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Ellen Ketterson Professor of Biology |
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John Phillips Professor of Biology |
| C E N T E R F O R T H E I N T E G R A T I V E S T U D Y O F A N I M A L B E H A V I O R |
| F A L L 1 9 9 8 G R A D U A T E S E M I NA R |
| Behavioral Ecology (A501, L581) |
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Ellen Ketterson Professor of Biology |
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John Phillips Professor of Biology |
| PROSPECTUS . READINGS . CLASS SCHEDULE |
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C O U R S E D E S C R I P T I O N Format: The class will consist of lectures by Phillips and Ketterson, informal and formal presentations by visiting experts, and student-led discussions. The highlight of this year's class will be the seven outstanding behavioral ecologists who will visit the campus to meet with students to describe their research. During weeks with visiting speakers, we will devote Tuesdays to student-led discussions of their papers and Thursdays and Fridays to their presentations. You will also be asked (make that have the opportunity!) to meet with the speakers to discuss your own work or to share a meal or an evening. During weeks when there are no visitors, we will devote Tuesdays to lectures by Ketterson and Phillips and Thursdays to student-led discussions of literature. Two or three students will be responsible for leading each discussion and they will lead off with short (10-15 minute) summaries and critiques of two or three papers that all of us will have read. Objectives: Behavioral Ecology is an emerging discipline whose goal is to explain why animals look, behave, and distribute themselves as they do. It is closely related to the study of adaptation and relies on theory from evolutionary biology, including the sub-fields of sexual selection and life histories. Its empirical strengths are comparative and experimental. A goal of this course will be to evaluate behavioral ecology's accomplishments, shortcomings, and future directions. We hope that by the time the course is over you will have a firm grasp of the basic concepts in this field and be familiar with the classic studies in the field. We also hope that you will also be aware of the controversies and even be prepared to pose solutions that are consistent with what is known to date. We have a second objective, which is to promote your ability to integrate evolutionary, ecological and mechanistic explanations of animal behavior. Many researchers seem to believe that "how questions" are separable from "why questions," and that each can be investigated independently. Sometimes this may be necessary in the short run. For example, we know very little about the genetic basis or physiological regulation of complex social behaviors (but see recent work on social insects), and yet most people are unwilling to forego studying the evolution of these behaviors until more is learned about the underlying control mechanisms. In the long run, however, we believe that the morphological, physiological, and genetic underpinnings of behavior impose important constraints on the evolution of behavior. Similarly, an understanding of behavioral mechanisms is incomplete without an appreciation of the adaptive significance and phylogenetic origins of behavior. Consequently, we will emphasize studies in which integrative approaches to animal behavior have provided profound new insights into both evolutionary and mechanistic questions. Finally, we would like to develop your ability and willingness to analyze the literature critically, to engage in scientific debate, and to make use of your colleagues (both students and faculty) as a "spring board" to try out new ideas. Thus, we hope to provide an environment in which participants are willing to risk themselves intellectually, to think creatively, and thus to generate new perspectives on current issues in behavioral ecology. Evaluation for L581: Students will rotate as discussion leaders, and each student is expected to lead two discussions. You will be evaluated on your ability (1) to provide a novel critique of, or novel perspective on, the literature, and (2) to involve other participants in discussion/debate concerning the issues under consideration. The success of the Discussion will depend less on whether the position adopted by the discussion leader is correct, and more on whether it causes all of us to think