Sensory Biology + Animal behaviour

Question 1

photoreception detects?

Answer 1

detects light for vision and responsible for sending it to the brain

Question 2

chemoreception detects?

Answer 2

detects chemicals for smell, taste and pheromones

Question 3

mechanoreception detects?

Answer 3

detects physical touch or movement including auditory sense

Question 4

what do eyespots detect?

Answer 4

they detect light and dark e.g. planaria have them

Question 5

what do compound eyes detect?

Answer 5

they detect motion e.g. insects

Question 6

what do single lens eyes do?

Answer 6

they focus on an image e.g. vertebrates and some invertebrates

Question 7

what are some different visual organs?

Answer 7

eyespots
compound eyes
single lens eyes

Question 8

how many types of cones do most mammals have?

Answer 8

2

Question 9

how many types of cones do primates have?

Answer 9

3 types

Question 10

how many types of cones do birds have?

Answer 10

birds have three or more cones

Question 11

what do more rods allow for in cats?

Answer 11

they allow for better night vision
evolutionary need is to sense movement
colour and sharper vision is less needed compared to primates

Question 12

how many types of cone cells do cats have?

Answer 12

2

Question 13

what do lateral positioned eyes allow for?

Answer 13

they allow for wide monocular field of vision and narrow binocular field of vision

Question 14

what do frontal position eyes allow for?

Answer 14

a wider central binocular field of vision, more restricted monocular field of vision

Question 15

what does binocular vision allow for?

Answer 15

it is the basis for depth perception at a short range

Question 16

if you have lateral positioned eyes - what do you need to do?

Answer 16

need to turn head to see the sides

Question 17

if you have frontal position eyes - what are you able to see?

Answer 17

able to see almost to the point of the eyes

Question 18

why do some animals tilt their heads?

Answer 18

to avoid blind spot

Question 19

why do some animals nod - how does it help their vision?

Answer 19

nodding to increase depth perception in monocular vision field

Question 20

good husbandry practices will take what into consideration - concerning vision?

Answer 20

the practices will consider the animals perspective
ageing animals or conditions within the eye will affect this even further

Question 21

what should husbandry of captive animals reflect - regarding vision?

Answer 21

it should reflect how they perceive the world
this will influence the animals welfare
preventing ability to lower head can be stressful for lateral sided eyes

Question 22

what are most chemoreceptors classified into?

Answer 22

into odorant receptors and pheromone receptors

Question 23

what is olfaction?

Answer 23

sense of smell involved detection of airborne chemicals called odorants

Question 24

what is gustation?

Answer 24

sense of taste, involves detection of dissolved chemicals called tastants
highly reliant on olfaction

Question 25

animals with fewer taste buds might depend on what?

Answer 25

on other mechanisms - think about how you use this to e.g. encourage feeding

Question 26

what do chemoreceptors physically do?

Answer 26

they bind chemicals responsible for sense of taste and smell

Question 27

give an example for chemical sensing in cats:

Answer 27

Nepetalactone found to attract cats + cause rubbing, is associated with protection against mosquitos It increased endorphin levels No naso-oral route needed - it was via chemical sensing that caused the expression of rubbing behaviour

Question 28

what is Nepetalactone?

Answer 28

a compound found in catnip and silver vine

Question 29

Behaviour description for Flehmen's response?

Answer 29

curling back of the lips or lifting of the lips with mouth held open, head held for a short while in that position

Question 30

purpose for the Flehmen's response?

Answer 30

taking in pheromones through vomeronasal organ/JO (VNO/JO)

Question 31

during the Flehmen's response - where does the scent go through?

Answer 31

goes through different path from olfactory sense sends separate neural tracts to the VN bulb or Accessory Olf bulb --> goes to amygdala --> hypothalamus > FSH/LH

Question 32

when is the Flehmen's response performed?

Answer 32

performed when they get scent of mate nearby for sexual readiness, prey hunting and bonding of mother to offspring

Question 33

when do animals get frustrated - to do with smell?

Answer 33

when prevented access from something they can detect through scent e.g. consider intact animals

Question 34

why do cats rub on objects?

Answer 34

to leave a cheek pheromone as a means of communication and affiliation

Question 35

rods for?

Answer 35

night vision

Question 36

cones for?

Answer 36

colour

Question 37

scent is used as a means of...

Answer 37

communication through urine, anal gland secretion, faeces, rubbing on objects. this is taken in through sniffing or licking

Question 38

what do mechanoreceptors respond to?

Answer 38

respond to mechanical stimulations such as pressure, electrical stimuli or sound

Question 39

what senses are mechanoreceptors responsible for?

Answer 39

responsible for sense of touch, temperature and hearing

Question 40

purple spray - on chickens?

Answer 40

the birds get picked on more the purple spray is an alarm to other birds purple spray on chickens with wounds actually attracts other chickens to the site

Question 41

what do animals rely on their senses for?

Answer 41

for communication, travel and prey capture

Question 42

what can some mammals use instead of sight?

Answer 42

they use a sensory system (e.g. vibrissae) predominantly instead of sight

Question 43

how do fishes detect vibrations in the water?

Answer 43

they use a lateral line organ

Question 44

what does the lateral line organ of fish allow them to do?

Answer 44

allows them to see in the dark and maintaining swimming in a group and catching prey (now think about the impact of movement/mechanical disturbance in aquatic animals)

Question 45

what do elephant-nose fish use to detect predators and its environment?

Answer 45

they live in muddy waters - they use electrical pulses as they have poor eyesight

Question 46

what is the use of pit organs in some snakes (boas, pythons, vipers)?

Answer 46

they detect heat radiance from prey (so think about poorly thawed prey)

Question 47

what do the pit organs allow snakes to do?

Answer 47

allows them to detect prey in close distance in the absence of light

Question 48

how many Hz can dogs hear up to - what does this mean the dog may do?

Answer 48

they can hear up to 65,000 Hz sudden barking or pacing at the window may be due to sounds also they may hear things in the ground so will consistently dig

Question 49

how are dogs sleep schedules messed up by sound?

Answer 49

sounds that humans make or any constant noise around pet can cause emotional arousal to be increased on a daily basis - most dogs are not sleeping enough

Question 50

pheromone therapy is a common way of?

Answer 50

increasing confidence and reducing anxiety

Question 51

Nutraceuticals?

Answer 51

these can target neurotransmitters e.g. serotonin or dopamine can be helpful

Question 52

prevention and management of 'noise'?

Answer 52

reduce music in car use headphones/cotton to reduce sound of fireworks avoid keeping animals in areas where there are lots of stimuli for extended periods disinfectants used should be washed away or enough time for it to disperse before animal put in

Question 53

ageing animals - prevention and management for sound?

Answer 53

use visual cues to prevent injury e.g. with glass windows/doors

Question 54

why do dogs kick up their faeces?

Answer 54

in order to spread their scent and chemicals

Question 55

cheek pheromone?

Answer 55

it creates a space that is a sign of safety it uses heat to lift the pheromone and spread around creates a sense of familiarity in that space

Question 56

rostral injuries in reptiles?

Answer 56

running into glass - trying to get away from fight etc. can put like fuzzy stickers on glass to prevent them from running into it