Biology 338 Behavioral Ecology

Instructor: Dr. Susan Raylman Office: 4234 Life Sciences Bldg. Office Hours: Mon & Wed 1:15-3:00; Fri by appt. Web: http://www.as.wvu.edu/~sraylman/behavioral/ Tu Th 8:30 9:45 G21 Life Sciences Office Phone: 293-1673 Email: sphilhow@wvu.edu Prerequisites: BIOL 221

Required text: Davies, Krebs and West. An Introduction to Behavioural Ecology. 4th Edition. 2012. WileyBlackwell. Objective: Behavioral ecology comprises the overlap of three broader scientific fields: ecology, animal behavior and evolution. In this course, you will: 1. Consider how specific behaviors have evolved through natural selection, particularly in regard to an animal's ecological role - in essence, getting at why animals behave the way they do. 2. Consider both the theoretical (i.e. mathematical) and empirical (experimental and comparative) aspects of behavioral ecology. 3. Critically examine the scientific approach to the study of behavioral ecology - how behavioral ecologists design their investigations, the limitations involved, and how to judge the implications of behavioral studies. 4. Develop your writing skills and become familiar with some primary behavioral ecology literature. Grading: Course grades will be determined from your performance on four exams (4 exams and a final exam), a paper (critique), and additional assignments or projects. Assignments will be in-class activities, or occasional take-home questions relevant to lecture material. The point breakdown will be as follows (may be subject to change due to point allocation for assignments): 4 exams, 50 points each final exam, 105 points assignments critique 200 105 60?* subject to change 52

There is also an optional class trip to the Pittsburgh zoo held on a Sunday in September or early October that has an assignment worth about 20 points. The zoo assignment is not an extra credit assignment. Some class assignments are held in class and cannot be made up. If you miss a class, it is up to you to find out about any assignments, and get lecture notes. You are required to attend lecture twice a week. If you sign up for this course, I assume you want to learn about this topic and will arrive to class awake and on time. The grading scale is a plus minus scale. Percentages determined as the portion of the total possible points. 97% 93% 90% 87% 83% A+ A AB+ B 80% 77% 73% 70% 67% BC+ C CD+ 63% D 60% Dbelow 60% F

Paper assignment: You will find a recent scientific article (published in this year) on a topic that we are covering in class and write a critique of the article you choose. You will write a critique that reflects current thinking on the topic. You will also propose experiment(s) that will further knowledge in the area of this article. I will give you information about writing critiques and how to find a good article. I will give you a handout about the paper assignment next week. Papers will be graded according to content, organization and writing skill (grammar, spelling, etc.) Papers will be due November 14th. Exams: You may be excused from an exam due to university approved reasons (documented illness, death in family). You need to contact me before the exam is given or by the end of the day. If a makeup exam cannot be scheduled before I hand back exams to the class, the makeup will be given during dead week.

Contacting me: My office is on the 4th floor of Life Sciences in room 4234. My office hours are Mon & Wed from 1:15-3:00. Im generally around before 1 on Mon, Wed, but have meetings so email me to arrange a time. We can schedule an appointment if my office hours are not convenient for you. I frequently use email, and it is the best way to contact me for quick questions. Please use email instead of leaving messages on my voicemail. My email address is: sphilhow@wvu.edu Social Justice: Professors and instructors at West Virginia University are committed to social justice. I concur and expect to foster a nurturing learning environment based upon open communication, mutual respect and nondiscrimination. West Virginia University does not discriminate on the basis or race, sex, disability, veteran status, religion, sexual orientation, or national origin. Suggestions as to how to further a positive and open environment in this course will be appreciated. If you are a person with a disability and anticipate needing any type of accommodation, please advise me at the beginning of the semester and make appropriate arrangements with Disability Services (293-6700). Lecture: Lecture handouts are available on the course website, address on top of syllabus. Lectures are given with the assumption that you have read that days reading assignment. Exams cover lecture and text material. Course Schedule (timing likely to change, zoo lecture, paper info will shift things) Date Topic Reading Aug 20 What is behavioral ecology, Tinbergens 4 questions, natl sel. Chapter 1 Aug 22 Genes and behavior, group vs. indiv selection, function Chapter 1 Aug 27 Testing hypotheses, methodology Chapter 2 Aug 29 Adaptionism, group comparisons, life history tradeoffs Chapter 2 Sep 3 Foraging theory, optimality models, marginal value theorem Chapter 3 Sep 5 Food storage, social learning, starvation and predation risk Chapter 3 Sep 10 Exam 1 Sep 12 Brood parasitism, animal arms race end of Ch 4 starting at p.105 Sep 17 Intraspecific competition, IFD, territoriality, dear enemy effect Chapter 5 Sep 19 Dominance hierarchies, competition, badges of status, ESS Chapter 5, 394-404 Sep 24 ESS continued, alternative and conditional strategies, tactics Chapter 5 Sep 26 Animal personalities, sexual selection and investment Chapter 7 Oct 1 Sexual selection, can female choice drive natural selection? Chapter 7, p.405-11 Oct 3 Exam 2 Oct 8 Sperm competition, sexual conflict, parental care intro Chapter 7,8 Oct 10 Parental care, parent-offspring conflict, sibling conflict Chapter 8 Oct 15 Fall Break have fun Oct 17 Mating systems, female dispersal, yet more conflict Chapter 9 Oct 22 Human mating strategies, sex allocation Chapter 9, 10 Oct 24 Sex allocation, sex change Chapter 10 Oct 29 Exam 3 Oct 31 Social behavior: kin selection, calculating inclusive fitness Chapter 11 Nov 5 Kin recognition, selfish restraint Chapter 11 Nov 7 Evolution of helping, reciprocal altruism, cooperative behaviors Chapter 12 Nov 12 Cooperative behavior Chapter 12 Nov 14 Insect eusociality, ant, bee and wasp colonies, colony coordination Chapter 13 Nov 19 Pathways to eusociality, naked mole rats, conflict again Ch 13, voting section p.174 Nov 21 Exam 4 Thanksgiving break enjoy your week! Dec 3 Do animals show intelligent behavior? Language studies article Dec 5 Intelligent behavior in animals video Dec 10 Levels of intentionality, any existence of animal emotions? Dec 17 3:00 5:00 Final Exam (Tuesday)