in new ways about the material and thus to identify and analyze critical issues. Once each week, you will be expected to prepare a one-page "think piece" on one of the readings for class (either for Tuesday's or Thursday's class). Merely summarizing one of the papers can not satisfy this requirement. Instead, we ask you to (1) provide a novel insight into the paper, (2) point out a flaw in its design or in the analysis or interpretation of data, (3) discuss the relevance of the work to some other area of research including an area in which you are currently working, or (4) bring to our attention other published work that bears directly on the issues addressed in the paper. In general, almost anything that provides clear evidence that you have thought carefully and creatively about the reading will suffice. The think pieces should be typed and handed (or e-mailed) to the persons lecturing or leading the discussion by 5 pm of the day before class. All students are asked to participate in the social opportunities during the speakers' visits. Please expect to be a co-host with Phillips or Ketterson for at least one of the visits. Hosting will consist of taking time to share a meal with a speaker and helping to prepare for receptions that John has kindly offered to host at his host on Friday evenings after the talks. Grades will be based on the think pieces and class participation (~50%) and on your presentations (~50%). We may occasionally ask you to prepare homework assignments in addition to the think pieces. Evaluation for A501: Students enrolled in the seminar are expected to participate fully during the weeks when visiting speakers are in town, i.e., reading, discussing, think pieces, socializing), but are not expected to come to class during the other weeks. A501 students will be expected to lead one discussion during the weeks they attend and to submit a think piece each week there is a speaker. Papers are usually handed out during class, so we ask that you hunt us down to be sure that you have the readings in time to prepare your think pieces. Finally seminar students are expected to participate in the social aspects of the class as described above for L581 students. Grades will be based on the think pieces and class participation (~75%) and on your presentations (~25%). We may occasionally ask you to prepare homework assignments in addition to the think pieces. Visiting Guest Lecturers We are fortunate that the following people have agreed to visit campus and meet with the class: Judy Stamps (University of California-Davis), September 10-11 |
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R E A D I N G S READINGS to PREPARE for VISITING SPEAKERS: JUDY STAMPS Stamps, J.A. 1994. Territorial behavior: testing the assumptions. Advances in the Study of Behavior 23: 73-232. Stamps, J.A. and V.V. Krishnan. 1997. Sexual bimaturation and sexual size dimorphism in animals with asymptotic growth after maturity. Evolutionary Ecology 11: 21-39. Stamps, J.A., J.B. Losos, and R.M. Andrews. 1997. A comparative study of population density and sexual site dimorphism in lizards. American Naturalist 149: 64-90. STEVE LIMA Lima, S.L. and P.A. Zollner. 1996. Towards a behavioral ecology of ecological landscapes. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 11:131-135. Lima, S.L. 1998. Non-lethal effects in the ecology of predator-prey interactions. BioScience 48:25-34. Ruxton, G.D. and S.L. Lima. 1997. Predator-induced breeding suppression and its consequences for predator-prey population dynamics. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Series B 264:409-415. Students wishing more information on this basic topic, especially as it relates to predator-prey interactions, might also be interested in the following review, which Lima thought was much too long for a suggested reading: Lima, S.L. 1998. Stress and decision-making under the risk of predation: recent developments from behavioral, reproductive and ecological perspectives. Advances in the Study of Behavior 27:215-290. RANDY NELSON Klein, S.L., J.E. Hairston, A.C. DeVries, and R.J. Nelson. 1997. A comparative analysis of sex differences in cell-mediated and hormonal immunity among polygynous and monogamous rodents. Hormones and Behavior 32: 30-39. Klein, S.L. and R.J. Nelson. 1998. Adaptive immune responses are linked to the mating systems of arvicoline rodents. American Naturalist 151: 59-67. MIKE RYAN Ryan, M.J.; R and. A.S. 1993. Sexual selection and signal evolution: the ghost of biases past. