Course outline
Module 1
Module 1: Foundations of Animal Behaviour
Foundations of Animal Behaviour
Knowledge check
Q1. Which researcher is most associated with the four 'questions' of animal behaviour, including causation, development, function, and evolution?
- A. Charles Darwin
- B. Konrad Lorenz
- C. Niko Tinbergen ✓
- D. B.F. Skinner
Why: Niko Tinbergen (1963) proposed four complementary questions for studying behaviour: causation (mechanism), development (ontogeny), function (survival value), and evolution (phylogeny). Darwin contributed to evolutionary thinking, Lorenz to ethology, and Skinner to learning theory, but Tinbergen's framework is the standard one.
Q2. What is a fixed action pattern?
- A. A learned behaviour that changes with experience
- B. A stereotyped, innate behaviour sequence triggered by a specific stimulus ✓
- C. A behaviour that is performed only during mating season
- D. A reflex controlled by a single neuron
Why: A fixed action pattern is an unlearned, relatively invariant behaviour sequence released by a specific sign stimulus, such as the begging response of a gull chick pecking at a parent's red spot. It differs from learned behaviour and from simple reflexes, which involve a single stimulus-response pathway.
Q3. Which term describes the study of behaviour in natural environments, emphasising innate behaviour and evolutionary explanations?
- A. Comparative psychology
- B. Ethology ✓
- C. Behaviourism
- D. Neuroendocrinology
Why: Ethology is the study of animal behaviour in natural settings with an emphasis on innate behaviour, adaptation, and evolution. Behaviourism focuses on learning through conditioning in controlled settings, while comparative psychology and neuroendocrinology take different primary emphases.
Q4. Which of the following is an example of imprinting?
- A. A rat learning to press a lever for food
- B. A duckling following the first moving object it sees after hatching ✓
- C. A bee performing a waggle dance to indicate food location
- D. A dog salivating at the sound of a bell
Why: Imprinting is a rapid, form of learning that occurs during a sensitive period, in which young animals attach to a stimulus, usually their mother, and the first moving object they see. Lever pressing is operant conditioning, the waggle dance is an innate communication behaviour, and salivating to a bell is classical conditioning.
Q5. What does 'proximate' explanation refer to in animal behaviour?
- A. The long-term evolutionary history of a behaviour
- B. The immediate mechanisms, such as neural or hormonal causes, behind a behaviour ✓
- C. The geographic distance between two populations
- D. The number of offspring produced by a behaviour
Why: Proximate explanations address how a behaviour occurs and what immediate factors cause it, including genetics, physiology, hormones, and environmental triggers. Ultimate explanations, by contrast, address the evolutionary history and survival value of the behaviour.
Module 2
Module 2: Genetics and Instinct
Genetics and Instinct
Knowledge check
Q1. Which term describes a complex, species-typical behaviour that is performed in a similar way by all members of a species without prior learning?
- A. Learned behaviour
- B. Fixed action pattern ✓
- C. Operant conditioning
- D. Habituation
Why: A fixed action pattern is an innate, stereotyped behaviour sequence triggered by a specific stimulus (a sign stimulus or releaser), and it occurs in similar form across all members of a species without needing to be learned.
Q2. What is a sign stimulus (or releaser) in the context of instinctive behaviour?
- A. Any stimulus that an animal has learned to associate with food
- B. A specific feature of the environment that triggers a fixed action pattern ✓
- C. A hormone that switches on genes during development
- D. A stimulus that gradually becomes ignored through repeated exposure
Why: A sign stimulus, also called a releaser, is a specific cue such as a colour pattern or shape that reliably triggers an innate fixed action pattern. Herring gull chicks pecking at the red spot on a parent's beak is a classic example.
Q3. Which of the following best describes the difference between genotype and phenotype?
- A. Genotype is observable, phenotype is the hidden genetic code
- B. Genotype is the genetic makeup of an organism, phenotype is its observable traits ✓
- C. Genotype refers only to learned behaviour, phenotype only to inherited behaviour
- D. Genotype and phenotype mean the same thing
Why: The genotype is the set of genes an individual carries, while the phenotype is the observable expression of those genes, including physical traits and behaviours, which is also shaped by environmental influences.
