Ch 52 Behavioral Ecology
“Oh Behave!!!”
Behavior—What an animal does and
how it does it.
–Proximate causation—Immediate
mechanisms underlying an organisms
behavioral, physiological, or
morphological response.
–Ultimate causation—Evolutionary
explanation for a behavioral,
physiological or morphological
response.
Figure 51.1 Genetic and environmental components of behavior: a case study
Nature vs. Nurture
– Both are active in shaping an organisms
behavior. Genes and environment influence
phenotypes and behavior.
– Multiple factors affect behavior.
– Innate behavior = developmentally fixed
behavior
• Developed because behavior maximized
fitness to the point where genes for
variant behavior were lost.
Figure 51.8 Vervet monkeys learn correct use of alarm calls
Learning—Modification of specific
behavior resulting from specific
experiences
– Associative learning—The ability to
associate one stimulus with a reward or
punishment
• Classical conditioning—Learning to
associate an arbitrary stimulus with a
reward or punishment.
• Operant conditioning—Trial and error
learning Associate behavior with a
reward or punishment.
Figure 51.11 Operant conditioning
Cognitive Mechanisms
– Kinesis—Change in activity level
– Taxis automatic oriented movement toward
or away from a stimulus.
– Landmark—Similar to taxis but organism
must learn landmark.
– Cognitive map—internal representation of
special relationships among an organism’s
surroundings. (more complex then
landmark)
Migration—Regular movement over
long distances.
– Piloting—moving from one landmark to another
until destination is reached.
– Orientation—animal detects compass directions
and travels in a straight line until reaching
destination.
– Navigation—Animal uses compass directions after
determining present location relative to other
locations.
Figure 51.16 Orientation versus navigation in juvenile and adult starlings