often more ornamented and maybe larger then the males
examples: spotted sandpiper, hive insects, naked mole rat some human societies

Question 27

inter and intra sexual selection

Answer 27

Intersexual selection: members of one sex choose mates based on certain traits
intrasexual selection: involves competition between members of the same sex for mates

Question 28

what is altruism and know several examples

Answer 28

Natural selection favors behavior that maximizes an individual survival and reproduction,
such behaviors are typically selfish but some animal behaviors seem to be selfless
(term for selflessness)

Question 29

examples of altruism in animals

Answer 29

Balding ground squirrels; behave altruistically by making an alarm call when they spot a predator
- call informs the others of danger but puts then in danger
Honeybees
sterile workers never reproduce themselves, but labor on behalf of a single fertile queen
- sacrifice their lives by stinging intruders to defend the hive
Naked mole rat
social rodent, underground Africa
- colonies can include 300 individuals, but the queen reproduces with few males
non reproductive individuals may sacrifice themselves to protect the queen and kings from predators