Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Ethology'

Dogs engage in various interactions with artificial agents (UMOs) but it is not clear whether they recognize UMOs as social agents. Jealous behaviour emerges when an important relationship is threatened by another individual, but only when the intruder is a social agent. We investigated whether UMOs elicit jealous behaviour in dogs. We tested three groups of 15 dogs, each group observed different behaviour of the UMO: mechanistic movement, non-social or social behaviour. Then, the owner interacted with another dog, the UMO and a magazine while ignoring the subject. Dogs displayed more rival-oriented behaviour and attempt to interrupt the owner-rival interaction in case of the other dog and UMO compared to the magazine (the latter mainly occurred in the Social UMO group). However, they showed less owner- and interaction-oriented behaviour in case of the UMO. Thus, although some elements of jealous behaviour emerged toward the UMO, the results are not conclusive; Resumo: Comportamento e Etologia Canina Os cães interagem com agentes artificiais (UMOs), mas não sabemos se os reconhecem como agentes sociais. O comportamento de ciúme surge quando uma relação importante é ameaçada por outro indivíduo, mas apenas quando o rival é social. Investigámos se os UMOs geram comportamento de ciúme nos cães. Testámos três grupos de 15 cães, cada grupo observou diferentes comportamentos do UMO: comportamento mecânico, não-social ou social. Posteriormente, o dono interagiu com o outro cão, o UMO e uma revista, enquanto ignorava a cobaia. Os cães demonstraram mais comportamento orientado ao rival e tentaram interromper a interação dono-rival mais vezes no caso do outro cão e do UMO comparado com a revista (principalmente no grupo do UMO Social). Porém, os cães mostraram menos comportamento dirigido ao dono e à interação no caso do UMO. Portanto, apesar de alguns elementos de comportamento de ciúme surgirem com o UMO, os resultados não são conclusivos.

Bibliography: leaves 56-65.
The following study was undertaken as part of the Karoo Biome Project (KBP) and sets out to investigate an aspect of karoo ecology that will contribute to a predictive understanding of both biotic and abiotic processes in the region for the development of meaningful management guidelines (Cowling, 1986).

Observations of habitats are reported. A series of underwater experiments were conducted in natural habitats to answer questions concerning a) why Lamprologus ocellatus and Lamprologus ornatipinnis bury gastropod shells refuges into the substrate, and b) to examine interspecies differences in shell-using behaviours. Some behaviour patterns were analysed using phylogenetic methods. Lamprologus ocellatus and L. ornatipinnis responded to new shells in a variety of ways, shells were moved, buried (and used) or hidden (buried and not used). How shells are utilised seems to be dependant on a complex of factors such as the size and quality of new the shell and the number already in the territory. Shell use may also be affected by neighbour species, sex, size and predation levels. There are interspecific differences in the size of shells used and the methods of shell use. The latter results in species-characteristic shell orientations, vertical burial in L. ocellatus and horizontal burial in L. ornatipinnis. Shell orientation does affect other species/use of shells. Shell movement and vertical orientation appear to be apomorphic while shell hiding and burial are pleisiomorphic within the genus Lamprologus. Numerous cues are involved in stimulating shell burial. Most of these cues are actively sought by the fish by external and internal inspections. Shell burial therefore appears to be a method of reducing the information gathering ability of potential shell-dwelling competitors. Shell burial can therefore be regarded as an investment process which enhances the residents ability to defend its territory. Males can also control the distribution of open shells within teritories and thus control mate access to shells. This behaviour could be a significant factor in the evolution of marked sexual dichromatism exhibited within the genus.

While the significance of vibrational communication across insect taxa has been fairly well studied, the substrate-borne vibrations of honeybees remains largely unexplored. Within this thesis I have monitored honeybees with a new method, that of logging their short pulsed vibrations on the long term, and I have started the longstanding endeavour of underpinning the applications of it. The use of advanced spectral analysis and machine learning techniques as part of this new method has revealed exciting statistics that challenges previous expert's interpretations. This work is comprised of three results chapters with the aim of determining (1) what can the in-situ monitoring of specific honeybee pulsed vibrations tell us about the status of a colony? (2) What long term statistics be can identified to help to disentangle the function of two specific pulses of vibrations? (3) How effective is honeycomb-embedded accelerometer technology at assessing the ethology of honeybee colonies? In the first results chapter, I explore the contributions of developing pupae and larvae to accelerometer datasets by monitoring brood frames isolated from the colony with embedded accelerometers. From this, I show that very little vibrational information is obtainable from capped brood using accelerometer. However, I am able to showcase the quantitation of specific vibrational waveforms that are indicative of brood emergence from the honeycomb. In the second results chapter, the automated detection of honeybee whooping signals was achieved with an 83% accuracy, revealing never-before-seen long-term statistics of vibration, once thought to be an inhibitory or food request signal. Statistics show that this pulse is very common, highly repeatable, occurs mainly at night with a distinct decrease towards midday, is correlated with the brood cycle, and can be elicited en masse as a startle response by bees following the gentle knocking of the hive. Through synchronisation of high-definition video and accelerometer data, the honeybee dorso ventral abdominal shaking (DVA) signal has been physically quantitated, for the first time, giving a one to-one association between behaviour and intra-comb vibrations. From this, a novel method for the continuous in-situ non-invasive automated detection was developed for a honeybee signal previously thought to have no vibratory component. I show that the signal is detected with high frequency and repeatability, occurring mostly at night with a minimum towards mid-afternoon; inverse to that of the signal's amplitude over an average day. An unprecedented increase in the cumulative amplitude of DVA signals occurs in the hours preceding and following a primary swarm. These statistics suggests that the DVA signal may have additional functions other than as a foraging activation signal, and that the amplitude of the signal might be indicative of the switching of its dual, and potentially multiple functions. This work has pioneered the use of accelerometer technology for the long-term monitoring of honeybee pulsed vibrations, making significant contributions to the emerging field of biotremology. The applications of this work, however, go far beyond the realms of the honeybee. The methods developed throughout this thesis could easily be adapted for the automated in-situ monitoring of biologically relevant vibroacoustics of multiple wild taxonomic groups, including wasps, termites, elephants and bats, as well as for replacing the need for visually compiled ethograms within lab-based manipulative experiments.

Human beings of all cultures build some form of shelter, and the global distribution of Homo sapiens depends on this basic trait. All great apes (chimpanzee, bonobo, gorilla, and orangutan) build analogous structures (called nests or beds) at least once a day throughout their adult lives, which suggests that this elementary technology was present before the hominid lines separated. This thesis investigates the variability and function of specifically wild chimpanzee shelters. I compared characteristics of chimpanzee nests, nesting trees, nest shape, and architecture in two savanna-dwelling populations on opposite sides of Africa: Fongoli, Senegal, and Issa, Tanzania. Savanna habitats are the most extreme habitats in which chimpanzees survive today, and may represent a similar environment to that in which early hominins evolved in the Plio-Pleistocene (Chapter 2). Investigating variation in nest-building within and between these two extreme habitats made it possible to tackle hypotheses of the shelter function of nests (Chapter 3).The influence of environment, specifically the role of protection from disease vectors and fluctuating temperatures, was assessed through a novel experiment in which I slept overnight in arboreal chimpanzee nests and on the bare earth (Chapter 4). To assess whether or not nests serve as an anti-predation function, I compared nesting in Issa, where predators are abundant, to Fongoli, where they are absent (Chapter 5). I provided further support for the thermoregulatory function of nests by showing that chimpanzees build more insulating nests in adverse weather conditions (Chapter 6).Nest-building is a learned behaviour, but its ontogeny is little known. I investigated social sources of variation in nest building in Fongoli to examine whether sex and age differences exist in nest building duration, nest position, shape and architecture (Chapter 7). Finally, ecosystem engineering is a consequence of animal construction, from ants to humans. I investigated use-wear traces around nests to assess niche construction of nest- building. I showed that chimpanzees repeatedly re-used these specific nest-spots within trees, which are pre-fabricated for future building through repeated pruning and shaping of these structures (Chapter 8).Nest building in great apes may be the foundation of constructivity in hominids. This thesis describes proximate functions and influences on nest-building variation in wild chimpanzees that help to model the evolution of shelter in hominids.

