BIOL 3360 Animal Behaviour
Instructor: Dr. James F. Hare: Biological Sciences Building (Rm. 222); 204-474-6379
e-mail: james.hare@ad.umanitoba.ca
Office Hours: Any time outside lecture and lab hours by appointment, or as time allows
Lecture: 301 Biological Sciences Building: Slot 03; M, W, F 1030-1120 h
Optional Text: Dugatkin, L.A. 2013. Principles of Animal Behavior, 3rd Ed.,
New York, W.W. Norton & Company, 648 pp.
Supplementary Reading: Sherman, P.W. & Alcock, J. 2013. Exploring Animal Behavior –
Readings from American Scientist 6th Ed., Sunderland, Sinauer Associates, 372 pp.
Lab/Tutorial: Locations as per Schedule on Pgs. 3-4: B01 Slot 21; M 1430-1725 h, or,
B02 Slot 23; T 1430-1725 h
Teaching Assistants: Mr. Alex Yeo: Office - 116 Biological Sciences Building:
e-mail - yeoa@myumanitoba.ca
Ms. Amelie Roberto-Charron: Office - TBA Biological Sciences Building:
e-mail - Amelie.Roberto-Charron@umanitoba.ca
Course Web Page: http://home.cc.umanitoba.ca/~harejf/BIOL3360/
Objectives: The course begins with an examination of the origins of the study of animal
behaviour, contrasting the approaches of comparative psychologists and ethologists. Adopting an
integrated approach, we then examine the four types of questions one might pose regarding
behaviour (immediate causation, development, function, and evolution) and address the genetic
and physiological underpinnings of behaviour. With that background, we consider the behaviour of
individuals in terms of orientation and migration, foraging, and antipredator behaviour. Finally, we
examine the biological basis of social behaviour, consider the utility and limitations of
sociobiological theory, and explore the relationship between behaviour and conservation. In the
laboratory, you will be introduced to methods employed in the study of behaviour through a
laboratory experiment and tutorials. You will apply the knowledge gained in those tutorials to
compile an ethogram and conduct an observational study of your own design at the Assiniboine
Park Zoo, Club Regent Casino Aquarium, or an alternative site of your choice.
2
Lecture Outline:
Topic
Approximate #
of Lectures
Chapter(s) From
Dugatkin (3rd Ed.)
Introduction to Course
1
none
History: Ethology vs.
Comparative Psychology
1
1 (4-5)
Classic Concepts I: Ethology
1
1 (6-11)
Classic Concepts II:
Comparative Psychology and
Elementary Learning Theory
0.5
1 (12-16)
Learning Theory, Behaviorism
and The Nature/Nurture
Controversy
1.5
5 (130-144)
Tinbergen's 4 questions:
The Integrated Approach
and Behavioural Ecology
1
1 (5-6)
1 (17-23)
3 (70-75)
Behaviour and the "Selfish
Gene": Adaptation and
Natural Selection
1.5
2 (30-42)
Evolutionarily Stable
Strategies and
Game Theory
3
14 (459-465)
15 (489-505)
Physiology of Behaviour I:
Nerve Cells & Behaviour
3.5
3 (89-99)
Physiology of Behaviour II:
Hormones & Behaviour
2
3 (75-89)
Midterm Test
Friday October 16th (305 BSB; 1030-1120 h)
Development of Behaviour
2
4 (115-126)
7 (218-221)
Behaviour of Individuals I:
Orientation & Migration
4
14 (450-452)
14 (465-475)
Behaviour of Individuals II:
Optimal Foraging
4
11 (348-361)
14 (452-455)
3
Lecture Outline: (continued)
Topic
Behaviour of Individuals III:
Antipredator Behaviour
Approximate #
of Lectures
2.5
Chapter(s) From
Dugatkin (3rd Ed.)
12 (384-411)
Sociality I: Antipredator
Benefits of Group Living
1.5
13 (438-443)
Sociality II: Kinship,
Reciprocity and Animal
Social Behaviour
5
9 (272-290)
9 (298-301)
10 (308-341)
The Behaviour/Conservation
Interface (time permitting)
1
none
Lab/Tutorial: The first lab will introduce you to the interplay between physical and social factors
influencing the behaviour of animals. That lab will also provide insight into the pitfalls implicit in
collecting behavioural data and potential ways to control confounding factors. A series of tutorials
and field trips to the Assiniboine Park Zoo/Club Regent Casino Aquarium will guide you through
the design and execution of a simple observational study on a species of your choice. That work
will familiarize you with the methods employed in the collection of behavioural data and those
involved in presenting such data for publication.
Lab/Tutorial Schedule:
Assignment due dates are shown in italics - 10% will be deducted from the possible mark for each
day an assignment is overdue.
14/15 September (110 Biological Sciences Building)
Lab Experiment: Sowbug humidity preference
21/22 Sept. (304 Biological Sciences Building)
Sowbug report due at start of lab
Zoo Project: Formulating a research question, proposal writing, ethical use of
animals in research
Quantifying Behaviour: Ethograms, sampling rules and recording rules
28/29 September (Assiniboine Park Zoo)
Field trip to Assiniboine Park Zoo: Selection of study species and
ethogram data collection
5/6 October (Assiniboine Park Zoo)
Assiniboine Park Zoo: Ethogram data collection
4
Lab/Tutorial Schedule: (continued)
12/13 October
No formal lab meeting given Thanksgiving holiday on 12 October
Ethogram and project proposal due to your TA by 1600 hrs on 13 October
19/20 October (Assiniboine Park Zoo)
Zoo Project: Project Feedback/Preliminary data collection
26/27 October (Assiniboine Park Zoo)
Zoo Project: Data collection
2/3 November (304 Biological Sciences Building)
Zoo Project: Guidelines for data presentation and report writing
24 November
Project report due to your TA by 1600 hours
Evaluation:
Lecture Midterm
Lecture Final (cumulative)
Sowbug Report
Ethogram
Research Proposal
Final Project Report
25
45
5
5
5
15
(16 October)
(Exam Date TBA)
(21/22 September)
(13 October)
(13 October)
(24 November)
100
Academic Integrity: as per University Policy outlined at:
http://umanitoba.ca/faculties/science/undergrad/resources/webdisciplinedocuments.html
VW Date: 18 November 2015
Final Grades:
≥90 = A+
80-89 = A
74-79 = B+
68-73 = B
62-67 = C+
56-61 = C
50-55 = D
<50 = F