WWU BIOL 410,
Animal Behavior,
Winter 2012
(revised 1/11/12)
Biol 410 Lecture & Discussion, 4 credits, CRN 13095, 13096: in AIC West 303 at 08:30-09:50 on M, W, F
Course Instructor:
Dr. R. A. Anderson
Consultation hours, in BI 311 or BI 351: M- F, 10:00-11:00,
Secondary contact methods: by ear via phone, 650 3992, or by eye via e-mail at Roger.Anderson@wwu.edu
Text: Animal Behavior, 9th Edition, by John Alcock
Midterm Exam:
Final Exam:
Friday,
Thursday,
February10, 8:30-9:50
March 10,
1030-1230
(plus team take-home exam)
(team & individual sections)
Exams may comprise a number of short answers and definitions, and a few moderate-length expository essay
questions, and will be based on text, lecture and lecture-reference figures, and videos. Make-up exams are given under
only the rarest of circumstances. It is necessary to be timely both for individual and team portions of exams.
Team Term Paper Choice Date:
Individual Annotated Bibliography Due Date:
Team Paper Due Date:
January 9
March 2
March 7
The team term paper is on a mutually agreed upon behavioral topic of synthetic review, wherein you provide an
analytical history of past questions and past research (perhaps summarized in tabular form), then discuss very recent and
current research, then move on to what questions must yet be answered, what hypotheses must be tested, and what
methods and animals should be used in the research. Refer to comments below on more detailed expectations, including
the requirements and role of the Individual Annotated Bibliography.
Earnable Points for all students (these are approximations only):
Classroom participation 5 + Annotated Bibliography 24 + Term Paper 76 + Mid-Exam 105 + Final Exam 150 = 360;
Percentage Grading Scale: 90-100% = A,
79-89% = B,
68-78% = C,
57-67% = D.
Schedule and other course requirements:
We will try to build perspective on animal behavior, then proceed through the basic tasks of animals, wherein
they cope with abiotic factors, prey, and predators, then we will dive into the complexity of development and maturation
of an animal into mate seeking and mate competition, reproduction, parental care and sociality, that is, into the panoply of
conspecific interactions. We will roughly follow the orders of the chapters as presented in the textbook. Note that we
will be covering at about 2 chapters per week. You will be expected to read the text and exam available lecture reference
notes in anticipation of the day’s topic.
The quality of your classroom participation is judged by the quantity and quality of your questions, ideas, and
answers that you provide in the lecture-discussions. After the first midterm I intend to list and announce on Blackboard
(perhaps also via e-mail, but do not depend upon this) those individuals with whom I choose to discuss in the next lecture
the topics for that next lecture. Thus, the student must have knowledge of the relevant textbook material and the
information from the previous lecture. I will ask a basic question of each forewarned student, and I also expect that the
student will present a somewhat original and erudite question or comment for the rest of the class and me to consider.
Each student will have two formal opportunities, but each individual, of course, is invited to contribute questions and
comments at other times. I will take role several times; if you are absent you will lose 1 pt for each absence, and the
losses are subtracted from the participation points.
My “lectures” are not in linear outline form, rather they are integrative and include hand-written concept maps on
the board and also powerpoint slides. I insist that you think and participate. I will not dictate notes to a passive audience,
although I do provide organized notes on-line for any topic the textbook does not present adequately. Of course, all
powerpoint slides will be available no later than one day after they are presented in lecture.
Several videos may be shown for video-and-discussion. You are responsible for the knowledge presented in the
videos.
The topic of your term paper must be approved by January 9, and must be formally approved via e-mail from me.
The paper is due at 11 am on Wednesday, March 7. Late papers will lose 3 points per day and will not be accepted after
5 pm on Monday March 12. See below for paper format.
Course Description:
Investigation of the component processes and adaptive functions of animal behavior in an ecological and
evolutionary context, with an introduction to the questions asked, hypotheses proposed, and methods used in the study of
animal behavior.