Q4. Why is it difficult to classify a behaviour as purely innate or purely learned?
- A. Because all behaviours are entirely learned from birth
- B. Because genes and environment interact, so almost all behaviour has both genetic and environmental components ✓
- C. Because innate behaviours can never be observed in animals
- D. Because learning only occurs in mammals
Why: Development is an interaction between genes and environment. Even innate behaviours require certain environmental conditions to develop, and learned behaviours are built on genetically determined capacities, so the innate-learned distinction is a matter of degree.
Q5. In Tinbergen's four questions framework, which question asks about the evolutionary history of a behaviour?
- A. Causation
- B. Development
- C. Function
- D. Phylogeny ✓
Why: Tinbergen's four questions cover causation (mechanism), development (ontogeny), function (survival value), and evolutionary history (phylogeny). Phylogeny asks how the behaviour has evolved across related species over time.
Module 3
Module 3: Learning and Conditioning
Learning and Conditioning
Knowledge check
Q1. In classical conditioning, what is the unconditioned stimulus (UCS)?
- A. A stimulus that naturally and automatically triggers a response without prior learning ✓
- B. A neutral stimulus that comes to trigger a response after being paired with the UCS
- C. The learned response to a conditioned stimulus
- D. A reward that follows a behaviour and increases its frequency
Why: The unconditioned stimulus naturally elicits an unconditioned response without any prior learning, such as food causing salivation in Pavlov's dogs.
Q2. Which term describes an increase in the likelihood of a behaviour because it is followed by a rewarding consequence?
- A. Negative punishment
- B. Positive reinforcement ✓
- C. Habituation
- D. Extinction
Why: Positive reinforcement strengthens a behaviour by adding something desirable after it occurs, such as a dog sitting and then receiving a treat.
Q3. Habituation is best described as:
- A. A decrease in response to a repeated, harmless stimulus over time ✓
- B. An increase in response to a stimulus after repeated exposure
- C. Learning to associate two stimuli that occur together
- D. Learning through observing the behaviour of others
Why: Habituation is a simple form of non-associative learning in which an animal stops responding to a repeated stimulus that proves to be inconsequential, such as a bird ignoring a regularly passing car.
Q4. In Skinner's operant conditioning, what is extinction?
- A. The permanent removal of a species from an ecosystem
- B. The gradual decline of a behaviour when it is no longer reinforced ✓
- C. The point at which a conditioned stimulus becomes unconditioned
- D. The process of punishing a behaviour until it stops entirely
Why: Extinction occurs when a previously reinforced behaviour is no longer followed by a reward, causing the behaviour to gradually decrease in frequency.
Q5. Which type of learning did Konrad Lorenz famously demonstrate in greylag geese by having goslings follow him after hatching?
- A. Classical conditioning
- B. Trial-and-error learning
- C. Imprinting ✓
- D. Latent learning
Why: Imprinting is a rapid, form of learning that occurs during a sensitive period early in life, in which young animals form attachments to the first moving object they see, as Lorenz showed with his geese.
Module 4
Module 4: Communication and Signalling
Communication and Signalling
Knowledge check
Q1. Which term describes a signal whose form is closely related to the information it conveys, such as a bee's waggle dance indicating the direction of food?
- A. Arbitrary signal
- B. Iconic signal ✓
- C. Deceptive signal
- D. Ambient signal
Why: An iconic signal resembles or directly corresponds to what it represents. The bee's waggle dance encodes direction and distance in its angle and duration, so its form is closely tied to the information conveyed.
Q2. What is the main function of an alarm call given by a vervet monkey when it sees a leopard?
- A. To attract a mate
- B. To mark territory boundaries
- C. To warn group members of a specific predator ✓
- D. To establish dominance rank
Why: Vervet monkeys produce distinct alarm calls for different predators, such as leopards, eagles, and snakes. These calls warn group members, who respond with predator-appropriate escape behaviour.