Objects that are animate occupy a special place in the human conception of the world. We ourselves are objects that are animate. So are the non-human animals which have been food, predators, cohabitants, and later companions to us during our evolutionary history. The difference between what is animate and what is not and the question of what happens when an animate object begins or ceases to operate - in essence what gives us and the other animals life - have captivated human minds for perhaps that whole time. The same goes for the apparent differences between us and those other animals. These dark spaces in human understanding have always been filled by stories. These take the form of myths, fables, folklore, recipes for magic, and comic strips, to name a few, which act to create a gap between animal fiction and animal truth. That gap and what has splayed it, in the past and now, play a critical role in how we view ourselves and how we relate to nature in general. Stories were also the birthplace of animate objects of human artifice - automatons, golems, homunculi and their brethren. It seems there was a will to replicate the forces that brought us about long before we had the means to take more than a couple of steps. However, the Industrial Revolution led to a world where non-biological animate objects abound, including the behavioral objects we call robots. The tools of robot-making are my tools. Therefore, in this thesis, I also discuss the history and implications of the “robot” concept and try to refine the category, one that has always frustrated definition, in a way that is germane to my work but also, I believe, accurate in encapsulating how people really conceive of robots. My work during the program has been frequently engaged with facets of the animal, robot, and robot/animal dialogues, at some times intentionally, at others not. If a progression can be drawn onto the scattered points of my projects, it would be away from a mindset mostly engrossed in the fictions with which we surround our relationship with animals towards an effort to use contemporary techniques for animating matter purposely to simultaneously engage with animals directly, explore notions of the concept of the robot, investigate the interplay of natural materials and artificial ones, reveal the un- animal-ness in most human perceptions of animals and, finally, uncover the animal-ness of our relationship with our own objects.

Seventeenth Century lens grinder and Dutch philosopher, Benedict de Spinoza, illuminates a rigorous and dynamic theory of knowledge and action in his major system the Ethics. What we learn by adequately learning Spinoza’s epistemology is that within it is a proto-physics of ideational force between the three kinds of knowledge expressed by the attribute of thought and, simultaneously, expressed as ratios of motion and rest, speed and slowness, intensity and transformation by the attribute of extension. Such dynamic processes or ways lead to one’s capacity for increased rational thought and action, increased uses of creativity, and the enhanced ability to join with others in powerfully effective, affirmative ways. This is Spinoza’s proto-physics of force. The outcome of the enhanced ideational force and extensive action includes an increase in one’s overall singular conatus, the capacity for continuous understanding, and perseverance, joy and energy, not only for oneself but also for the benefit of all of Nature. In the end, Spinoza rigorously demonstrates that all of Nature is one organic substance with infinite varieties of expressive power. We are singular, conscious expressions of that power in our own determinate ways. Our mind does not have ideas, it is ideas, and our ratios of motion and rest expressed in extension are multiple yet maintain a homeostatic balance for bodily integrity and comportment. Combined, the two attributes create affects that influence the increases and decreases in our power of continued thought and action. Affects cannot be explained by any theory of representation. Spinoza’s dynamic epistemology requires such an understanding. In the end, Spinoza’s ethology involves an enhancement in our ability for creativity and experimentation as well. Such expressions and affects are not possible without other minds and bodies, but they are also not possible without a singular power and enhanced capacity for increasing ideational power and rational conscious reflection. As Paulo Freire writes, “Liberating education consists in acts of cognition, not transferrals of information.” For Spinoza, acts of enhanced cognition (and thus action) are increases in our overall conatus through continued understanding of natural phenomena. Our love of Nature (or God) is transformed into actions of real living experiences, joy and levity, peace of mind, and an acute interest in all expressions of the laws of Nature. Still, we cannot possibly approach or exhaust the totality of causal processes and effects in Nature. In our awareness of this fact, we are transformed to create and understand our individual human affects and relations with other bodies in our environments towards freedom of thought, happiness, and safety while living amidst a diversity of interests and desires.

Dissertação de mestrado em Etologia
O Cágado Mauremys leprosa, está incluído na família Emydidae, que engloba a maior parte das espécies actuais de tartarugas de água doce. Na Europa, esta espécie existe na Península Ibérica e no Sul de França onde aparentemente não está ameaçada. Este trabalho insere-se num programa mais amplo do estudo da biologia do Cágado visando contribuir para o seu programa de conservação em Portugal. Neste quadro, desenvolveu-se o estudo do comportamento desta espécie cujos objectivos foram: a elaboração do etograma; o estudo dos seus ritmos de actividade, a análise de alguns comportamentos e a distribuição espacial. O estudo decorreu de Janeiro a Julho de 1995 e foi efectuado na Herdade do Ludo, na população desta espécie que habita a Ribeira de S. Lourenço. Apresenta-se um esboço do etograma da espécie, onde se apresentam a des¬crição de comportamentos comparando com as informações existentes para outras espécies de tartarugas, especialmente as de água doce e que serviram de base ao estudo dos ritmos de actividade. O estudo da actividade, efectuado através da contabilização do número de indivíduos visivelmente activos, foi relacionado com as temperaturas do ar e da água. Confirmou-se que a actividade desta espécie varia considerável mente com a época do ano, em que o número de indivíduos activos aumenta consideravelmente em Março sendo máximo em Abril e Maio e voltando a diminuir em Junho e Julho, havendo uma correlação positiva com a temperatura do ar durante os meses de Fevereiro a Abril (F- 0,82, M- 0,57 e A- 0,63 com p<0,001). Contabilizando-se o número de indivíduos da espécie activos, em cada troço da margem da área de estudo, verificou-se que os indivíduos exibem um elevado nível de tolerância com interacções agonísticas muito raras.

Dissertação de mestrado em Etologia
No presente trabalho, pretendeu-se determinar a importância da aromatização e dos 11-cetoandrogénios nos comportamentos agonísticos e sexuais de uma espécie de Poecílideos, a molly negra. Para o efeito utilizou-se um androgénio não-aromatizável (11-cetotestosterona) e um inibidor da aromatase (hidroxiandrostenediona). Na realização deste trabalho foram usados apenas indivíduos adultos: 120 machos e 60 fêmeas. Diariamente eram testadas três situações (controlo, 0.5 mg/l e 1.0 mg/l) para uma das substâncias, ou seja para cada série existiam três ensaios, tendo-se efectuado 8 séries para a substância 11-cetotestosterona e 12 séries para a substância hidroxiandrostenediona. Todas as observações foram gravadas em vídeo e posteriormente descodificadas. Durante a descodificação foram contabilizadas as frequências dos comportamentos ocorridos nas interacções entre macho-macho e entre macho-fêmea. Temporizou-se igualmente a duração da latência e de alguns comportamentos. Neste trabalho, verificou-se que os machos tratados tanto com a 11-cetotestosterona como com a hidroxiandrostenediona apresentam uma maior predisposição para iniciarem as interacções macho-macho. Por outro lado, os machos tratados com a 11-cetotestosterona manifestam com maior frequência os comportamentos considerados como característicos de interacções agonísticas em outros Poecílideos. Mas a inibição da enzima aromatase não provocou quaisquer diferenças significativas nas frequências médias dos comportamentos agonísticos dos machos tratados em relação aos controlo. Estes dados indicam portanto, que para esta espécie, a 11-cetotestosterona é um dos esteróides que influencia os comportamentos agonísticos. Em relação às interacções macho-femea não se verificaram diferenças estatisticamente significativas relevantes, nas frequências dos comportamentos ocorridos durante estas interacções. Desta forma, neste trabalho, nada se pode concluir acerca da importância da 11-cetotestosterona e da aromatase para os comportamentos considerados caracteristicamente sexuais.

