Life: The Science of Biology

Purves, William K., Sadava, David E., Orians, Gordon H., Heller, H. Craig

Chapter 53

Behavioral Ecology - all with Video Answers

Educators

Chapter Questions

Problem 1

Which of the following is not a component of the cost of performing a behavior?
$a .$ Its energetic cost
$b .$ The risk of being injured
$c.$ Its opportunity cost
$d .$ The risk of being attacked by a predator
$e .$ Its information cost

Heidi Luczynski

Heidi Luczynski

Numerade Educator

Problem 2

An almost universal cost associated with group living is
$a.$ increased risk of predation.
$b.$ interference with foraging.
$c.$ higher exposure to diseases and parasites.
$d .$ poorer access to mates.
$e.$ poorer access to sleeping sites.

Christina Sorrentino

Christina Sorrentino

Numerade Educator

Problem 3

Which is $n o t$ an important assumption of foraging behavior theory?
$a.$ Efficient foragers spend less time fulfilling their energy needs than inefficient ones.
$b.$ Superior foragers will generally produce more surviving offspring.
$c.$ A successful predator will choose its prey in such a way as to maximize its energy intake.
$d .$ An efficient predator will always choose the most abundant prey.
$e .$ The ability of a predator to discriminate among prey items has a genetic basis.

Christina Sorrentino

Christina Sorrentino

Numerade Educator

Problem 4

The basic components of an optimality model of behavior are
$a$. the type of behavior and its neural control mechanisms.
$b.$ the objective of the behavior and the choices that would best achieve it.
$c .$ the objective of the behavior and its neural control mechanisms.
$d$. the goal of the behavior and the constraints imposed by the animal's structure.
$e .$ the objective to be maximized and the currency used to measure it.

Christina Sorrentino

Christina Sorrentino

Numerade Educator

Problem 5

The choice of a mating partner may be based on
$a$. the inherent qualities of a potential mate.
$b$. the resources held by a potential mate.
$c .$ both the inherent qualities of a potential mate and the resources it holds.
$d$. the success of individuals of the opposite sex in courtship.
$e .$ All of the above

Christina Sorrentino

Christina Sorrentino

Numerade Educator

Problem 6

Altruistic behavior
$a.$ confers a benefit on the performer by inflicting some cost on some other individual.
$b .$ confers a benefit both on the performer and on some other individual.
$c .$ inflicts a cost both on the performer and on some other individual.
$d .$ confers a benefit on another individual at some cost to the performer.
$e .$ confers a cost on the performer without benefiting any other individual.

Christina Sorrentino

Christina Sorrentino

Numerade Educator

Problem 7

Kin selection is
$a.$ mating between relatives.
$b$. the adoption of young by an unrelated adult.
$c .$ the ability to recognize one's relatives in a social group.
$d$. a behavior that increases the survivorship of an individual's relatives.
$e .$ only found among social mammals.

Christina Sorrentino

Christina Sorrentino

Numerade Educator

Problem 8

Species whose social groups include sterile individuals are said to be
$a.$ eusocial.
$b. $semisocial.
$c. $oligosocial.
$d .$ sterisocial.
$e .$ supersocial.

Christina Sorrentino

Christina Sorrentino

Numerade Educator