Question 1

Bonobo Kanzi's (Pan paniscus) use of language (Savage-Rumbaugh et al. 2001) is unique in that he

Accepted Answer

A)  has demonstrated an understanding of spoken English by correctly carrying out requests, even if they are rather bizarre. 
B)  spontaneously produces vocalizations many times a day that differ in content and are associated with items or actions in his environment. 
C)  was never explicitly trained to use lexigrams. He simply acquired the skill by observing his mother's training sessions. 
D)  all of the above. 
A)  has demonstrated an understanding of spoken English by correctly carrying out requests, even if they are rather bizarre. 
B)  spontaneously produces vocalizations many times a day that differ in content and are associated with items or actions in his environment. 
C)  was never explicitly trained to use lexigrams. He simply acquired the skill by observing his mother's training sessions. 
D)  all of the above. D

Question 2

Chimpanzees Austin and Sherman (Savage-Rumbaugh et al. 1978), when tested for their ability to use lexigrams to specify which of several foods was in a container when only one of them had observed the container being baited,

Accepted Answer

A)  could still convey the correct information to one another even when they were prevented from using the keyboard. 
B)  were able to communicate the information effectively to one another regardless of which of them was the observer. 
C)  were successful in their communication attempt only if the experimenter also knew the identity of the food. 
D)  were successful only when they were kept in separate rooms so they didn't fight over the food. 
A)  could still convey the correct information to one another even when they were prevented from using the keyboard. 
B)  were able to communicate the information effectively to one another regardless of which of them was the observer. 
C)  were successful in their communication attempt only if the experimenter also knew the identity of the food. 
D)  were successful only when they were kept in separate rooms so they didn't fight over the food. B

Question 3

An environmental characteristic that has been found to affect the speed with which some lizards perform a variety of displays (head bobs, push ups, dewlap extensions, etc.) is

Accepted Answer

A)  rain. 
B)  temperature. 
C)  wind. 
D)  all of the above. 
A)  rain. 
B)  temperature. 
C)  wind. 
D)  all of the above. C

Question 4

When Boncaraglio and Saino (2007) carried out a meta-analysis testing the general validity of the acoustic adaptation hypothesis, they found that habitat structure

Accepted Answer

A)  does not significantly influence the overall acoustic properties of bird songs after all. 
B)  does significantly influence the acoustic properties of bird songs, and does so very strongly. 
C)  does significantly influence the acoustic properties of bird songs, but only weakly. 
D)  does significantly influence the acoustic properties of bird songs, but only within habitats that have not been disturbed by humans. 
A)  does not significantly influence the overall acoustic properties of bird songs after all. 
B)  does significantly influence the acoustic properties of bird songs, and does so very strongly. 
C)  does significantly influence the acoustic properties of bird songs, but only weakly. 
D)  does significantly influence the acoustic properties of bird songs, but only within habitats that have not been disturbed by humans.

Question 5

An apparently irrelevant behavior performed by an animal experiencing conflicting motivations, such as fighting and fleeing, is often referred to as a(n)

Accepted Answer

A)  autonomic response. 
B)  displacement activity. 
C)  intention movement. 
D)  unreliable signal. 
A)  autonomic response. 
B)  displacement activity. 
C)  intention movement. 
D)  unreliable signal.

Question 6

Which of the following signals would be LEAST likely to be regarded as a necessarily honest signal of the sender's quality?

Accepted Answer

A)  a male blue gourami spreading his fins when his territory is invaded. 
B)  a male blue-footed booby displaying his bright blue-green feet to a female. 
C)  a male common loon's "yodel" call when a rival male encroaches on his territory. 
D)  a male red deer's constant roaring during the rut. 
A)  a male blue gourami spreading his fins when his territory is invaded. 
B)  a male blue-footed booby displaying his bright blue-green feet to a female. 
C)  a male common loon's "yodel" call when a rival male encroaches on his territory. 
D)  a male red deer's constant roaring during the rut.

Question 7

Chicks' begging calls are graded in intensity. This is a signal that appears to be

Accepted Answer

A)  dishonest, because each chick will always benefit by out-begging its sibling, whether it is really hungry or not. 
B)  dishonest, because there is little cost associated with begging too much. 
C)  honest, because research has shown that the vigor of begging increases with hunger. 
D)  honest, because the parents can always detect a manipulative message by a chick. 
A)  dishonest, because each chick will always benefit by out-begging its sibling, whether it is really hungry or not. 
B)  dishonest, because there is little cost associated with begging too much. 
C)  honest, because research has shown that the vigor of begging increases with hunger. 
D)  honest, because the parents can always detect a manipulative message by a chick.