Course Objectives:
To enable students to develop a fundamental understanding of how animals function in an environmental context;
to engender understanding that despite the diversity of animals, there are a number of similar problems with common
solutions that are being investigated by theoreticians and empiricists. Students will be introduced to these experimental,
hypothetico-deductive approaches to the study of animal behavior.
Topic Itinerary for BIOL 410
Topics
Lectures
Relevant
Text Chapters
An Evolutionary Approach to Animal Behavior
(theory and practice of animal behavior)
Jan 9
1
Animal Behavior, in Perspective (Document #12 on Blackboard)
Jan 11 & 13
1
Understanding Proximate & Ultimate Causes of Behavior
(understanding causes of bird song)
Jan 18 & 20
2
The Development of Behavior
(focus on the effect of heredity on behavior)
Jan 23 & 25
3
The Development of Behavior
Jan 27 & 30
(focus on the importance of environment & learning on behavior)
3
The Control of Behavior:
Feb 1 & 3
(neural mechanisms of sensation and perception, and their outcomes)
4
The Organization of Behavior
neurohormonal patterns & daily & seasonal rhythms
Feb 6 & 8
5
Mid-Term Exam
Feb 10, Friday
Anti-Predation
(avoiding, evading, escaping, & deterring predators)
Feb 13
6
Food Acquisition
Feb 15 &17
(the causes & consequences of the how, when, where of seeking which food)
7
Habitat Selection, Dispersal, Migration, Territoriality
(choosing where to live and when to live there)
8
WP students begin submitting http addresses
of Animal Behavior in the News articles
Feb 20 & 24
Feb 24
Communication:
(features & functions of signaling & receiving information)
Feb 27
Reproductive Behavior & Sexual Selection
Mar 2
(sexes differ in reproductive roles & how reproductive success is achieved)
Annotated Bibliography Due
(24 pts/ non-WP students & 3% of WP grade)
Mar 2
Sexual Selection & Mating Systems
(mating “systems” are outcomes of numerous factors)
Mar 5
WP students offer revision edits of Ann. Bibs (2% of WP grade)
Mar 5
Parental Roles and Care, and Offspring Conflict & Brood Parasitism
(natural selection on reproductive success of the individual)
Mar 7
WP students submit revised Ann. Bibs (5% of WP grade)
Mar 7
Team Term Paper: DUE
Mar 7
9
10
11
12
The final draft is due, along with first drafts of each individually
written section that includes the track-changed editorial suggestions
by a team mate; note that this work includes all students.
Non-WP students must document their good effort with
their individual first drafts of their assigned sections,
thereby potentially affecting their course grades.
Note that WP students get graded on drafts and edits and final submission
(15%, 5%, 20% of course grade, respectively).
Social Behavior, Cooperation, Kinship
(the behavioral ecology of inclusive fitness and group-living)
Mar 9
WP students submit revision of Animal Behavior News articles
(5% of WP course grade)
Mar 9
WP students submit WP team answers to 8 study guide questions
and post on Blackboard to help class prepare for Final exam.
(5% of WP course grade)
Mar 12, 5pm
If there is a take-home team section, it will be due on Wednesday
Mar 14
Final Exam on Thursday, 10:30-12:30
Mar 15
13
The WP Assignment for “Animal Behavior in the News:”
Using the http science news websites listed on Blackboard, find 3 recent news article on Animal Behavior,
and send the http addresses to Dr. Anderson. Then for one news item, go to the original article, and use that
article to improve the news article for scientific veracity and clarity. That is, you will edit the news article.
Changing phrases and adding in a paragraph or two would be expected, because the articles are sometimes
oversimplified and miss interesting features or mislead the reader inadvertently. Because you are functioning as
an editor of the news article, try to be sure to provide clarifications and better explanations than the news
reporter did. The changes you provide on the Science in the News article are likely to be modest, and you may
want to retype the whole article thus making it easier to show your edits as tracked changes. Try it and then talk
to Dr Anderson if you are uncertain about whether you are giving the editing sufficient effort. Be sure you send
Dr Anderson the pdf of the original article that was the source for the news article.
