In the SparkNote on Signaling and
Communication,
we examined ways in which animals convey information to each other. In
this SparkNote on Behavioral ecology we will visit a whole host of ways in
which animals can interact with each other and with their environments. No
animal is a solitary being. Even generally antisocial animals must at some
point interact with others, and are constantly interacting with their
environment. Up until now, most of our discussion of animal behavior
focused on the mechanisms of animal behavior. Behavioral ecology is
set more in an ultimate framework, asking how and why interactive behaviors
have evolved.
First, we will examine two models describing choices animals must make while
searching for food. The contingency theory states that an animal choosing
between two food types must maximize the energy it will receive from the food
divided by the time it takes to obtain the food. An animal will eat a more
abundant, but less profitable food item only if the energy gained per unit time
spent is greater than a more profitable item. The marginal value theory
describes an animal's decision to leave a used up food source in search of a
fresh source.
Next, we will use game theory to describe conflicts
between two animals. When two animals have a conflict of interest and have two
strategies to choose from, we can determine which is the best strategy or the
best proportion of strategies to maximize the animal's payoff. Although game
theory is only a simple model, it is useful to apply it to real-world situations
in which an animal must decide which strategy to employ.
From our study of natural selection, it
seems obvious thatnatural selection seems a process favoring "selfish genes,"
genes that maximize an individual's survival and reproductive fitness
over that of its fellow species. By examining inclusive fitness, we can
see how social living is also profitable for related individuals, and therefore
how such communal living structuresmight have evolved.
Finally, we will take a look at sexual behavior. Sexual reproduction is not a
universal strategy and so we will examine the advantages and disadvantage of
this system versus asexual reproduction. We will see how sexual selection acts
on populations as a specialized version of natural selection.
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