Essay on Animal Behavior: Mimicry Lab Report

The common cuckoo can be recognized by its soft, two-note call: “cuc-koo, cuc-koo.” This gentle song may make the bird seem innocent. However, the cuckoo is guilty of using a few cunning schemes to advance its own interests. Specifically, cuckoo birds employ a technique known as mimicry. This means that they copy the physical, and behavioral patterns of other animals to improve their own chances at survival. Thanks to these wily tricks, common cuckoos have managed to thrive in many parts of the world.

Brood parasitism is a unique behavior performed by some species that tricks another host species into raising its young. This is a fairly common behavior among the Cuculidae family of which 53 of the 136 species perform brood parasitism. My question and what I hope to review within this paper is, what has caused brood parasitism, what has shaped it, and what are the adaptive values of Cuckoo brood parasitism? Within Cuckoo’s, this strange behavior has ultimately been shaped through environmental pressures and has become advantageous. Ecological changes forced Cuckoo’s to change migrational patterns, habitat, range size, and foraging, which lead to brood parasitism. Once brood parasitism arose, a coevolutionary arms race began between the Cuckoo’s and hosts. Due to parasitic egg rejections, Cuckoo eggs that closely resembled host eggs were selected for, leading to higher success rates of the behavior. This gives Cuckoo’s many advantageous’, as there is no longer a need for investing time and energy into raising their young. Brood parasitism also gives Cuckoo’s the advantage of exploiting diverse breeding habitats; reduced diet restraints, and foraging. Ultimately this behavior provides many benefits to Cuckoos and allows them successfully raise young while providing no parental care.

They can mimic over 400 sounds (Janssen, Tessen, and Kennedy). They can perfectly mimic whatever they hear (“All about Birds”). Mockingbirds have many fascinating songs and sounds, but they also have a fascinating human interactions.

Burrowing owls often live in occupied prairie dog colonies. Researchers have proposed several theories regarding why this occurs. One reason may be that owls avoid predation because they share many of the same predators with black-tailed prairie dogs and the presence of the prairie dogs helps to reduce predation. Another theory is that the burrowing owls live in active prairie dog colonies in order to listen to the prairie dogs for cues on when a predator is near. This behavior has been documented between other groups, usually mammals or reptiles responding to bird alarm calls. This study aimed to show whether burrowing owls responded differently to prairie dog predator alarms compared to other sounds, both biological and man made.

Our findings support what is found in published literature for grasshopper sparrows and upland sandpipers. Smith (1963) and Herkert (1994) found that grasshopper sparrows prefer grassland habitat and exhibit a negative correlation with edge. This is indicated in our results by grasshopper sparrows exhibiting a negative correlation with crops and water. The upland sandpiper prefers 50% or more grass cover (Higgins and Kirsch 1976) and avoids areas with tall and dense vegetation (Bowen and Kruse 1993). Our findings indicate that upland sandpipers have a positive association with grassland

These birds are considered a nuisance in tourist areas or areas where there are often large gatherings because of their smell is found to be unpleasant by most people. These birds have been known to scavenge for food in bins, around people eating, or even snatching food off of people while they're eating. These feeding behaviours are likely what allows such a bird to thrive in urban areas.

I was thinking about birds the other day. There were several of them feeding at my bird

Although people enjoy viewing wildlife and hunting animals for food and fur, conflicts arise because wild animals kill livestock, cause vehicle collisions, and damage crops. On another note, relationships with other organism can be more than just seeing the humming bird as an eye catching small bird. It is a benefit for the long-tubed flowers because the Buff-Bellied hummingbird has its long beak and small body to remove the nectar which allows the survival of the long-tubed flower. Experiments indicated that flowers having recurved spurs deposit significantly more pollen grains on hummingbird visitors than flowers having perpendicular spurs, apparently as a result of greater contact between the androecium of curve-spurred flowers

“That lambs dislike great birds of prey does not seem strange: only it gives no ground for reproaching these birds of prey for bearing off little lambs. And if the lambs say among themselves: 'these birds of prey are evil; and whoever is least like a bird of prey, but rather its opposite, a lamb - would he not be good?' there is no reason to find fault with this institution of an ideal, except perhaps that birds of prey might view it a little ironically and say ‘we don’t dislike them at all, these good little lambs; we even love them: nothing is more tasty…”.

The Australian Magpie is a black and white bird native to Australia. They are found wherever there is a combination of trees and adjacent open areas, including parks. Although the Australian Magpie is generally quite tame, once spring comes they become very aggressive towards any intruder. The species’ familiarity is mainly due equally to its pleasant carolling song, which is such an essential part of the Australian soundscape, and for its tendency to swoop at people during its springtime nesting

The species’ beak allows the species to sufficiently remove the shells of nuts that are difficult to break (Mulawka 2013). Grant and Grant (2002) argue that the phenotypic variation in regards to a bird’s beak is due to environmental differences, and the food resources that are available within the particular

Red attracts birds most. Birds will ea tout of a feeder that has red on it. Also, birds like to put some red in their nests to attract the male birds. For seeds, birds prefer yellow, red, and blue. Scientist’s that study birds believe they can see color. If you use food coloring onto bird seed, the seed will mold and will be no good. It is said that Finches, Chickadee’s, Nuthatch’s, Northern Cardinal’s, Blue Jay’s, and Regular Black Birds like sunflower seeds. Chickadee’s, Northern Finches, Nuthatch's, Regular Starlings, Wren’s, and Thrush’s prefer a seed called suet. Humming birds prefer red and pink, Orioles and Humming birds prefer orange, Goldfinches, Warblers, and Humming birds prefer yellow, and Blue Jays and Finches prefer blue. Nuthatches

Larvae on each half are counted, RI is calculated using simple equation RI =(S-C)/(S+C) [S denotes number of larvae on the odorant/test side and C denotes number of larvae towards the control side]. The data from this experiment is presented in Figure 1. When tested for odorant acetal, starved larvae showed higher RI when compared to non-starved larvae. In other words, starved larvae have a stronger attractive response towards acetal compared to the non-starved larvae.

Mimicry is the superficial resemblance between two or more organisms which are not taxonomically related. This resemblance may be in appearance, behavior, sound, scent and even location. Some sort of vocalization is produced by most of the birds. Almost every species of bird produces some sort of vocalization. Mockingbirds are those birds that mimic the call of other birds. Australia’s amazing Lyrebird is the world’s greatest mimic which is capable of mimic natural and artificial sounds from their environment. They imitate other bird calls, as well as human sounds such as car alarms and camera shutters. cuckoos fool other birds – they also mimic hawks. Parrots are renowned for their deafening calls that can be heard for miles. Parrots

Investigating the behavior of animals is essential to understanding the implications for why an animal may do things the way they do. It helps shine some light on a subject that is not heavily researched and give us a better understanding of the feeding behavior, reproductive patterns, seasonal movement and communication between other animals. As boring or bland as animal observation may be it gives us an increased outlook on the many reasons for an animal’s demeanor. I got the opportunity to observe and analyze White-tailed Deer in their natural habitat and get a better understanding for that of their various behaviors. White-tails in general have interesting behavioural characteristics that define them as a species and enable their survival in the wild.