Disetação de mestrado em Etologia
A primeira parte do presente trabalho teve como objectivo o estudo da influência de estímulos sociais sobre aspectos comportamentais de machos de O. mossambicus. Tentou-se clarificar que tipo de canais sensoriais estão envolvidos na percepção desses estímulos. Para tal, foram sujeitos 13 machos a três situações experimentais com diferentes graus de acesso (total, visual e químico) a uma fêmea e a um macho da mesma espécie. Estímulos visuais parecem ser importantes no reconhecimento sexual e na estimulação da actividade locomotora, escavação de ninho, proximidade e coloração apresentados pelo macho. No entanto as respostas observadas tiveram sempre maior amplitude quando o acesso era total. Embora não tenha sido detectada a influência de estímulos químicos libertos pelas fêmeas, não se eliminou essa hipótese. Na situação de acesso total, estudou-se a interacção entre os dois indivíduos. Apenas se observaram comportamentos sexuais e escavação de ninho na presença de uma fêmea; a frequência de comportamentos agonísticos foi superior na presença de um macho intruso. A segunda parte deste trabalho teve como objectivo o estudo da influência de estímulos sociais nos níveis urinários de esteróides sexuais dos machos de O. mossambicus. Na presença de uma fêmea, apenas se verificou um aumento dos níveis de androgénios, Testosterona (T) e 11-Cetotestosterona (11-KT), tendo sido esse aumento mais rápido no último caso. Houve um aumento das correlações entre os níveis desta hormona e a frequência de comportamentos sexuais e a coloração do macho (positivas) e a frequência de comportamentos agonísticos (negativa); na presença de um macho não houve aumento dos níveis hormonais, embora se tenha verificado um aumento da correlação (positiva) entre os níveis de 11-KT e a frequência de comportamentos agonísticos. Propõe-se que a 11-KT poderá activar respostas comportamentais diferentes na presença de estímulos sociais diferentes. Os níveis de progestinas (17,20 αP e 17,20 β-P) não variaram, ao contrário do que seria de esperar com base em trabalhos anteriores, o que poderá dever-se ao estado de maturação dos indivíduos. As fracções mais representativas dos níveis de progestinas eram as glucuronizadas; estes compostos poderão funcionar como sinalizadores das arenas reprodutivas para as fêmeas conspecíficas.

Dissertação de Mestrado em Etologia
O objectivo deste trabalho foi averiguar, no âmbito da produção industrial de avestruz (Struthio camelus), a influência do sistema de maneio no sucesso da cria dos pintos, através de um estudo comparativo do comportamento e desenvolvimento físico de indivíduos criados sob práticas diferentes. Para tal, observaram-se, durante cinco dias, dois grupos de nove pintos, entre o 10° e o 14° dia após a eclosão; criados na presença de um casal de reprodutores ("pais adoptivos"); criados, em grupo, num parque de cria. São descritos 34 padrões comportamentais, tendo sido registada a frequência dos mesmos em diferentes períodos do dia. Comparou-se, entre os dois sistemas, a frequência dos seguintes comportamentos: trilling call; pech, pace; pace-search; forage; feed e search. Foi calculada a taxa de mortalidade em ambos os tratamentos, tendo-se procedido, de 10 em 10 dias, por um período de 60 dias, à pesagem e à medição do comprimento do tibiotarso, cabeça e circunferência abdominal, dos indivíduos. Os resultados obtidos sugerem que o sistema de cria influencia o comportamento, tendo-se verificado diferenças significativas. Os pintos criados em parque de cria executaram mais frequentemente os comportamentos peck, pace, pace-search e trilling call Os indivíduos criados com "pais adoptivos" exibiram mais vezes search> tendo-se, ainda, verificado, em algumas das sessões de observação, uma frequência significativamente superior do comportamento forage. Os dados sugerem que os pintos criados na ausência de adultos estão sujeitos a maiores problemas de stress, apresentando um comportamento alimentar menos adequado, provavelmente devido à inexistência de um "modelo". Esta hipótese é reforçada pelo facto de taxa de mortalidade ter sido maior no parque de cria, tendo o número de mortes por impactação sido significativamente superior neste sistema.

Dissetação de mestrado em Etologia
O presente trabalho pretendeu dar um contributo para o conhecimento de alguns aspectos biológicos, e nomeadamente, comportamentais em Chondrostoma hisitanicum, um pequeno ciprinídeo endémico nas nossas águas continentais, o qual possui o estatuto de raro e cujas populações em algumas das áreas da sua distribuição se encontram em declínio. Entre outros, foram caracterizados os padrões de distribuição espacial e actividade em indivíduos pertencentes a diferentes classes de tamanho, descritos os comportamentos básicos envolvidos na reprodução desta espécie, bem como o seu desenvolvimento nos primeiros estádios da ontogenia. Os exemplares utilizados neste estudo foram capturados na Ribeira da Samarra, local onde esta espécie ainda é relativamente abundante, e colocados em aquários sujeitos a diferentes condições de temperatura e fotoperíodo. Verificaram-se no decurso deste estudo, diferenças na ocupação do espaço entre os juvenis e os indivíduos adultos desta espécie. No aquário mantido no exterior e sujeito a condições de temperatura e fotoperíodo naturais, os adultos apresentam uma clara preferência pela proximidade do substrato, enquanto os juvenis tendem a ser encontrados com maior frequência do que seria de esperar numa distribuição ao acaso, junto à superfície. A ocupação da superfície e a utilização da vegetação aí existente parecem ser uma resposta à predação, apesar de não terem sido observados ataques dirigidos aos juvenis, por parte dos adultos. O facto de à temperatura de 10° C, os indivíduos adultos apresentarem uma menor mobilidade, um maior confinamento junto ao fundo e uma associação clara com a vegetação rasteira aí existente, a qual os torna pouco visíveis, deve ser a razão para uma maior ocorrência dos juvenis a meia água, o que vem apoiar a hipótese de que a predação será o principal factor a determinar as diferenças de ocupação do espaço, por parte dos indivíduos de diferentes dimensões. Apesar da inexistência de estudos que caracterizem a ocupação do habitat natural por parte desta espécie, pensa-se que a um leque mais variado de locais disponíveis na natureza, deverá corresponder uma ocupação diferente, sendo a maior ocorrência dos juvenis à superfície, um constrangimento das condições de cativeiro. Estas observações permitiram ainda verificar a formação de agregações por parte dos indivíduos de Ch. lusitanicum, as quais estão associadas a uma diminuição na temperatura. Como a esta diminuição corresponde também um decréscimo na actividade dos indivíduos, os quais tendem a manter-se em locais com vegetação no substrato (que constitui um recurso limitado), leva a crer que neste caso particular, as agregações que se estabeleceram nestas condições de cativeiro, não têm qualquer função óbvia. Foram analisados os comportamentos básicos que ocorrem durante a reprodução desta espécie em cativeiro. A reprodução destes animais caracteriza-se por uma enorme actividade e interacções entre os indivíduos, sendo as sequências de acasalamento extremamente rápidas, não excedendo os 60 seg. Não se observaram diferenças entre os sexos na ocupação do espaço (pelo menos nestas condições), nem o estabelecimento de territórios por parte dos machos. Durante o acasalamento, os machos aproximam-se das fêmeas, efectuando com o focinho toques sucessivos na região urogenital e flancos das fêmeas. Este comportamento é frequentemente realizado por vários machos em simultâneo, não se tendo verificado comportamentos agonísticos óbvios entre eles. A libertação dos gâmetas ocorre com a realização de um estremecimento simultâneo por parte dos indivíduos, tendo-se verificado a tentativa de fertilização dos ovos por parte de machos que não tinham estado envolvidos na corte. Um facto a salientar nesta espécie, é a exibição das fêmeas durante a época de reprodução, a qual se caracteriza por uma movimentação constante da região posterior da fêmea e parece ter uma função de atracção para os machos. Com base na Teoria Saltatória da Ontogenia, foram descritos os diferentes passos do desenvolvimento embrionário e larvar de Ch. lusitanicum. Os ovos desta espécie são esféricos com um diâmetro médio de 1,9 mm. Neste estudo, a eclosão da maioria dos embriões deu-se 6 dias após a activação e parece ter sido influenciada por um aumento súbito na temperatura. Ao eclodirem os embriões apresentavam um vitelo de grandes dimensões, o corpo quase desprovido de pigmentação e rodeado por uma prega média. Ainda durante o período embrionário, ocorreu o enchimento da bexiga gasosa, o qual se deu 10 dias após a activação. A fase larvar teve início 11 dias após a activação com o início da alimentação exógena e o segundo passo ocorre 2 dias depois com o desaparecimento completo do vitelo. A formação dos primeiros raios da dorsal marcam o início do 3o passo desta fase, a qual ocorreu 23 dias após activação. O passo seguinte inicia-se 35 dias depois da fertilização, quando se dá o enchimento da câmara anterior da bexiga gasosa. O último passo que foi possível distinguir no desenvolvimento desta espécie foi o aparecimento das primeiras escamas na região ventral das larvas e a diferenciação das barbatanas dorsal e anal, as quais atingem o número final de raios, que ocorreu 55 dias após a activação dos ovos. São discutidos entre outros, os problemas no estabelecimento dos passos do desenvolvimento, a comparação entre diferentes espécies e os constrangimentos destas fases iniciais da ontogenia dos indivíduos. De uma forma geral, é defendida a importância destes estudos para um conhecimento mais profundo da biologia destas espécies e para a tomada de medidas de conservação, as quais começam a ser prementes dado o estado actual em que muitas das espécies nativas do nosso país se encontram.