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society Series B 340:187-195. Ryan, M.J.; R and, A.S. 1995. Female responses to ancestral advertisement calls in the tungara frog. Science 269: 390-392. Ryan, M.J. In press 1999. Sexual selection, receiver biases, and the evolution of sex differences. Science. BILL SEARCY Searcy, W. A., S. Nowicki, and M. Hughes. 1997. The response of male and female song sparrows to geographic variation in song. Condor 99: 651-657. Searcy, W. A., and K. Yasukawa. 1989. Alternative models of territorial polygyny in birds. American Naturalist 134: 323-343. NANCY BURLEY Burley, N. 1986. Sex-ratio manipulation in color-banded populations of zebra finches. Evolution 40:1191-1206. Burley, N. 1988. The differential allocation hypothesis: an experimental test. American Naturalist 132:611-628. Burley, N. T., P.G. Parker, and K. Lundy. 1996. Sexual selection and extrapair fertilization in a socially monogamous passerine, the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata ). Behav. Ecol. 7:218-226. PETER WASER Creel, S.R. and P.M. Waser. 1991. Spontaneous lactation in a mammalian cooperative breeder is an adaptive result of pseudopregnancy. Nature 351:660-662. Keane, B., S.R. Creel and P.M.Waser. 1996. No evidence of inbreeding avoidance or inbreeding depression in a social carnivore. Behavioral Ecology 7:480-489. Waser, P.M. and C. Strobeck. 1998. Genetic signatures of interpopulation dispersal. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 13:43-44. |
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F A L L 1 9 9 8 C L A S S S C H E D U L E Meeting Time: 2:30-3:45 pm Tuesdays & Thursdays Location: Cleland Room, Jordan Hall Public Lectures: 4:00-5:15 pm, some Fridays (see below), Room A100, Jordan Hall Plus: Informal meetings with visiting speakers at CISAB, meals, & Friday evening receptions September 1 -- Lecture: Introduction to Behavioral Ecology, the Study of Adaptation (EK) September 3 -- Student Presentations and Discussion September 8 -- Preparation for Judy Stamps September 10 -- Judy Stamps, Seminar talk: "Car Talk: The Proximate/Ultimate Distinction" September 11 -- Judy Stamps, Public talk: "Territorial Behavior: Testing the Assumptions" September 15 -- Lecture: Spatial Movements, Foraging, and Decision Making (JP) September 17 -- Student Presentations and Discussion September 22 -- Preparation for Steve Lima September 24 -- Steve Lima, Seminar talk: "Behavioral Mechanisms in Ecology" September 25 -- Steve Lima, Public talk: "Safety in Numbers: Back to the Basics of Anti-Predator Vigilance" September 29 -- Lecture: Immunity, Disease, and Annual Rhythms (EK) October 1 -- Student Presentations and Discussion October 6 -- Preparation for Randy Nelson October 8 -- Randy Nelson, Seminar talk: "Sex Differences in Immune Function" October 9 -- Randy Nelson , Public talk: "Seasonal Cycles of Sex and Death: The Energetics of Immune Function" October 13 -- Lecture: Sensory Ecology (JP) October 15 -- Student Presentations and Discussion October 20 -- Lecture: Sexual Selection, Communication, and Mating Systems (JP) October 22 -- Student Presentations and Discussion October 27 -- Preparation for Mike Ryan October 29 -- Mike Ryan, Seminar talk: "Using Neural Networks to Probe Animal Communication" October 30 -- Mike Ryan, Public talk: "Historical Influences on the Evolution of Female Mating Preferences in Tungara Frogs" November 3 -- Preparation for Bill Searcy November 5 -- No class, 2 class meetings on November 6 November 6 -- Bill Searcy, Seminar talk (noon): "Song as an Indicator Mechanism" November 6 -- Bill Searcy, Public talk (4 pm): "The Evolution of Polygyny in the Ancestry of Red-Winged Blackbirds" November 10 -- Lecture: Sexual selection, mate choice, and speciation (EK) November 12 -- Student Presentations and Discussion November 17 -- Preparation for Nancy Burley November 19 -- Nancy Burley, Seminar talk: "Mate Choice for Multiple Criteria: The Heritability Hierarchy" November 20 -- Nancy Burley, Public talk: "Mate Choice for Aesthetic Traits: A Role for Learning?" November 26 -- Thanksgiving holiday December 1 -- Preparation for Peter Waser December 3 -- Peter Waser, Seminar talk: "DNA, Dispersal and Inbreeding in a Social Carnivore" December 4 -- Peter Waser, Public talk: "Genetic Signatures of Interpopulaton Dispersal" December 8 -- Retrospective I Lecture: (EK and JP) December 10 -- Retrospective II: Student perspective |
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