Reminder of what is on the syllabus, in regards to your team review paper:
Some Guidelines for the Individual (annotated bibliography) & Team Writing (term paper) Assignment:
A Synthetic Review Paper on a Focused Topic in Animal Behavior
The purposes of this assignment (and some of the details of requirements) are:
1) for you to learn about a behavioral phenomenon in Dr. Anderson’s list and which stimulates your curiosity;
2) for you to develop (a) the skill of thorough (both in-depth and with breadth) self-teaching, and (b) critical
thinking in your learning about the topic of choice, thereby concisely summarizing, evaluating, and
synthesizing the putatively reliable knowledge in the scientific literature;
3) for you to develop skill in using the Information Retrieval Systems such as Biological Abstracts, Biological
and Agricultural Index, Current Contents, Medline, and Web of Science at the WWU and UW libraries and
introducing you to the many journals and books archived at libraries;
4) To develop proficiency at summarizing content of the scientific papers you are using in developing your
review paper; refer below to “Annotated Bibliography Guidelines & Requirements.”
5) for you to develop proficiency at writing a scientific review paper, including appropriate referencing of
material:
A. Each citation should also include the page number or Table number or Figure number that is the
source of the information that you are citing,
B. You must try to include the entire pdf of each journal article cited at least the same articles as you
showcased for Annotated Bibliographies. If the paged referenced is from a book chapter for which
there is no pdf, then photocopy that page and submit it along with the paper copy of your synthetic
review paper.
C. It will be necessary to photocopy each referenced page (or table or figure) of the prevalent
publications mentioned in B, above, and place each of those referenced pages in order of citation,
and place it as an Appendix to your Team Research Paper.
6) to give you an opportunity to learn from and to educate your current and future Biol 410 peers:
A. Each student on the team receives the penultimate draft of the section that another student on the
team has written, and
B. Each student must write provide editorial comments of another student’s section in the form of
tracked changes in ms word.
C. Then the tracked changed section from each student will be compiled together by one of the students
on the team as a “penultimate draft with tracked changes”
D. The penultimate, track-changed draft will be submitted by e-mail to the other team members and to
Dr. Anderson.
E. The final draft of the paper must be submitted two ways:
a) stapled & three-hole punched (including the Appendix) and b) as a file in MS word.
Two excellent books that have chapters discussing Review Papers, Essays, and Term Papers are:
Writing Papers in the Biological Sciences by V. E. McMillan
A Short Guide to Writing About Biology by J. A. Pechenik.
Another book that is recommended to help you in accessing the literature and in writing is:
A Student Handbook for Writing in Biology by K. Knisely
Copies of these books may be available at the bookstore or in the library. We will have one photocopy of the most useful
chapter of each book available on my bookshelf outside my door in BI 311; you may borrow it (or borrow the book from
me during office hours) for one-half hour at a time. Also available to borrow are two of the better examples (although
not necessarily outstanding) of a paper written by past students.
Some Suggestions for Writing the Paper:
Be sure to introduce your topic in a manner that will interest the reader; you should have a compelling question
(or problem to solve) and a logical rationale that entices the reader onward. Like any introduction to a topic, you should
begin more broadly, then become more specific; and in the process you must provide adequate definitions and
explanations of concepts and conditions to orient the reader. You must convince the reader to accept both the soundness
of your rationale and the stated reasons for the importance of your question. You must also state the objectives of your
paper in the introduction to the topic.
Your papers certainly will be comparing and contrasting (for both cause and effect) the differences in behaviors
of animals, and the ecological, evolutionary and phylogenetic correlates of those capacities. As you develop the body of
the paper you must present a somewhat logical sequence of concisely summarized results. It may be useful to present
summarizing tables and flow charts (concept maps).