Dissertação de mestrado em Etologia
As vocalizações emitidas por aves de rapina parecem ser bastante estereotipadas dentro de uma população, em comparação com os repertórios mais variados apresentados pelos passeriformes. Contudo, podem também ser aspectos importantes na avaliação dos indivíduos, revelando a qualidade individual, a qualidade do território e a capacidade de obter e defender recursos, tanto em interacções intra-sexuais como em inter-sexuais. Isto será ainda mais importante em rapinas nocturnas ou parcialmente diurnas, para as quais os sinais visuais deverão ter uma eficiência limitada. Por outro lado, os indivíduos de muitas espécies territoriais discriminam entre vizinhos familiares e intrusos desconhecidos com base em diferenças individuais nos sinais acústicos. O sistema fortemente territorial e monogâmico da maioria das aves de rapina, no qual as ligações entre os membros do casal podem durar anos, sugere a importância da estabilidade nas vocalizações de cada indivíduo ao longo de diferentes épocas e de um sistema de reconhecimento acústico de conspecíficos. Além disso, as rapinas nocturnas deverão ter vantagens numa grande familiaridade com os vizinhos, facilitando a sua actividade nocturna quando as pistas visuais são mínimas. Como primeiro passo na investigação deste reconhecimento entre conspecíficos está a determinação do grau com que os indivíduos podem ser correctamente identificados (pelos investigadores) através dos seus sinais. A existência de individualidade no canto permite ainda a sua utilização como método de censo não intrusivo, além de permitir ultrapassar falhas inerentes ao estudo de espécies nocturnas. Neste trabalho pretendeu-se estudar o canto territorial dos machos de mocho-galego (Athene noctua) numa população existente numa área de estepe cerealífera tradicional, na região de S. Marcos da Ataboeira, concelho de Castro Verde, Baixo Alentejo, Portugal. Além de uma caracterização deste tipo de vocalização, investigou-se ainda a existência de individualidade no canto territorial que permitisse discriminar correctamente entre diferentes indivíduos. Adicionalmente, estudou-se a resposta dada à presença de intrusos conspecíficos por parte dos machos, caracterizando-se as diferentes estratégias individuais de defesa do território e a possível relação de características individuais e do território com a intensidade dessa defesa. Para o efeito, foram efectuadas gravações acústicas espontâneas e foram emitidos playbacks de canto territorial de machos estranhos, fora dos limites do território, gravando-se também a resposta dada pelos seus ocupantes. Seguidamente, foram produzidos e analisados as representações gráficas das gravações efectuadas. O canto territorial desta espécie parece estar bem adaptado a uma transmissão eficiente a longas distâncias em habitats relativamente abertos, como revelam as características acústicas das unidades que o constituem. Apesar de se terem detectado algumas variações individuais, a variabilidade entre indivíduos para a maioria dos parâmetros acústicos analisados mostrou ser superior à variabilidade dentro de um mesmo indivíduo. Além disso, este tipo de vocalização apresentou estabilidade temporal, podendo mesmo existir uma estabilidade a longo prazo. Os resultados relativos à análise discriminante constituem uma forte evidência de que os mochos-galegos possuem cantos territoriais distintos individualmente, principalmente com base na duração total e na frequência final das unidades que o constituem. Os modelos gerados produziram uma classificação significativamente melhor do que seria esperado devido ao acaso, com valores de classificação correcta que variaram entre 37.5 e 100% para cada macho. Considerando o conjunto de todos os indivíduos, os valores de classificação correcta foram da ordem dos 70%. O estudo das respostas dadas aos intrusos revelou que, para a maioria dos machos amostrados, a defesa do território foi bastante intensa, como revela a resposta ainda durante a emissão do playback e a existência de overlapping ao estímulo. O comprimento e a altura do bico, o comprimento do tarso e o número de crias voadoras produzidas são características individuais dos machos que se relacionaram com a intensidade da resposta dada aos playbacks, apresentando-se correlacionadas com a taxa de resposta, a duração total da resposta e do overlapping. De uma forma geral, verificou-se uma ausência de relação entre as variáveis do território e a intensidade de defesa territorial pelos machos. Contudo, as características do ninho constituídas pelo comprimento e altura da entrada, assim como o número de entradas podem ser características do território que correspondem a recursos importantes, aparecendo relacionados com a latência da resposta. O papel da quantidade de branco assim como do comprimento da estrutura de nidificação não são muito claros sendo a sua importância discutível.

Dissertação de Mestrado em Etologia
Para quem estuda animais em liberdade toma-se extremamente difícil descrever e interpretar comportamentos sem tomar em consideração os constrangimentos ecológicos a que estão sujeitos os indivíduos. A utilização de um Sistema de Informação Geográfica (SIG) permite incorporar com sucesso numa única superfície de análise informação de origem diversa. Trata-se de uma área de investigação relativamente recente e, como tal, pouco explorada, mas com uma expansão já considerável por facilitar a manipulação e interpretação de dados complexos que habitualmente carecem de tratamentos extremamente elaborados. Contudo, a aplicação de métodos avançados para a análise dos movimentos de animas está limitada quase exclusivamente ao meio terrestre. O objectivo último da maioria dos estudos de movimento é comparar os padrões observados com uma hipótese nula para elucidar processos como padrões de distribuição da população, relações entre indivíduos ou selecção do habitat. Tanto o ArcView ® como o Animal Movement Program possuem, ou têm previstas num futuro próximo, funções de análise estatística, mais simples no primeiro caso e diversificadas e totalmente adaptadas a este tipo de estudos no segundo caso, criando um poderoso ambiente para examinar relações entre a espécie (ou o indivíduo) e o meio (ou outros indivíduos). Assim, pretende-se, pela primeira vez, fazer uma análise individual dos comportamentos associados aos movimentos e utilização do espaço em Golfinhos-roazes no estuário do Sado e área costeira adjacente. Efectuou-se um seguimento focal dos Golfinhos-roazes seleccionados a priori para este estudo, com registo contínuo das suas posições (i.e. sempre que foi possível a sua identificação), por forma a maximizar o número de dados recolhido em cada sessão de amostragem. A identificação dos indivíduos efectuou-se no campo, registando-se as coordenadas geográficas, o dia, a hora e as variáveis comportamentais pré-definidas. Alguns golfinhos foram reconhecidos posteriormente por foto-identificação. As informações foram anotadas manualmente em tabelas concebidas para o efeito. Calculou-se pela primeira vez o número mínimo de localizações necessário para estimar áreas vitais fiáveis para a população de Golfinhos-roazes do estuário do Sado, que se considerou como sendo 105. A área vital média estimada para esta população pelo método do Mínimo Polígono Convexo (95%) é de 32,0 km2 (s.d. 11,7 km2), e pelo método de Kemel (95%) de 41,9 km2 (s.d. 11,4 km2), o que se aproxima dos valores descritos para outras populações (entre 15 e 77 km2 para ambientes do tipo baía). As maiores áreas vitais são as de FAC (37,1 km2 MPC, 47,8 km2 K95%) e LUA (44,1 km2 MPC, 50,8 km2 K95%) -ambos adultos, uma fêmea e um macho, respectivamente-, o que parece indicar a inexistência de diferenças relacionadas com o sexo. A localização dos centros de actividade (Kemet 50%) da maioria dos animais observados corresponde à extremidade da Península de Tróia e à zona da Caldeira de Tróia, o que se justificará pela importância em termos de riqueza e disponibilidade de alimento. Pode considerar-se que os Golfinhos-roazes do estuário do Sado apresentam movimentos relativamente amplos, já que muitas vezes estes animais percorrem, apenas no período diurno, uma distância mínima próxima da máxima largura das suas áreas vitais, excedendo os 20 km diários. A velocidade máxima instantânea foi calculada em 32,4 km/h mas as velocidades médias para cada indivíduo raramente excedem 3,6 km/h, valor que se aproxima dos habitualmente descritos para esta espécie. No futuro, em havendo possibilidade de efectuar amostragens nocturnas, de determinar o sexo e a idade dos elementos da população e de obter e incorporar no SIG informação digital georreferenciada sobre variáveis ecológicas e oceanográficas do estuário do Sado, esperam-se interpretações mais consistentes e aprofundadas dos resultados entretanto obtidos.

