ANT101H5 Chapter Notes - Chapter 7: Termite, Sexual Selection, Basal Metabolic Rate
Document Summary
Intro: behaviour shaped by evolutionary history of particular species, so if want to discover underlying principles of behavioural evolution must identify that interactions between a number of environmental and physiological variables. The evolution of behaviour: behavioural ecology based on assumption that all of the interconnected biological components of ecological system (animals, plants, and microorganisms) evolved together, which makes behaviour adaptations to environmental circumstances. Idea that behaviour evolved through natural selection: behaviour constitutes a phenotype, genes affect behaviour along with social structure. Some social factors that influence social structure: body size, basal metabolic rate (bmr, diet, distribution of resources, predation, relationships with other non-predatory species, dispersal ex. bachelor. Life histories ex. life expectancy: activity patterns ex nocturnal, human activities. Why be social: cost of competition offset by benefits of predator defense, chances of escaping attacks greater for groups. Primate social behaviour: dominance reduce amount of actual physical violence, given priority and rarely give way in confrontations.
