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"Animal Behaviour & Sociobiology"
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There are many examples of cooperation between species, however, one of the better examples is the relationship observed between marine ‘cleaner’ fish and their ‘clients’. There are many species of cleaner fish such as the wrasse from the genus Labroides, or the gobies from the genus Elacatinus.
Superstition is a belief or practice resulting from ignorance, fear of the unknown, trust in magic or chance or a false conception of causation. In an ecological sense, superstitious behaviour is the incorrect assignment of cause and effect.
The simplistic predator-prey model dictates the only effect on prey numbers (by predation) is the direct level of predation which occurs i.e. the number of prey a predator consumes. However, prey can respond to the presence of predators in their vicinity by altering their morphological responses or their behaviour. This normally occurs as an attempt [...]
About The Author - http://ruthturner.wordpress.com My name is Ruth Turner and I am studying BSc (Hons) Animal Management (Animal Behaviour and Welfare) at the University of Chester. My degree gives me a vast knowledge about exotic and pet species, ranging from reptiles to large carnivores, livestock and domestic species. My main interest is [...]
Extra pair paternity occurs when the female of a partner of a pair bonded couple engages in extra pair copulations (i.e. copulation with a male other than the bonded male) and as a result gives birth to offspring whose father is not the bonded male.
The Túngara frog is a tropical species of frog, upon which many mate choice studies have been performed. The male Túngara frog has a characteristic ‘whine-chuck’ mating call which has been exploited in these studies.
Polygynous mammalian mating systems are quite diverse, varying in how females and territories are guarded, as well as the uses of resources amongst other things. Only around 5% of mating systems in mammals are monogamous.
Avian mating systems are fairly diverse. Around 90% birds are monogamous, 8% polygynous and 1-2% polyandrous.
Male ejaculates are able to modify female behaviour in advantageous ways, often increasing male fitness. This is particularly beneficial to species where the sperm from the last male takes precedence.
In general terms, the sexes within a species may be either competitive (i.e. compete against intrasexually for access to a resource, which is in this case, the opposite sex) or choosy. The ‘choosy’ sex therefore makes a decision about which member of the opposite sex he or she will mate with.
It is recommended that you read ‘An Introduction to the Evolution of Animal Fighting Behaviour‘ before you read this, as there are some concepts explained in the earlier article which are used without explanation in this article.
Introduction
Success in fighting behaviour is frequency dependent i.e. as the population size increases fighting success [...]
Communication is the process of transferring information from one animal to another; there are typically three types of roles involved with communication. These are:
Signaller – Initiates the communication, the signaller must benefit from making the signal
Receiver – Receives the signals sent by the signaller, these signals are often of benefit to the receiver as well
Eavesdropper – Takes advantage of the signals generated by the signaller