Question 8

Females of the túngara frog (Physalaemus coloradorum) prefer calls by males that have had "chucks" artificially added to them over the normal male calls of their own species. The chucks are a normal part of the male calls of another closely related frog species (P. pustulosus), in which females prefer males that produce low frequency chucks. This suggests that the female preference for chuck calls

Accepted Answer

A)  developed after the chuck calls had evolved. 
B)  exploited an existing sensory bias. 
C)  is disappearing in this genus. 
D)  was the result of genetic drift. 
A)  developed after the chuck calls had evolved. 
B)  exploited an existing sensory bias. 
C)  is disappearing in this genus. 
D)  was the result of genetic drift.

Question 9

Hypotheses regarding the ritualization process focus on characteristics of the _____ of a signal that influence its evolution.

Accepted Answer

A)  receiver 
B)  sender 
C)  unintended audience 
D)  all of the above. 
A)  receiver 
B)  sender 
C)  unintended audience 
D)  all of the above.

Question 10

The acoustic adaptation hypothesis proposes that the acoustic properties of bird song are shaped by habitat structure. More specifically, for example, which of the following characteristics would NOT be predicted for songs being produced by birds living in a habitat with dense foliage?

Accepted Answer

A)  high frequencies 
B)  long notes 
C)  narrow bandwidths 
D)  whistles 
A)  high frequencies 
B)  long notes 
C)  narrow bandwidths 
D)  whistles

Question 11

Small bodied Central and South American primates known as tamarins and marmosets are LEAST likely to use signals that incorporate

Accepted Answer

A)  erection of hair on different parts of their bodies. 
B)  facial expressions. 
C)  high frequency sounds. 
D)  whole body movements. 
A)  erection of hair on different parts of their bodies. 
B)  facial expressions. 
C)  high frequency sounds. 
D)  whole body movements.

Question 12

Views of communication since the 1970s have incorporated the idea that on some occasions an individual might gain by sending a signal that was

Accepted Answer

A)  dishonest 
B)  efficient 
C)  reliable 
D)  unambiguous 
A)  dishonest 
B)  efficient 
C)  reliable 
D)  unambiguous

Question 13

When two male stalk-eyed fly opponents face one another head-to-head in a threat display, one usually retreats without a fight. The one that retreated did so because

Accepted Answer

A)  he has longer eyestalks than his opponent. 
B)  he has shorter eyestalks than his opponent. 
C)  his opponent was able to detect that he was faking longer eyestalks than he actually has. 
D)  any of the above is likely. 
A)  he has longer eyestalks than his opponent. 
B)  he has shorter eyestalks than his opponent. 
C)  his opponent was able to detect that he was faking longer eyestalks than he actually has. 
D)  any of the above is likely.

Question 14

Characteristic movements that prepare an animal to perform a particular behavior pattern are often referred to as

Accepted Answer

A)  autonomic responses. 
B)  displacement activities. 
C)  intention movements. 
D)  unreliable signals. 
A)  autonomic responses. 
B)  displacement activities. 
C)  intention movements. 
D)  unreliable signals.

Question 15

Chimpanzee Viki, reared by Keith and Cathy Hayes (1951), was, in retrospect, doomed from the beginning to fail in her attempts to acquire a particular type of language, at least in part because she lacked a gene called FOXP2 and, thus, she couldn't

Accepted Answer

A)  talk. 
B)  use lexigrams. 
C)  use plastic chips. 
D)  use sign language. 
A)  talk. 
B)  use lexigrams. 
C)  use plastic chips. 
D)  use sign language.

Question 16

Donald Griffin (1978, 1981, 1984) has suggested that it might be possible to discover something about animals' thoughts and feelings by

Accepted Answer

A)  acquiring an understanding of animals' natural means of communicating among themselves. 
B)  avoiding teaching them languages humans can understand because of their artificiality. 
C)  studying their brain activity by means of fMRIs. 
D)  all of the above. 
A)  acquiring an understanding of animals' natural means of communicating among themselves. 
B)  avoiding teaching them languages humans can understand because of their artificiality. 
C)  studying their brain activity by means of fMRIs. 
D)  all of the above.