Develop a sense of direction as you synthesize and integrate the knowledge. Be focused on answering your
original questions and fulfilling your objectives. You must develop a chronology of the discovery of knowledge of the
phenomenon under study. That is, showcase discoveries that changed earlier perspectives and refuted prior hypotheses;
arrive at the prevailing ideas, questions, and hypotheses and discuss the possible approaches (e.g., new experiments, new
technologies, new animals used) that may answer these questions and test these hypotheses. It is useful to compare,
contrast, and evaluate results of different studies in your drive toward answers and solutions.
One useful approach at splitting the expertise and effort is to work on the same several questions-and-hypotheses,
but then each person focuses on a different major taxon of animal. This approach could make the paper fairly easy to
write together, with a team-written beginning and ending, whereas each internal section is unique to individual student.
Alternatively, each person focuses on a separate sub-topic, and reviews all major taxa that have been studied for that
subtopic. Each person should review another student’s penultimate draft and provide tracked changes in MS word to the
student and to Dr. Anderson. The individual contribution to each paper must be denoted with that person’s initials at the
end of the title for that section they wrote. Dr. Anderson recommends 4-6 students per team term paper.
Try to concisely paraphrase, and avoid quotes whenever feasible. One common approach is to first write down
the direct quote, saving it within a “quotations” file, then rephrase it in another file, using this rephrased verbiage from
then on. Of course, sometimes the original statement is so concise that paraphrasing does injustice to the elegance of the
author’s writing; hence, a quotation in this case would be acceptable. Use the style of citation provided in Pechenik’s
book and Knisely’s book.
Your conclusions should refer to the original question and objectives; you should review and summarize the main
points of your paper. You should provide answers to your original questions and meet your objectives, and you should
try to develop new questions and new objectives or suggestions for future research. Use the Evaluation Sheet as a guide
for writing the paper.
Note that the minimum acceptable length of a synthetic review paper for a 3-4 person team is 24 to 30 doublespaced pages (in 12 point, New Times Roman, with 0.6-0.8 margins, in MS Word), excluding title page and literature
cited, and that the minimum number of references is 36-48. It is to be expected that more accomplished efforts will be at
least 50% longer with at least twice as many references, most of which are primary literature (original research papers).
Ask other students to read the suggestions above and the Evaluation Sheet below, then have them critically read
and constructively edit the penultimate draft of your paper. Finally, read your paper aloud to determine if the paper is
pleasantly readable.
Annotated Bibliography Guidelines & Requirements
Writing a paper reviewing research literature is easier when each participant constructs annotations for the references in
your team synthetic review paper. Each student must have a minimum of 12 thorough annotations. More are needed for
a high grade…and note that there is to be no overlap among students in the annotations submitted. Thus a team of four
students collectively turns in 48 unique annotated bibliographies, that is, each student turns in 12 at minimum.
An adequate annotation is commonly eight to twelve lines long (narrow margins, 11 font). The annotation generally
should include, but not be restricted to:
 A brief, succinct description of the major question(s) that the paper addresses, perhaps including the rationale.
 brief comments about the type of scientific article; that is,
a) does the paper report on empirical research that is observational, comparative, or experimental, and was the
work conducted in the field, a mesocosm, or in the lab, or
b) does the paper focus on theory or
c) is it a review paper?
 Is the paper hypothetico-deductive in tone (and are assumptions and predictions clearly stated) and are the methods
used and data generated able to distinguish among alternative hypotheses, or do they provide background or context
for future research?
 What organisms are the subjects of this paper (e.g., taxa, genders, ages, physiological states, ecotypes)?
 What are the principal contributions (e.g., ideas, data) of the paper?
 If you are able, please evaluate the quality of the contributions. Try to state whether and how Methods, Results, and
Discussion are flawed. If the figures and tables are useful and noteworthy, then mention so. Include a comment on
whether the Discussion is comprehensive, convincing, and evocative.