Tese de Doutoramento em Psicologia Aplicada (Etologia) apresentada ao Instituto Superior Psicologia Aplicada
O grupo de pares é um dos principais contextos de desenvolvimento da criança durante a idade pré-escolar. Contudo, a maioria dos estudos sobre o desenvolvimento social da criança focam-se na procura de características individuais negligenciando os constrangimentos relacionais inerentes à ecologia do grupo de pares. A abordagem da etologia social, por contraponto, enfatiza a existência de diferentes nichos sociais que influenciam/constrangem o comportamento dos indivíduos, sugerindo que as diferenças individuais devem ser compreendidas à luz das relações diádicas e dos papéis sociais ocupados no interior do grupo de pares. Os trabalhos empíricos aqui apresentados são uma tentativa para estabelecer uma ligação entre estas duas tradições de estudo das relações afiliativas em crianças de idade préescolar. Partindo de uma amostra de 247 crianças Portuguesas, provenientes de 19 salas de aula diferentes, algumas das quais observadas em dois ou três anos consecutivos, foram analisados num primeiro estudo os padrões colectivos de proximidade social. Através da análise hierárquica de clusters da semelhança dos perfis de associação diádicos, em cada uma das salas, foram identificados três tipos de subgrupos afiliativos: (a) subgrupos em que as crianças para além de apresentarem perfis de associação semelhantes partilham, ainda, uma elevada proximidade mútua; (b) subgrupos de crianças com perfis de associação semelhantes, mas que tendem a não passar muito tempo juntas (baixa proximidade mútua); e (c) crianças não agrupadas. Diferenças significativas no viés intra-grupo para medidas comportamentais e sociométricas indicam que os subgrupos identificados não são meros artefactos estatísticos e que os diferentes tipos de subgrupos (elevada proximidade mútua vs. baixa proximidade mútua) são funcionalmente distintos. No segundo estudo, e recorrendo a desenvolvimentos recentes no campo da análise de redes sociais, analisaram-se os processos estruturais que estarão, potencialmente, na origem e desenvolvimento das estruturas afiliativas dos grupos de pares em crianças de idade préescolar. Os resultados deste estudo mostram que as relações afiliativas, nas 19 salas de aula, são altamente recíprocas, estabelecidas preferencialmente entre crianças do mesmo sexo e com a tendência para a criação de tríades transitivas. Estes resultados ajudam a compreender a existência dos subgrupos afiliativos identificados no primeiro estudo. No último estudo investigou-se a relação entre os níveis individuais de competência social e o tipo de subgrupo a que as crianças pertencem. A competência social foi avaliada tendo por base sete indicadores diferentes agrupados em três famílias distintas – motivação social e envolvimento, perfis de atributos comportamentais e psicológicos e aceitação de pares. As crianças pertencentes aos subgrupos mais coesos (elevada proximidade mútua) foram as que apresentaram níveis mais altos de competência social, enquanto as crianças não agrupadas eram geralmente menos competentes que os seus pares. Estes resultados sugerem que a pertença a um subgrupo mais coeso, entre outros factores, pode contribuir para um desenvolvimento social mais ajustado. Em suma, os trabalhos empíricos apresentados adoptam uma abordagem multi-método na tentativa de melhor compreender as estruturas afiliativas dos grupos de pares de crianças em idade pré-escolar, e o modo como estas estruturas se relacionam com o desenvolvimento da competência social. ---------- ABSTRACT ---------- The peer group is one of the main contexts for the development of preschool children. Nevertheless, most studies on child social development focus on individual characteristics neglecting the relational constraints inherent to peer group ecology. On the other hand, the social ethology approach emphasizes the existence of different social niches that influence/constrain individual behavior, stating that individual differences should be understood in the light of dyadic relationships and the social roles occupied within the peer group. The empirical works here presented are an attempt to establish a bridge between both traditions in the study of preschool children affiliative relationships. With a sample of 247 Portuguese children from 19 different classrooms, some of which were observed in two or three consecutive years, the collective patterns of social proximity were analyzed in the first study. Through the hierarchical cluster analysis of dyadic association similarity profiles, in each classroom, three types of affiliative subgroups were identified: (a) subgroups in which children besides having similar association profiles also share high mutual proximity; (b) children’ subgroups with similar association profiles but that do not tend to spend a lot of time together (low mutual proximity); and (c) ungrouped children. Significant differences found for in-group bias of behavioral and sociometric measures indicate that the identified subgroups are not mere statistical artifacts and that the different types of subgroups (high mutual proximity vs. low mutual proximity) are functional distinct. In the second study, recent developments in the field of social network analysis were used to investigate potential structural processes in the origin and development of affiliative structures in preschool peer groups. The results of this study show that the affiliative relations in the 19 classrooms were highly reciprocal, sex segregated and with a tendency to create transitive triads. These results help to explain the existence of the affiliative subgroups identified in the first study. In the last study the relation between individual levels of social competence and the type of affiliative subgroup to which children belong was assessed. Social competence was evaluated using seven different indicators, grouped into three distinct families – social motivation and engagement, profiles of behavioral and psychological attributes and peer acceptance. Children belonging to more cohesive subgroups (high mutual proximity) were the ones who presented higher levels of social competence, while ungrouped children were generally least competent than their peers. These results suggest that belonging to a more cohesive subgroup, among other factors, can contribute to a better social development. In sum, the empirical works here presented adopt a multi-method approach in an attempt to better understand the affiliative structures of preschool peer groups, and the way these structures relate to social competence development.

