basic animal behaviour

Question 1

define behaviour via

Answer 1

movement, social interaction, cognition, learning

Question 2

proximate traits

Answer 2

• coming very soon
• imminent causes
• how does this work now

Question 3

ultimate traut

Answer 3

• coming at the end
• evolution of a trait
• what is its history

Question 4

tinbergen’ s questions
adaptive value
mechanism
development
evolution

Answer 4

• functional / ultimate: what is adaptive value or selective advantage of the traits
• mechanistic/ proximate: what mechanism cause trait to occur, causation
• developmental/ ontogenetic; how is the trait acquired during course of development
• historical; from what did it evolve

Question 5

proximate mechanism of trait

Answer 5

genes –> synapses –> neuronal networks –> behaviour

environment affects genes and behaviour

physiological and sensory causes

Question 6

innate vs environment

Answer 6

genetic vs learned

Question 7

latin innatus

Answer 7

born

Question 8

innate behaviours

Answer 8

are not learned or taught, born knowing how to do it

• some are there from birth, some develop during sexual maturity

Question 9

associative learning

Answer 9

learning to associate stimulus w consequence

Question 10

operant conditioning

Answer 10

trial and error
ex learning what to eat

Question 11

classical conditioning

Answer 11

associate neutral stimulus with significant stimulus

Question 12

innate vs learned behaviour

Answer 12

• inborn vs based on experience
• not modified vs modified
• low variation in pop vs high variation in pop
• unaffected by environment vs highly affected by environment
• beneficial vs capacity to learn and may be product of natural selection

Question 13

animals perform behaviours if

Answer 13

the benefits outweigh the costs

Question 14

why are cockroaches so successful

Answer 14

Question 1) function and utility; what is adaptive value of trait
Cerci in cockroaches helps them escape and survive
Covered with hairs that detect air movements
Easily avoid descending foot and predators
Can also tell direction and source of threat
Question 2) mechanism
Each hair can only move 1 direction
This determines which nerves fire, only these nerves send signals to brain
Brain interprets where the trouble is coming from and send movement signals to avoid
Nervous system that helps initiate escape reaction
Question 3) development of this escape response
Hatchlings do just as well as adults (innate)
Molting does not affect it
Question 4) evolutionary history
Evolved from arthropods; arthropods developed giant nervous fiber responses throughout evolution
Crustaceans also have them
For predator avoidance

Question 15

4 questions again

Answer 15

• causation/ mechanism
• development
• utility
• evolution