Question 17

Honest signaling is generally thought to be favored

Accepted Answer

A)  in a stable social group. 
B)  in groups that form temporary aggregations rather than stable social units. 
C)  when the signal is easy to produce. 
D)  when the signaler is unlikely to be recognized individually. 
A)  in a stable social group. 
B)  in groups that form temporary aggregations rather than stable social units. 
C)  when the signal is easy to produce. 
D)  when the signaler is unlikely to be recognized individually.

Question 18

Cummings (2004, 2007), studying the marine fish, surfperch, found that the visual pigments for deepwater and for shallow water surfperch differed in a way that matched the visual characteristics of their respective prey, and that those differences were also related to species typical differences in color patterns of males.

Accepted Answer

A)  Deepwater surfperch are better at detecting brightness differences, and the males differ from one another more in brightness than color. 
B)  Deepwater surfperch are better at detecting color differences, and the males differ from one another more in brightness than color. 
C)  Shallow water surfperch are better at detecting brightness differences, and the males differ from one another more in brightness than color. 
D)  Shallow water surfperch are better at detecting color differences, and the males differ from one another more in brightness than color. 
A)  Deepwater surfperch are better at detecting brightness differences, and the males differ from one another more in brightness than color. 
B)  Deepwater surfperch are better at detecting color differences, and the males differ from one another more in brightness than color. 
C)  Shallow water surfperch are better at detecting brightness differences, and the males differ from one another more in brightness than color. 
D)  Shallow water surfperch are better at detecting color differences, and the males differ from one another more in brightness than color.

Question 19

The ideas that signals are costly in general, that a signal may be in flux within a particular population, or that any given signal might be perceived by different receivers, some of which have the same and some of which have different goals as the sender, have been offered as explanations for why

Accepted Answer

A)  dishonest signals will inevitably become predominant throughout a population. 
B)  only honest signals can be maintained within a population. 
C)  the terms "honest" and "dishonest" really don't apply within the context of animal communication. 
D)  we see populations with both honest and dishonest signals. 
A)  dishonest signals will inevitably become predominant throughout a population. 
B)  only honest signals can be maintained within a population. 
C)  the terms "honest" and "dishonest" really don't apply within the context of animal communication. 
D)  we see populations with both honest and dishonest signals.

Question 20

Mantis shrimp (Gonodactylus bredini) give a threat display called the meral spread even immediately after molting when they are actually virtually defenseless. This bluff is likely to remain effective in the population because

Accepted Answer

A)  a signaler that is not newly molted can inflict serious, even lethal, injury on an opponent. 
B)  it is identical in form to meral spread displays given by individuals that are not newly molted. 
C)  on average, the signal is honest. 
D)  all of the above. 
A)  a signaler that is not newly molted can inflict serious, even lethal, injury on an opponent. 
B)  it is identical in form to meral spread displays given by individuals that are not newly molted. 
C)  on average, the signal is honest. 
D)  all of the above.

Bonobo Kanzi's (Pan paniscus) use of language (Savage-Rumbaugh et al. 2001) is unique in that he

Chimpanzees Austin and Sherman (Savage-Rumbaugh et al. 1978), when tested for their ability to use lexigrams to specify which of several foods was in a container when only one of them had observed the container being baited,

An environmental characteristic that has been found to affect the speed with which some lizards perform a variety of displays (head bobs, push ups, dewlap extensions, etc.) is

When Boncaraglio and Saino (2007) carried out a meta-analysis testing the general validity of the acoustic adaptation hypothesis, they found that habitat structure

An apparently irrelevant behavior performed by an animal experiencing conflicting motivations, such as fighting and fleeing, is often referred to as a(n)

Which of the following signals would be LEAST likely to be regarded as a necessarily honest signal of the sender's quality?

Chicks' begging calls are graded in intensity. This is a signal that appears to be

Hypotheses regarding the ritualization process focus on characteristics of the _____ of a signal that influence its evolution.

The acoustic adaptation hypothesis proposes that the acoustic properties of bird song are shaped by habitat structure. More specifically, for example, which of the following characteristics would NOT be predicted for songs being produced by birds living in a habitat with dense foliage?