Master of Science
Department of Animal Sciences and Industry
Lindsey E. Hulbert
Stressors and stress responses are part of everyday life, for both humans and animals. Organisms evolved well-developed mechanisms to cope with most stressors, and to recover from stress responses. Nevertheless, severe acute stressors and chronic stressors lead to health problems. Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is defined as malfunctioning and pathology of the brain caused by external mechanical forces. This physical and psychological stressor may lead to long-term damage on both physiology and psychology mechanisms. Traumatic brain injury becomes a public health issue for millions of soldiers, veterans and general public, who suffer from its aftermath and reduced quality of life. To understand TBI, human patients and rodents models were extensively studied. In recent years, miniswine were utilized to research the histopathology of TBI. They serve as a better human brain model because their nervous system is more anatomically relevant than rodents, their brains have similar white:grey matter ratios as humans, and they have similar cognitive abilities as humans. Despite the progresses in pathology and histology work among miniswine models of TBI, there were not validated behavior tests for this new animal model. This thesis introduced two behavior-tests for Yucatan miniboar models. The first study was conducted to validate a modified human approach test (HAT) specifically designed for Yucatan miniboars for mild TBI experiments. This test was originally validated and widely used for commercial pigs. The current test was designed around the housing and animal care, with the experimental performing the test outside of pens where pigs were individually housed. Animals were treated with a single blast wave (BLAST) or anesthesia only (control, SHAM), and were tested 3 days before the treatment (baseline) and 3 consecutive days after the treatment. During the test, the spatial positions (Climb, Close, Mid and Far) and structural positions (Stand, Lie) were measured. Climb and Close were collectively named approach behaviors, and Mid and Far Move away behaviors. Results showed that this test had high reliability, and was sensitive to acute effects of TBI: BLAST-treated pigs showed decreased approach behaviors and increased move away behaviors following the treatment, compared to the baseline. The second experiment was conducted to develop automated data collection methods to monitor circadian active and inactive behaviors of miniboars. Using the same experimental design as described previously, Fitbit Zip, a commercially available accelerometer with an embedded algorithm (Fitbit, San Francisco, CA), was tested. When attached to ear tags, Fitbit Zip was validated to be recording head movements without locomotion, which were oral-nasal-facial (ONF) behaviors. Results showed that Fitbit Zips best-detected behavior changes following TBI at 2-hour observation intervals. BLAST animals showed decreased ONF behaviors during the day especially around the feeding time, which were also when the pigs were most active. Both behavior-tests were shown to be reliable and useful in measuring behavior changes following TBI in Yucatan miniboar models. Measures of behavior were shown to be a promising and valuable addition to the biomedical research utilizing large animal models. These advances in knowledge and technology could also benefit farm animal production.

Aquatic polyculture has been recognised as a potential way of increasing the costeffectiveness of farming marron (Cherax tenuimanus), as it can lower average costs of production, increase system yields, and reduce economic risks associated with monoculture operations. Polyculture also increases ecological stability and assists recycling processes, which can result in synergistic benefits to participating species. In aquaculture, this synergism can result in increased profitability through advanced growth rates and/or reduced feed input. However, many of the inherent advantages of aquatic polyculture rely on cohabitants occupying distinct ecological niches within the system. In Western Australia, opportunities to multi-crop aquatic species are limited by species choice due to low natural diversity and strict translocation policies. This creates a situation where available aquaculture species exhibit overlaps in occupied niches. Effects of this overlap can include direct predation, increased intraspecific conflict, and competition for resources such as shelter and food. Prior to this study, silver perch (Bidyanus bidyanus) were identified as a prime candidate for duoculture with marron, based on favourable schooling and feeding characteristics, and preliminary trials demonstrated commercial benefits, including synergistic growth advantages to marron. However, investigations also showed that silver perch will predate on both small and moulting crayfish under certain conditions, and that growth of silver perch was inhibited when held in cages to prevent predation. The work reported in this thesis was undertaken to address the niche overlap existing between marron and silver perch, and therefore assist the marron industry in Western Australia in implementing appropriate management strategies for diversification.Research focussed on investigating the ecological issues underlying interspecific interactions in marron polysystems, with the eventual aim of presenting information that could assist system managers in determining optimal conditions required to reduce antagonistic relationships and maximise synergism, ultimately leading to higher yields. Seven trials were conducted in three culture systems (54L aquaria, 250L aquaria and 720m2 experimental ponds) examining the ability of marron to detect, recognise and respond to a range of information cues (chemical, visual, tactile) from two potential predators (silver perch and Murray cod), with and without competition from conspecific and heterospecific crayfish (Cherax albidus). The ability of marron to interpret and respond appropriately to these variables was tested under a range of system-specific conditions, including stocking density, stocking size, shelter/habitat complexity, food availability, light intensity and life stage. Cage culture conditions were also examined to determine if the addition of shelter would mediate growth inhibition previously recorded, and to determine the desired stocking regime to return market sized fish in one growth season (8 months). Results from laboratory research and field-based trials did not support the free-range culture of marron and silver perch, even where turbidity and habitat complexity is high. Although both male and female marron (various sizes) demonstrated an ability to detect and differentiate between chemical and visual cues from potential predators, avoidance responses were only displayed upon attack from predators, or following predation of conspecifics; and avoidance strategies employed by marron were relatively ineffective.Although marron showed some capacity to recognise an impending predatory threat, high initial mortalities and growth inhibition due to reduced foraging, would greatly reduce system yields. In addition, intraspecific competition between marron is likely to increase as avoidance responses would lead to high relative densities within shelters. The lack of avoidance behaviour displayed by marron when only visual and chemical cues from predators are present strongly supports cage culture of silver perch in marron ponds. As marron did not appear to alter their general behaviour (e.g. foraging) based on cues associated with silver perch held in cages they stand to benefit from cohabitation. Field-trials examining the pond culture of marron and caged silver perch demonstrated synergistic growth advantages to marron, compared to monoculture, and also identified several system variables that appear to improve polyculture production. The addition of bank shelters (within 1m of waters edge) was suggested to give marron a competitive advantage when moulting, expressed through growth and survival. Survival of marron was also increased in caged polyculture ponds, compared to monoculture, most likely due to increased health status (due to improved recycling) and/ or increased habitat complexity owing to the presence of fish cages. Growth inhibition previously reported when silver perch are held in cages was mediated to some degree by cage shelters, which appeared to increase feeding behaviour, reduce general anxiety and resulted in increased growth. The introduction of advanced silver perch fingerlings in order to produce market-sized fish in one growth season was also supported. However, it is recommended that cage culture dynamics require further elucidation if silver perch are to be commercially successful as a stand-alone crop using this growout strategy.Significantly, the synergistic growth advantages experienced by marron when grown with fish demonstrate value from polyculture even if fish are not depended on as a secondary income. In this case, other species may also provide similar advantages, and a native candidate such as freshwater cobbler (Tandanus bostocki) would also redress problems associated with translocation laws restricting the use of silver perch in some areas of Western Australia. As no density effects were recorded in any of the trials conducted for either species, further investigation into increased system loads is required. In addition, as nutrient loads, and thus phytoplankton density, usually increases proportionately with pond biomass it is recommended that an additional herbivorous species, for example white eye mullet (Mugil cephalus), be examined in conjunction with increased density trials. Field research reported in this thesis was carried out in earthen ponds utilising remediated water from a acidified mine lake. Over a three-year period water quality parameters were maintained within optimal ranges for marron and silver perch, and survival and growth of both species was comparable to industry levels. These results validate the effectiveness of mine-water treatment technology; and accordingly, results support commercial viability of crayfish polyculture utilising remediated acid mine water. The large water resources offered by the numerous artificial lakes created from open cut mining has the potential to sustain a large successful aquaculture industry for Collie (Western Australia), and in other areas with extension of water treatment technology.The incorporation of caged silver perch into marron ponds not only takes advantage of the inherent economic and risk-spreading benefits from a diversified management strategy, but also incorporates a number of within-system benefits due to synergism between species. The ecological approach to aquatic polyculture research reported in this thesis has elucidated key communication factors underlying interactions within crayfish polysystems, which is critical to a knowledge-based approach to system management.