 It is useful to indicate whether the paper is one of a series, or is the seminal paper in the series, or cites many earlier
references.
Note that it would be useful to have the same papers that are the often cited papers in your research team paper be the
ones that are the subjects of the Annotated Bibliography.
Produce a minimum of a dozen Annotated Bibs, and a few more if they are also commonly cited.
You need to send your completed Annotated Bibliography to Dr Anderson and to each member of your research team,
and then
1) someone on your research team compiles all of your team’s Annotated Bibliographies into a single word
document, then send it to the other team members and to Dr. Anderson.
2) if you are a WP student, you need to edit another WP student’s Annotated Bibliography, and of course,
another WP student must edit yours.
Four annotated references that meet some (but only some) of the standards suggested above are presented below. They
all require improvement. Note that it may be useful to have a standard annotations format, perhaps with bulleted outline
form or even tabular form.
Deaton, L.E., T.J. Hilbish and R.K. Koehn. 1984. Protein as a source of amino nitrogen during hyperosmotic
volume regulation in the mussel Mytilus edulis.
Physiological Zoology 57: 609-619.
This paper looked at how the Lap94 locus for aminopeptidase-I (AP-I) responded to hyperosmotic stress in
mussels, particularly in the accumulation of free amino acids (FAA) and ammonia excretion. The Lap 94 allele is more
active than the other two alleles, and therefore FAA accumulation in tissues of mussels with this allele were greater.
Also, mussels with Lap94 had a 50% greater ammonia excretion rate than the other alleles when transferred from high to
low salinity. The results show that cell volume regulation due to changes in salinity is done through protein catabolism.
This is one of the first papers done on the LAP locus in Mytilus edulis, and provides the starting point to further look at
allelic differences and their affects on this mussel.
Bardwell,E., Benkamn,C.W., and Gould, W.R. 2001. Adaptive Geographic Variation in Western Scrub Jays.
Ecology 82(9): 2617-2627.
This laboratory study explores the geographic variation in bill shape and size, reflecting the variation in food
availability and different resources among the Western Scrub-jays (Aphelocoma californica) from pinyon-juniper
woodlands versus the oak woodlands. It was clearly found that scrub-jays inhabiting habitat dominated by either pinyonjuniper (pine) or oak had adaptive bill structure. Bill size and shape differed between the two types of jays studied,
exhibiting geographic variation among the birds. These results are consistent with observed geographic variation not
only within this study as well, other relevant studies.
Martins, E.P., Bissell, A.N., and Morgan, K.K. 1998. Population Differences in a Lizard Communicative Display:
Evidence for Rapid Change in Structure and Function. Animal Behaviour 56: 1113-1119.
This was a focal animal observational study performed in both Eastern Oregon and Northern Utah. Differences
in push-up displays were observed among three different populations in an attempt to better understand the differences in
communicative display. Changes in communicative display can lead to reproductive isolation as well as speciation and
are important in detecting changes occurring within and among the populations. A total of 564 displays were witnessed
and combined with previously collected data from Southern California. It was found that display frequency varied among
individuals, between sexes, and between populations. Compared to other types of communicative strategies, this study
suggests that structure and function of the push-up display may be more plastic or more quickly evolving than many other
types of communication.
Snyder, L.R.G., J.P. Hayes and M.A. Chappell. 1988. Alpha-chain hemoglobin polymorphisms arecorrelated with
altitude in the deer mouse Peromyscus maniculatus. Evolution 42: 689-697.
They studied the frequency of alpha-globin and beta-globin haplotype and base-line blood oxygen affinity in deer
mice in the western U.S. in relation to altitude and subspecies. They found that these three factors show strong
correlations with native altitude. However, they are not sure if it is due to subspecific or altitudinal effects in all of them,
because only alpha-globin haplotype frequency showed correlation with altitude after subspecific effects were removed.
