Use of behavior to evaluate reproductive problems in captive mammals
Abstract 10.1002/zoo.1430130506.abs Behavioral analyses constitute a logical starting point for discerning the causes of reproductive failure in captive mammals and should be completed before moving on to more invasive diagnostic procedures. Behavioral inadequacies affecting reproductive performance may be attributable to deficient early rearing environments, to the social milieux in which breeding-age animals are held on […]
Causes and consequences of male-male courtship in fruit flies
The mechanisms maintaining homosexual behaviour in animals are not well understood. In fruit flies, where male-male courtship is prevalent, it has been suggested that young males gain from being courted by mature males, perhaps through learning. I conducted two series of experiments to critically examine why mature males court immature males and what immature males […]
Social behavior of Matschie’s tree kangaroos (Dendrolagus matschiei) and its implications for captive management
Abstract 10.1002/zoo.1430100207.abs Social behavior was studied in four (one male and three females) adult, captivebred Matschie’s tree kangaroos (Dendrolagus matschiei) over a 124 day span in a large, naturalistic exhibit at the Woodland Park Zoological Gardens, Seattle, WA. A relatively high rate of social interaction occurred (15.2 per hour), over half of which consisted of […]
The Importance of Age/Sex Class Relationships for Captive-Breeding – A Review of Macropodoidea (Kangaroos, Wallabies and Rat-Kangaroos) as a Case Study
In this paper social relationships (as defined by Hinde) between age/sex classes of kangaroos, wallabies and rat-kangaroos are reviewed and characterized by frequencies, direction and, where possible, intensity of behavioural interactions, by their patterning in sequences and by distance regulation. Male social organization in the wild for larger non-solitary species is organized in an age/size-related […]
Display behavior in tortoises
When compared to lizards or snakes, signals related to warning and threat are not very important in land tortoises. Within social and sexual contexts, tactile and chemical signals seem more important than visual, and certainly than auditory ones. Color patterns are rarely, if ever, sexually discriminatory. Seasonal color differences are rare. In general, positional signals […]
Sex as moderator of early life experience: interaction between rearing environment and sexual experience in male guppies
The effects of learning have been neglected in studies of sexual selection because previous researchers have assumed, implicitly or explicitly, that sexual behaviour is genetically fixed. To understand the role of learning in sexual selection, it is important to investigate how early experience interacts with adult experience to determine the use of different mating strategies. […]
Involvement of the neurosteroid 7α-hydroxypregnenolone in the courtship behavior of the male newt Cynops pyrrhogaster
Reproductive behavior in amphibians, as in other vertebrate animals, is controlled by multiple hormones. A neurosteroid, 7α-hydroxypregnenolone, has recently been found to enhance locomotor activity in the male newt, Cynops pyrrhogaster. Here, we show that this neurosteroid is also involved in enhancing the expression of courtship behavior. Intracerebroventricular (ICV) injection of 7α-hydroxypregnenolone enhanced courtship behavior […]
Male mate preference is influenced by both female behaviour and morphology
Males of many species prefer females that are more fecund, novel and/or sexually receptive. Males assess the desirability of potential mates using female morphological traits, including size and sexual coloration, or olfactory cues. However, few studies have directly examined how female behaviour influences male mate choice, which is surprising because males often respond strongly to […]
Early manipulation of juvenile hormone has sexually dimorphic effects on mature adult behavior in Drosophila melanogaster
Hormones are critical for the development, maturation, and maintenance of physiological systems; therefore, understanding their involvement during maturation of the brain is important for the elucidation of mechanisms by which adults become behaviorally competent. Changes in exogenous and endogenous factors encountered during sexual maturation can have long lasting effects in mature adults. In this study, […]
Heritable variation underlies behavioural types in the mating context in male bluefin killifish
In many species, consistent behavioural differences among individuals are linked to fitness variation. Determining the environmental and genetic factors that mould these behavioural types is crucial to understanding how behaviours might respond to selection. Male bluefin killifish, Lucania goodei, show extensive consistent behavioural variation in their levels of courtship, male-directed aggression and female-directed aggression, resulting […]