Aquatic polyculture has been recognised as a potential way of increasing the costeffectiveness of farming marron (Cherax tenuimanus), as it can lower average costs of production, increase system yields, and reduce economic risks associated with monoculture operations. Polyculture also increases ecological stability and assists recycling processes, which can result in synergistic benefits to participating species. In aquaculture, this synergism can result in increased profitability through advanced growth rates and/or reduced feed input. However, many of the inherent advantages of aquatic polyculture rely on cohabitants occupying distinct ecological niches within the system. In Western Australia, opportunities to multi-crop aquatic species are limited by species choice due to low natural diversity and strict translocation policies. This creates a situation where available aquaculture species exhibit overlaps in occupied niches. Effects of this overlap can include direct predation, increased intraspecific conflict, and competition for resources such as shelter and food. Prior to this study, silver perch (Bidyanus bidyanus) were identified as a prime candidate for duoculture with marron, based on favourable schooling and feeding characteristics, and preliminary trials demonstrated commercial benefits, including synergistic growth advantages to marron. However, investigations also showed that silver perch will predate on both small and moulting crayfish under certain conditions, and that growth of silver perch was inhibited when held in cages to prevent predation. The work reported in this thesis was undertaken to address the niche overlap existing between marron and silver perch, and therefore assist the marron industry in Western Australia in implementing appropriate management strategies for diversification.
Research focussed on investigating the ecological issues underlying interspecific interactions in marron polysystems, with the eventual aim of presenting information that could assist system managers in determining optimal conditions required to reduce antagonistic relationships and maximise synergism, ultimately leading to higher yields. Seven trials were conducted in three culture systems (54L aquaria, 250L aquaria and 720m2 experimental ponds) examining the ability of marron to detect, recognise and respond to a range of information cues (chemical, visual, tactile) from two potential predators (silver perch and Murray cod), with and without competition from conspecific and heterospecific crayfish (Cherax albidus). The ability of marron to interpret and respond appropriately to these variables was tested under a range of system-specific conditions, including stocking density, stocking size, shelter/habitat complexity, food availability, light intensity and life stage. Cage culture conditions were also examined to determine if the addition of shelter would mediate growth inhibition previously recorded, and to determine the desired stocking regime to return market sized fish in one growth season (8 months). Results from laboratory research and field-based trials did not support the free-range culture of marron and silver perch, even where turbidity and habitat complexity is high. Although both male and female marron (various sizes) demonstrated an ability to detect and differentiate between chemical and visual cues from potential predators, avoidance responses were only displayed upon attack from predators, or following predation of conspecifics; and avoidance strategies employed by marron were relatively ineffective.
Although marron showed some capacity to recognise an impending predatory threat, high initial mortalities and growth inhibition due to reduced foraging, would greatly reduce system yields. In addition, intraspecific competition between marron is likely to increase as avoidance responses would lead to high relative densities within shelters. The lack of avoidance behaviour displayed by marron when only visual and chemical cues from predators are present strongly supports cage culture of silver perch in marron ponds. As marron did not appear to alter their general behaviour (e.g. foraging) based on cues associated with silver perch held in cages they stand to benefit from cohabitation. Field-trials examining the pond culture of marron and caged silver perch demonstrated synergistic growth advantages to marron, compared to monoculture, and also identified several system variables that appear to improve polyculture production. The addition of bank shelters (within 1m of waters edge) was suggested to give marron a competitive advantage when moulting, expressed through growth and survival. Survival of marron was also increased in caged polyculture ponds, compared to monoculture, most likely due to increased health status (due to improved recycling) and/ or increased habitat complexity owing to the presence of fish cages. Growth inhibition previously reported when silver perch are held in cages was mediated to some degree by cage shelters, which appeared to increase feeding behaviour, reduce general anxiety and resulted in increased growth. The introduction of advanced silver perch fingerlings in order to produce market-sized fish in one growth season was also supported. However, it is recommended that cage culture dynamics require further elucidation if silver perch are to be commercially successful as a stand-alone crop using this growout strategy.
Significantly, the synergistic growth advantages experienced by marron when grown with fish demonstrate value from polyculture even if fish are not depended on as a secondary income. In this case, other species may also provide similar advantages, and a native candidate such as freshwater cobbler (Tandanus bostocki) would also redress problems associated with translocation laws restricting the use of silver perch in some areas of Western Australia. As no density effects were recorded in any of the trials conducted for either species, further investigation into increased system loads is required. In addition, as nutrient loads, and thus phytoplankton density, usually increases proportionately with pond biomass it is recommended that an additional herbivorous species, for example white eye mullet (Mugil cephalus), be examined in conjunction with increased density trials. Field research reported in this thesis was carried out in earthen ponds utilising remediated water from a acidified mine lake. Over a three-year period water quality parameters were maintained within optimal ranges for marron and silver perch, and survival and growth of both species was comparable to industry levels. These results validate the effectiveness of mine-water treatment technology; and accordingly, results support commercial viability of crayfish polyculture utilising remediated acid mine water. The large water resources offered by the numerous artificial lakes created from open cut mining has the potential to sustain a large successful aquaculture industry for Collie (Western Australia), and in other areas with extension of water treatment technology.
The incorporation of caged silver perch into marron ponds not only takes advantage of the inherent economic and risk-spreading benefits from a diversified management strategy, but also incorporates a number of within-system benefits due to synergism between species. The ecological approach to aquatic polyculture research reported in this thesis has elucidated key communication factors underlying interactions within crayfish polysystems, which is critical to a knowledge-based approach to system management.

Ethology (the comparative study of behaviour) was officially sanctioned when the zoologists Konrad Lorenz, Nikolaas Tinbergen and Karl von Frisch were awarded the Nobel Prize in 1973. Historians of ethology then mostly embraced Lorenz's definition of the field and did not question the strategy he resorted to when he championed his ethology against other traditions in the study of animal behaviour. Among them, the French studies loomed large, and one main aim of this dissertation has been to make up for their neglect within the historiography of science. This thesis explores the kinds of intellectual, social, cultural and ideological resources French scholars drew upon in attempting to make sense of animal and human behaviour. It maps out the development of animal behaviour studies in relation to psychology and sociology, two disciplines that emerged in the late nineteenth century. First, I examine how zoologists and psychologists struggled for a monopoly over animal behaviour studies. I argue that Henri Pieron instrumentalised animal behaviour studies as a vehicle towards establishing psychology as a legitimate scientific discipline. Second, I explore the late nineteenth and early twentieth century French debate over sociobiology. I examine the argument between the Durkheimian school, who challenged the continuity between animal and human societies and the philosopher Alfred Espinas and many French naturalists, who took this continuity for granted. Finally, I explore how sociobiology re-emerged in the inter-war period, both against Durkheim and Espinas'sociology. Another major theme of this thesis is the different uses of animals (especially Insects and apes) within theoretical discussions in natural history and biology in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The thesis situates animal behaviour studies within the evolutionary debate and the debate over the transformation of biology, which articulated the tensions between laboratory and field approaches. It also delineates the wider socio-cultural contexts within which insects and apes were employed. The social insects (ants, bees, wasps), in particular, provided scientists and social commentators with analogues to governing principles of the French Third Republic. Studies of maternal instinct mirrored different representations of female identity, and women's roles within society, challenged by late nineteenth century French feminism. Also, comparative studies on ape and child intelligence reflected larger debates about education. Histories of animal behaviour have tended to concentrate on major discoveries and institutional achievements, or on the cultural relevance of such studies. My aim in this thesis has been to bring those two types of history together for the specific case of French animal behaviour studies - to begin to explore how socio-cultural assumptions and material facts informed the French work as well as to examine how studies of animal behaviour were expected to fit into a professional scientific career, even in the absence of a unified discipline of ethology

Several studies have investigated the ecological factors that affect behavior in Micrathena gracilis, a diurnal orb-weaving spider that forages on flying insects during the day. However, none yet have considered how the temporal distributions of prey and predator occurrences shape their daily behavioral rhythms, especially web construction, which involves a heavy energetic investment well in advance of potential nutritional benefit. Recently, several orb-weaving spider species have been shown to exhibit a variety of abnormal rhythms, suggesting that circadian clock-controlled rhythms may play an unexpected role in behavioral evolution. Despite the appearance of significant insect abundance in the evenings, M. gracilis individuals stop foraging, take down their webs, and retreat before they can capitalize on this opportunity. Is the nutritional benefit of this forfeited prey significant compared to what they collect during the day, and if so, what potential cost might justify opting out of this potential gain? To investigate, sticky traps for prey collection and a camera array for recording predator activity were used at a local field site to survey what risks and rewards these spiders face throughout the 24-hour day. Spider activity and web captures in the field were also used to confirm behavioral patterns and capture success throughout the day. It was found that spiders begin foraging when prey becomes available but cease while prey is still abundant. These observations appear to support a theoretical model of behavioral decisions under predation risk. However, recorded predation events were rare, and predation was not confirmed outside of the foraging timeframe. These results support the notion that the circadian rhythm of Micrathena gracilis is shaped by factors other than prey availability, but the theoretical pressure from predation risk requires further investigation.