A couple of nice things that they did was to try and remove gene exchange by using a regional rather than local altitude,
and to remove subspecific effects using ANCOVA. This was one way to try and get good results, although it ended up
with mixed results.
EVALUATION SHEET FOR RESEARCH REVIEW PAPER IN ANIMAL BEHAVIOR
Percentage points per section multiplied by grade (0-4) per section:
Title
1 x ___ = ___
Table of Contents
1 x ___ = ___
Introduction & Rationale
5 x ___ = ___
Research Chronology
6 x ___ = ___
Research Methods
3 x ___ = ___
3 x ___ = ___
Literature Cited
2 x ___ = ___
Synthesis
Writing proficiency
2 x ___ = ___
Grading Scale: 0 = unacceptable
2 = minimum acceptability
Abstract
Total
2 x ___ = ___
____
1 = insufficient effort
3 = adequate effort and accomplishment
4 = exceptional effort and accomplishment
____ Title is succinct, precise, and includes key words?
____ Abstract with convincing rationale for the research, and with well-framed questions, systems studied, major
research findings and heuristic conclusions?
____ Table of Contents, headings subdividing the paper, and numbered pages provide easy access to sections?
____ Introduction with convincing rationale for the general research topic, and particular biological systems studied?
____ Research Methods are categorized and described (e.g., observational, comparative, experimental), and animal
systems described enough, and citations of primary research literature abundant enough for reader to be confident of your
evaluation of the progression of results for the questions and hypotheses (with explicit assumptions and predictions)
explored?
____ Results Chronology: comprise major trends in research presented in logical order and elegantly integrated, wherein
mechanisms are investigated and revealed within explicit ecological and evolutionary contexts; are graphs and tables
included to help in this presentation; are unnecessary, low-relevance comments, sentences, and paragraphs avoided?
____ Synthesis-Discussion: does it includes analysis and interpretation of results in concordance with objectives in
introduction; is the evidence from the studies thoroughly and logically analyzed and reviewed so that the types of
evidence and evaluation of strength of evidence are well enough done to confidently make inferences and state
conclusions about status of present knowledge and opinions about the most pressing needs for future research?
____ Literature Cited: do references match those listed in the paper, and are presented in correct order and style, both in
the body of the manuscript and in the Literature Cited section; do the citations include the actual pages wherein the
information can be found; do citations of original research papers predominate; are at least the top five references
photocopied and submitted with the paper?
____ Section headings, section order, paragraph order, paragraph construction, sentence construction, spelling, and
vocabulary all provide clear, concise, accurate, and complete communication?
Problems symbolized in manuscript margins:
A awkward phrasing C confusing statements
H heading required
L logic is flawed
M missing words, phrases, or sentences to complete this section or paragraph
P paragraph needed
O order of sentence or phrase needs rearranging
S spelling error, spacing & punctuation errors W word choice(s) problematic U units inappropriate
Team Term Topics (preferably four to six students per team) for Winter 2012
1) Sexual Selection & Mating Systems: Terrestrial Animals (e.g., ground v. air & arboreal (verts & insects))
2) Sexual Selection & Mating Systems: Aquatic Animals (e.g., benthic v. pelagic, inverts & vertebrates))
3) Control of an animal hosts’ behavior and/or how the host changes its behavior when it is attacked by a
pathogen or parasite.
4) Using knowledge of animal behavior in conservation biology of threatened and endangered species
5) Using knowledge of animal behavior in combating invasive species and agricultural pests
6) Focus on costs and benefits dispersal and/or migration as related to habitat patchiness and climatic
constraints
7) Antipredation and behavioral syndrome/animal personality hypotheses
8) The evolutionary relationship of behavior to morphotypic and physiotypic constraints & opportunities
9) Comparative patterns of cognitive and learning abilities within major taxa that vary in ecological
adaptations