Small bodied Central and South American primates known as tamarins and marmosets are LEAST likely to use signals that incorporate

Views of communication since the 1970s have incorporated the idea that on some occasions an individual might gain by sending a signal that was

When two male stalk-eyed fly opponents face one another head-to-head in a threat display, one usually retreats without a fight. The one that retreated did so because

Characteristic movements that prepare an animal to perform a particular behavior pattern are often referred to as

Chimpanzee Viki, reared by Keith and Cathy Hayes (1951), was, in retrospect, doomed from the beginning to fail in her attempts to acquire a particular type of language, at least in part because she lacked a gene called FOXP2 and, thus, she couldn't

Donald Griffin (1978, 1981, 1984) has suggested that it might be possible to discover something about animals' thoughts and feelings by

Honest signaling is generally thought to be favored

The ideas that signals are costly in general, that a signal may be in flux within a particular population, or that any given signal might be perceived by different receivers, some of which have the same and some of which have different goals as the sender, have been offered as explanations for why

Mantis shrimp (Gonodactylus bredini) give a threat display called the meral spread even immediately after molting when they are actually virtually defenseless. This bluff is likely to remain effective in the population because

Introduction

Approaches to the Study of Animal Behavior

Genetic Analysis of Behavior

Natural Selection and Behavior

Learning and Cognition

Physiological Analysis-Nerve Cells and Behavior

Physiological Analysis of Behavior- the Endocrine System

The Development of Behavior

Biological Clocks

Mechanisms of Orientation and Behavior

The Ecology and Evolution of Spiral Distribution

Foraging Behavior

Antipredator Behavior

Reproductive Behavior

Parental Care and Mating Systems

Communications: Channels and Functions

Conflict

Group Living, Altruism, and Cooperation

Filters

Exam 17: The Evolution of Communication

Bonobo Kanzi's (Pan paniscus) use of language (Savage-Rumbaugh et al. 2001) is unique in that he

Chimpanzees Austin and Sherman (Savage-Rumbaugh et al. 1978), when tested for their ability to use lexigrams to specify which of several foods was in a container when only one of them had observed the container being baited,

An environmental characteristic that has been found to affect the speed with which some lizards perform a variety of displays (head bobs, push ups, dewlap extensions, etc.) is

When Boncaraglio and Saino (2007) carried out a meta-analysis testing the general validity of the acoustic adaptation hypothesis, they found that habitat structure

An apparently irrelevant behavior performed by an animal experiencing conflicting motivations, such as fighting and fleeing, is often referred to as a(n)

Which of the following signals would be LEAST likely to be regarded as a necessarily honest signal of the sender's quality?

Chicks' begging calls are graded in intensity. This is a signal that appears to be

Hypotheses regarding the ritualization process focus on characteristics of the _____ of a signal that influence its evolution.

The acoustic adaptation hypothesis proposes that the acoustic properties of bird song are shaped by habitat structure. More specifically, for example, which of the following characteristics would NOT be predicted for songs being produced by birds living in a habitat with dense foliage?

Small bodied Central and South American primates known as tamarins and marmosets are LEAST likely to use signals that incorporate

Views of communication since the 1970s have incorporated the idea that on some occasions an individual might gain by sending a signal that was

When two male stalk-eyed fly opponents face one another head-to-head in a threat display, one usually retreats without a fight. The one that retreated did so because

Characteristic movements that prepare an animal to perform a particular behavior pattern are often referred to as

Chimpanzee Viki, reared by Keith and Cathy Hayes (1951), was, in retrospect, doomed from the beginning to fail in her attempts to acquire a particular type of language, at least in part because she lacked a gene called FOXP2 and, thus, she couldn't

Donald Griffin (1978, 1981, 1984) has suggested that it might be possible to discover something about animals' thoughts and feelings by

Honest signaling is generally thought to be favored

The ideas that signals are costly in general, that a signal may be in flux within a particular population, or that any given signal might be perceived by different receivers, some of which have the same and some of which have different goals as the sender, have been offered as explanations for why

Mantis shrimp (Gonodactylus bredini) give a threat display called the meral spread even immediately after molting when they are actually virtually defenseless. This bluff is likely to remain effective in the population because

Introduction

Approaches to the Study of Animal Behavior

Genetic Analysis of Behavior

Natural Selection and Behavior

Learning and Cognition

Physiological Analysis-Nerve Cells and Behavior

Physiological Analysis of Behavior- the Endocrine System

The Development of Behavior

Biological Clocks

Mechanisms of Orientation and Behavior

The Ecology and Evolution of Spiral Distribution

Foraging Behavior

Antipredator Behavior

Reproductive Behavior

Parental Care and Mating Systems

Communications: Channels and Functions

Conflict

Group Living, Altruism, and Cooperation

Filters