Many species of animals engage in complex courtship rituals- Among these species
ID: 175307 • Letter: M
Question
Many species of animals engage in complex courtship rituals- Among these species it the bowerbird of Australia. Male bowerbirds construct elaborate structures, or bowers, from twigs, leaves, and moss and decorate them with colorful objects such as berries and shells. The bowers and the dances the males perform are designed to attract female bowerbirds for mating. After mating, the females fly away to build a nest and raise the offspring. The males remain at their bowers and try to attract additional mates. These birds can live for up to 17 years. Males are territorial and build their bowers in the same location each year. In studying their behavior, researchers have noted that about 23% of the females "shop around." going from one bower to another before deciding on a mate. The other 73% appear to go directly to a single bower to mate. These behaviors cannot be observed in captivity. What questions would you need to ask to determine proximate causation for the bower-building behavior? What questions would you need to ask to determine the proximate causation for the female choice? What questions would you need to ask to determine ultimate causation for these behaviors? What kinds of experiment(s) or investigation(s) would you propose to answer at least one of the questions in either pan a or b?Explanation / Answer
a. 1. What factors stimulate male bowerbirds to construct bowers?
2. How do the males know when and how to construct such bowers?
3. What factors help males to decide the location for bower construction?
b. 1. Which features of the bowers attract the female bowerbirds?
2. What characteristics of the male bowerbird’s dance attract the female bowerbirds?
3. What special characteristics attract some females to go directly to single bower?
c. Why did this type of counter ship ritual evolved?
d. To determine the proximate causation of female choice, following experiments can be proposed:
Related Questions
drjack9650@gmail.com
Navigate
Integrity-first tutoring: explanations and feedback only — we do not complete graded work. Learn more.