Q3. In animal communication, what is a 'multimodal' signal?
- A. A signal that is repeated many times
- B. A signal that uses more than one sensory channel, such as sight and sound together ✓
- C. A signal that travels over very long distances
- D. A signal produced only at night
Why: A multimodal signal combines two or more sensory modalities, such as visual displays accompanied by vocalisations, which can increase the reliability or detectability of the message.
Q4. Which type of communication involves a signal that is produced by one individual and received by another, with both benefiting from the exchange?
- A. Eavesdropping
- B. Cooperative signalling ✓
- C. Coercion
- D. Sensory exploitation
Why: Cooperative signalling occurs when sender and receiver both gain from the interaction, as in mate attraction or warning calls directed at kin. Eavesdropping and sensory exploitation involve only one party benefiting, while coercion involves one party forcing a response.
Q5. What does the term 'honest signalling' mean in animal behaviour?
- A. Signals that are always produced at the same volume
- B. Signals that reliably reflect the quality or intent of the sender ✓
- C. Signals that are learned from other individuals
- D. Signals that only occur during daylight hours
Why: Honest signals reliably correlate with the underlying quality or intention of the signaller, often because they are costly to produce. This reliability is what keeps receivers responding to them over evolutionary time.
Module 5
Module 5: Foraging and Decision-Making
Foraging and Decision-Making
Knowledge check
Q1. In optimal foraging theory, what is the main assumption about how animals choose food items?
- A. Animals select food randomly regardless of its quality
- B. Animals tend to maximise their net energy gain per unit time ✓
- C. Animals always prefer the largest available prey item
- D. Animals minimise the number of foraging trips they make regardless of energy return
Why: Optimal foraging theory assumes natural selection favours foraging strategies that maximise net energy intake per unit time spent foraging, balancing energy gained against energy and time costs.
Q2. What does the term 'patch' refer to in patch foraging models?
- A. A dangerous area where predators are common
- B. A discrete area containing a cluster of resources that depletes as it is exploited ✓
- C. A type of camouflage used while feeding
- D. The territory defended by a breeding pair
Why: In patch foraging models, a patch is a discrete resource cluster, such as a flower head or a group of trees with fruit, whose yield declines the longer an forager remains in it.
Q3. According to the marginal value theorem, when should a forager leave a patch?
- A. When the patch is completely empty
- B. When the rate of energy gain in the patch falls to the average rate available across the environment ✓
- C. As soon as a predator is sighted
- D. After a fixed number of food items have been eaten
Why: The marginal value theorem predicts that a forager should leave a patch when its instantaneous intake rate drops to the average intake rate of the habitat, including travel time between patches.
Q4. What is a key difference between a generalist and a specialist forager?
- A. Generalists eat a narrow range of prey, while specialists eat many types
- B. Generalists consume a wide range of food types, while specialists focus on a few ✓
- C. Generalists only forage at night, while specialists forage during the day
- D. Generalists never change their diet, while specialists switch frequently
Why: Generalists exploit a broad diet breadth, whereas specialists concentrate on a narrow set of food types, often because of morphological or physiological adaptations.
Q5. Which factor is most likely to make an animal choose a risky but high-reward food source?
- A. Being in a state of energy surplus with abundant reserves
- B. Being in a state of energy deficit where survival depends on gaining resources quickly ✓
- C. Having recently eaten a large meal
- D. The presence of many conspecifics nearby
Why: Under the energy budget rule, animals in deficit need to exceed a threshold of energy intake to survive, so they tend to become risk-prone, accepting high-variance options that offer a chance of meeting their needs.
Module 6
Module 6: Mating Systems and Social Behaviour
Mating Systems and Social Behaviour
Knowledge check
Q1. Which mating system describes a single male mating with multiple females, while each female mates with only one male?
- A. Polyandry
- B. Polygyny ✓
- C. Monogamy
- D. Polygynandry
Why: Polygyny means many females (gyne) per male. Polyandry is the reverse, monogamy is one mate each, and polygynandry involves multiple mates of both sexes.
