Question 1

Which of the following best describes a fixed action pattern in animal behavior?

Accepted Answer

A sequence of unlearned acts directly linked to a sign stimulus, usually carried to completion once initiated.

Question 2

Niko Tinbergen’s four questions about animal behavior are divided into proximate and ultimate causation. Which question below is an example of ultimate causation?

Accepted Answer

How does the behavior aid survival and reproduction?

Question 3

A male stickleback fish attacks any object with a red underside. This behavior is best explained as:

Accepted Answer

A fixed action pattern triggered by a sign stimulus.

Question 4

Which environmental cue is NOT typically used by migrating animals to orient themselves?

Accepted Answer

The color of local vegetation

Question 5

A honeybee performs a waggle dance to communicate the location of food. What does the angle of the straight-run relative to the vertical surface of the hive indicate?

Accepted Answer

The direction to the food source

Question 6

Which of the following is an example of classical conditioning?

Accepted Answer

A dog salivating at the sound of a bell after repeated pairings with food.

Question 7

Imprinting in birds can only occur during a specific developmental window. What is this window called?

Accepted Answer

Sensitive period

Question 8

Which of the following best illustrates the concept of optimal foraging theory?

Accepted Answer

A mule deer chooses to forage in open areas where food is less abundant but predation risk is lower.

Question 9

In Drosophila larvae, the foraging behavior is controlled by the for gene. Which allele is favored in high-density populations?

Accepted Answer

forR (rover)

Question 10

Which mating system is most likely to result in males and females looking similar to each other?

Accepted Answer

Monogamous

Question 11

Certainty of paternity is higher in species with external fertilization. What is a likely consequence of this?

Accepted Answer

Parental care is equally likely to be provided by males as by females.

Question 12

Hamilton’s rule predicts that altruism will be favored by natural selection when:

Accepted Answer

The product of relatedness and benefit exceeds the cost: $$ rB \u003e C $$

Question 13

A girl risks her life to save her brother. If $$ B = 2 $$, $$ C = 0.5 $$, and $$ r = 0.5 $$, does Hamilton’s rule predict this act will be favored?

Accepted Answer

Yes, because $$ rB = 1 \u003e C = 0.5 $$

Question 14

Which of the following is an example of reciprocal altruism?

Accepted Answer

A chimpanzee grooming another, expecting to be groomed in return later.

Question 15

Which of the following best describes mate-choice copying?

Accepted Answer

Individuals copy the mate choice of others, increasing the attractiveness of certain mates.

Question 16

Game theory applied to side-blotched lizard mating strategies shows that:

Accepted Answer

Each strategy outcompetes one and is outcompeted by another, maintaining all three types in the population.

Question 17

Which of the following is NOT a common mode of animal communication?

Accepted Answer

Thermal

Question 18

Which statement about the genetic basis of behavior is correct?

Accepted Answer

Master regulatory genes can control complex behaviors by directing the expression of many other genes.

Question 19

Which scenario best illustrates kin selection?

Accepted Answer

A ground squirrel gives an alarm call to warn close relatives of a predator.

Animal Behavior: Mechanisms, Development, Evolution, and Ecology

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