Behavior and Ethology Commons^™

The First Step In The Case For Great Ape Equality: The Argument For Other Minds, Kristin Andrews

Psychology Collection

No abstract provided.

Social Assemblages And Mating Relationships In Prairie Dogs: A Dna Fingerprint Analysis, Steven E. Travis, Con Slobodchikoff, Paul Kefan

Reproductive Behavior Collection

Mating system characterizations have been hindered by difficulties in accurately assigning parentage to offspring. We investigated the relationship between social assemblages and mating relationships in a territorial harem polygynous mammal, the Gunnison's prairie dog, using a combination of behavioral and molecular analyses. We demonstrate multiple paternity and an extraordinarily high incidence of extraterritorial fertilizations (i.e., 61% of all progeny), in combination with the existence of female kin groups. On this basis, we conclude that social assemblages alone provide a poor description of the Gunnison's prairie dog mating system, and suggest several potential reasons for the maintenance of territoriality in this …

Habitat And Courtship Behavior Of The Wolf Spider Schizocosa Retrorsa (Banks) (Araneae, Lycosidae), Eileen Hebets, Gail E. Stratton, Gary Miller

Eileen Hebets Publications

The habitat and courtship behavior of the wolf spider Schizocosa retrorsa (Banks 1911) were studied and are described here for the first time. The range of S. retrorsa was extended to include the lower peninsula of Michigan. This species is locally abundant in highly exposed habitats of sand or pine litter. Male courtship consists of chemoexploration, palpal drumming, an extended leg tap, and a "push-up" display. Female displays include a double leg arch, approaches, and orientations toward the male.

Studying Elephants: Awf Technical Handbook Series #7, Robert H.I. Dale

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Book review for the following title:

Studying Elephants: AWF Technical Handbook Series #7. Edited by Kadzo Kangwana, Nairobi, Kenya: African Wildlife Foundation, 1996, 186 pages. $15 S&H.

Visual Search For Natural Grains In Pigeons (Columba Livia) : Search Images And Selective Attention, Cynthia M. Langley, Donald A. Riley, Alan B. Bond, Namni Goel

Papers in Behavior in Biological Sciences

The experiments reported here were designed to test the suggestion of many researchers that selective attention to visual features of a prey can account for search-image effects. In 3 experiments pigeons ate wheat and vetch grains presented on multicolored and gray gravel trays. In Experiment 1 search-image effects were evident when grains were cryptic but not when they were conspicuous. Experiment 2 demonstrated that search images can be activated when the grains encountered are either cryptic or conspicuous but that search images affect search performance only when the grains are cryptic. Experiment 3 demonstrated that search images are short-term in …

Avoidance Of Cabbage Fields By Snow Geese, J. Russell Mason, Larry Clark

Larry Clark

now Goose activity levels were significantly less in cabbage fields than in control fields. Although the data do not unambiguously address the issue of sulfur repellency, we believe that the activity difference is consistent with avoidance of the former and not preference for the latter. Sulfurous volatiles were readily apparent to us during our visits to cabbage fields throughout the study period. Similar odors were not detected in control fields. If sulfurous volatiles were important, then avoidance could reflect some characteristic of the cover crop (e.g., unpalatability acquired through the absorption and translocation of degra­ dation products) or it could …

A Study On The Life History And Seasonal Foraging Habits Of The Salamander Desmognathus Quadramaculatus Holbrook, In Wv, Glenn R. Mills

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

A study was conducted on Desmognathus quadramaculatus in the northern periphery of its range with some aspects of its life history, surface density, and seasonal foraging habits. The results in this study are compared to studies done on D. quadramaculatus in the southern portion of its range. Female D. quadramaculatus have been found tending egg clutches from June to September in the southern portion of its range and data collected in this study shows that egg deposition also occurs during this period in the northern population. Female size (SVL) at which D. quadramaculatus reach sexual maturity ranged from 57.6- 77.5 …

Pattern And Duration Of Copulation In Wolf Spiders (Araneae, Lycosidae), Gail E. Stratton, Eileen Hebets, Patricia R. Miller, Gary L. Miller

Eileen Hebets Publications

The temporal patterns of insertion of male palps, expansion of the hematodocha and duration of copulation are reported for 10 species of Schizocosa Chamberlin 1904, three species of Rabidosa Roewer 1955, one species of Gladicosa Brady 1986, one species of Hogna Simon 1885, two species of Isohogna Roewer 1960, one species of Trochosa C.L. Koch 1848, one species of Geolycosa Montgomery 1904, two species of Arctosn C.L. Koch 1848, three species of Alopecosa Simon 1885 and six species of Pardosa C.L. Koch 1847. In all species of Schizocosa examined so far, males showed a pattern composed of a series of …

Predicting Cognitive Capacity From Natural History: Examples From Four Species Of Corvids, Russell P. Balda, Alan Kamil, Peter A. Bednekoff

Papers in Behavior in Biological Sciences

Birds have been studied for centuries because they are numerous, conspicuous, and aesthetically pleasing to humans. Despite their overall regard for birds, historically, many ornithologists have considered birds as instinct-driven organisms of little intellectual capacity. For example, the ornithological textbook of choice from the 1960s states the following view of avian intelligence:

Flight has proven to be an enormously successful evolutionary venture, but one that has cost birds dearly in mental development. In effect, problems merely by flying away from them. … As a consequence, much [avian] behavior is, by mammalian standards, fragmentary, stereotyped, and at times amazingly stupid. (Welty, …

Against Nature: On Robert Wright's The Moral Animal, Amy L. Wax

All Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Microhabitat Use By Gilbert's Potoroo (Potorous Tridactylus Gilbertii Gould) In Relation To Vegetation Associations And Ground Cover, S. Vetten

Theses : Honours

Gilbert's potoroo has been rediscovered 120 years after it was believed to have become extinct. In 1994 the presence of Gilbert's potoroo was confirmed at Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve, near Albany, and since that time the need for a detailed understanding of the biology and behaviour of the species has become urgent. An understanding of the habitat requirements of the species will aid in its recovery from its present critically endangered status and will act as a guide for future management decisions concerning translocations of new populations into other areas. The present study was conducted at Two Peoples Bay …

Assessment And Decision Making In Animals: A Mechanistic Model Underlying Behavioral Flexibility Can Prevent Ambiguity, Amos Bouskila, Daniel T. Blumstein

Amos Bouskila

Understanding how animals make decisions is a fundamental question in behavioral ecology which has cascading effects on how animals respond to environmental variation. An explicit model of the mechanisms of information processing and decision making can help prevent conflated definitions and ambiguous interpretations. Unambiguous definitions are crucial for clear communication between theoreticians and empiricists and for the rapid advancement of studies of decision making, Moreover, employing a clear model of underlying proximal processes will help bridge the gap between cognitive psychology and behavioral ecology and should aid scientific advancement. We present a simple model to guide studies of assessment and …

Concaveation And Maintenance Of Maternal Behavior In A Burrower Bug (Sehirus Cinctus): A Comparative Perspective, Scott Kight

Scott Kight