Q2. What term describes a mating system in which a male and female form a pair bond and mate exclusively with each other?
- A. Promiscuity
- B. Polygamy
- C. Monogamy ✓
- D. Lekking
Why: Monogamy refers to a pair bond between one male and one female. Promiscuity and polygamy involve multiple partners, and lekking is a display-based mating arrangement rather than a pair-bond system.
Q3. In animal social behaviour, what is a lek?
- A. A pair bond maintained through the breeding season
- B. A group of females caring for offspring together
- C. An aggregation where males display and compete for mating opportunities with females who choose among them ✓
- D. A dominance hierarchy within a single family group
Why: Leks are display grounds where males gather to show off, and females visit to select mates. Males typically provide no parental care, and females often mate with a male chosen from among many displaying individuals.
Q4. Which of the following best describes cooperative breeding?
- A. Two parents raising offspring without any help from others
- B. Individuals other than the parents helping to raise young, such as older siblings or group members ✓
- C. Males and females mating randomly with no pair bonds
- D. Offspring leaving the group immediately after birth
Why: In cooperative breeding, non-breeding helpers assist in rearing offspring, as seen in meerkats and many birds. This contrasts with systems where only the two parents provide care.
Q5. Why do males in many species compete intensely with one another for access to females?
- A. Because females cannot reproduce without a male present
- B. Because male reproductive success is often limited by access to mates, while female reproductive success is more often limited by resources and eggs ✓
- C. Because males always live longer than females
- D. Because competition prevents males from producing sperm
Why: Sexual selection theory explains this via differences in parental investment: females typically invest more per offspring, so males can often increase their reproductive output by gaining more mates, making mate competition intense.
Module 7
Module 7: Behaviour in a Changing World
Behaviour in a Changing World
Knowledge check
Q1. Which term describes the change in an animal's behaviour that occurs as a direct response to human-altered environments, such as urban areas?
- A. Habituation
- B. Behavioural plasticity ✓
- C. Imprinting
- D. Kin selection
Why: Behavioural plasticity is the ability of an animal to adjust its behaviour in response to environmental change, including changes caused by humans. Imprinting and kin selection are unrelated concepts, and habituation is only one specific form of behavioural change.
Q2. Urban birds often sing at higher pitches or with greater amplitude to be heard over traffic noise. What is this an example of?
- A. Vocal adaptation to anthropogenic noise ✓
- B. Territorial displacement
- C. Maladaptive migration
- D. Sexual selection for mate guarding
Why: Many bird species have shifted the frequency or timing of their songs in response to low-frequency urban noise, which masks their calls. This is a clear example of vocal adaptation to anthropogenic noise.
Q3. Which of the following is a likely consequence of animals becoming habituated to humans in national parks?
- A. Reduced human-wildlife conflict in all cases
- B. Increased risk of injury to both humans and animals ✓
- C. Immediate extinction of the species
- D. Complete loss of foraging behaviour
Why: Habituated animals may approach people, beg for food, or lose their natural wariness, which increases the likelihood of injury to humans and to the animals themselves, for example through vehicle strikes or food conditioning.
Q4. Climate change is shifting the timing of spring events. Which term describes the mismatch that can occur when animals breed or emerge out of step with their food supply?
- A. Phenological mismatch ✓
- B. Allopatric speciation
- C. Cryptic coloration
- D. Resource partitioning
Why: Phenological mismatch occurs when the timing of life-cycle events, such as breeding, is no longer synchronised with peak food availability, which can reduce offspring survival. The other terms refer to different evolutionary or ecological processes.
Q5. Which behavioural response to a changing environment is most likely to help an animal survive a rapid shift in habitat conditions?
- A. Strict adherence to fixed, innate routines
- B. Flexible learning and generalist foraging ✓
- C. Exclusive reliance on a single food source
- D. Permanent reduction in activity levels
Why: Flexible learning and generalist foraging allow animals to adjust to new conditions and exploit different resources as environments change. Rigid routines and specialist diets tend to leave animals vulnerable when conditions shift.