This thesis is concerned with the challenges of devising a full-masked theatre performance that is largely accessible to audiences of every age, social background and culture. The contribution to original knowledge is in the study's examination of the relationship between the devising processes of a full-masked performance, neurobiology, human ethology and the accessibility of audience reception (Bennett, 1994). The thesis addresses the concept of accessibility by taking a phenomenological approach to devising and audience reception, with particular focus on the role of neurobiological systems and structures, in particular the mirror neuron system, the pleasure-reward system, and pattern recognition systems, in the communication and reception of performance meaning (McConachie, 2008). The research is framed by the concept of a universal theatrical language proposed by practitioners Peter Brook and Tadeshi Suzuki, which has the potential to connect people at the deepest levels of their humanity (Pavis, 1996: 6). Practical approaches adopted in the research are informed and supported by anthropological and human ethological claims of universality (Ekman, 1975; Brown, 1991; Eibl-Eibesfeldt; 2007 [1989]; Schmitt et al. 1997). This thesis theorizes that human beings possess innate neurobiological systems that interact with culturally specific concepts, conditions and knowledge in such a way that when deployed appropriately, these innate neurobiological systems can be a platform for human cognition and for the designing of performances accessible to an audience of different ages, social backgrounds and cultures. It also proposes that innate neurobiological systems create a universal framework that makes it possible for the said broad-based audience to read and receive a performance using similar codes of cognition and aesthetic reference irrespective of age, social and cultural backgrounds. The research process led to the creation of an original full-masked theatrical performance and eighteen performances of this piece were given to different audiences in a range of venues and locations in Northamptonshire. Qualitative and quantitative data analysis of how the various audiences received the performance suggest that the devising methods employed did contribute to making the performance accessible to an audience with a broader constituency than theaters normally envision (Pitts-Walker, 1994: 9-10). This research enables practitioners for whom a wide audience and accessibility are an explicit focus to adopt devising approaches that will help to achieve the desired wide-ranging reception and accessibility in mixed audiences irrespective of race, age, gender and culture.

The ‘Goal-Corrected Partnership’ in Attachment Theory: A Critical Assessment of the Research Programme ABSTRACT Despite counting as one of the largest research programmes in human development, the contours of Attachment Theory remain quite difficult to define. A pressing requirement to clarify what the ‘theory’ actually contends remains. This thesis is an interdisciplinary project that brings the dual lens of history and philosophy to shed new light on the theory. John Bowlby’s (1907-1990) hopes for Attachment Theory were both radical and innovative. First, he set out to ‘radically’ overhaul the entire of edifice of psychoanalysis—what he would call Freud’s original metapsychology. Second, Bowlby combined three fields in a manner that anticipated today’s more integrative non-dualist, non-reductive approaches to the human mind: (1) Tinbergen’s four questions in behavioural biology, (2) questions in emotion research, and (3) a range of concepts from the cognitive sciences, especially Craik’s notion of mental models. The thesis distinguishes 13 attachment constructs—the initial 12 allocated across the Tinbergen framework. This supports a clarification of the expanding complexity of the theory. Equally, a 13th construct—the organisational perspective—provides a plank for tying attachment to lifespan insights within Developmental Systems Theory. Bowlby’s Goal-Corrected Partnership (GCP) proposed that attachment relationships beyond infancy required engagement with newly emerging cognitive skills. The thesis argues that the GCP offers an important corrective to conceptualisations that somehow limit attachment phenomena to a purely implicit, infancy derived, affectively triggered protection function only. Attachment Theory makes possible a reintroduction of a developmental perspective into psychiatry. Its causal credentials could also provide a breath of fresh air for a mental health arena. Finally, an acknowledgement of GCP relationships matches the growing empirical awareness that behaviour, emotion and cognition are more integrated phenomena than current studies may allow.

Les copépodes calanoides Eurytemora affinis et Pseudodiaptomnus annandalei sont des espèces dominant respectivement les communautés zooplanctoniques des estuaires tempérés et tropicaux. Ces deux espèces, bien qu’issues de milieux contrastés, présentent de nombreuses similitudes. Cependant leur comportement n’a été que peu étudié. L’approche multi-échelle utilisée au cours de cette thèse pour étudier ces deux espèces combine des analyses empiriques du comportement des copépodes à l’échelle de l’individu avec la modélisation individu-centré. La partie consacrée à la petite échelle nous a permis d’explorer comment les stades adultes des deux espèces nagent et s’accouplent. Ces différents processus ont été appréhendés en laboratoire via des techniques d’enregistrement vidéo en deux et trois dimensions. Avec l’approche de modélisation individu-centré, nous avons dans un premier temps développé un modèle constituant une représentation réaliste du processus de reproduction chez les espèces de copépode portant leurs œufs. Ce modèle a ensuite été intégré dans un modèle reproduisant le cycle de vie complet permettant de simuler le développement sur plusieurs générations à température constantes. A l’aide du modèle consacré à la reproduction, nous avons montré comment un processus observé à l’échelle de l’individu, i.e. la sélection des mâles par les femelles, peut affecter la production moyenne de la population. Enfin, l’intégration dans le modèle cycle de vie de l’effet de la variation de température et d’une variation saisonnière de la survie des stades adultes et larvaires nous a permis de simuler la dynamique de population d’E.affinis sur plusieurs années
The calanoid copepods Eurytemora affinis and Pseudodiaptomus annandalei are among the most dominant zooplankton species in respectively temperate and sub-tropical/tropical estuaries. Both species, while from contrasted environment, exhibit lots of similarity However their behaviour is scarcely studied. The multi-scale approach applied along this thesis for the study of these two species combined empirical analysis of copepod behavior with individual based modeling. The part of the thesis dedicated to small scales studies lead to the description of how the reproductive stages of these two species swim, mate and reproduce. These different processes were grasped throughout two or three dimensional filming experiments conducted in laboratory. Through the individual-based modeling approach, we first developed an individual-based model which constitutes a realistic representation of the reproduction process in egg-carrying copepods. This model was subsequently integrated into a model that represent the entire life cycle of such copepods allowing the simulation of the development of several generations for constant temperature conditions. With the model dedicated to reproduction, we showed how a process observed at the individual scale, i.e., the female mate selection, may affect the mean production of the population. Finally, the integration of the effect of temperature variation on development and reproduction as well as a seasonal variation of adults and nauplii survival in the model representing the life cycle lead to the simulation of the population dynamic of E. affinis over several years

The escalating extinction of wildlife puts a high pressure on the standard of ex situ conservation. Some animals may spend several generations in captivity which may affect their natural behaviors and also a future reintroduction into the wild. Observations of animal behavior among captive animals are crucial for the understanding of ex situ conservation effects on behavior and in order to introduce and improve environmental enrichment. This study investigates activity and enclosure use of a sand cat (Felis margarita) at Parken zoo in Eskilstuna Sweden. Direct observations of behavior and movements were carried out and audience impact was also analyzed. The sand cat in the present study showed no behavioural response to the audience but it had some effect on his location in the enclosure. I also found that he was more active during late afternoon after feeding time and that he slept most during the forenoon. He used the whole enclosure to some extent but he spent most of his time in the cave, the front and the middle of the enclosure. Although he did not show any typical stereotypic behavior he had some odd habits that could probably be prevented through environmental enrichment.

Metacommunity theory has been particularly useful in understanding the way spatially structured communities assemble. Both niche and neutral processes are known to influence metacommunity assembly, and the relative influence of each depends on the level of dispersal-limitation. Contemporary trait-based analyses of metacommunity assembly have enhanced our understanding of these processes. Of the traits investigated, individual personalities have received the least attention, but have been suggested to be drivers of metacommunity assembly model parameters, such as dispersal tendencies and patch density. I address this topic from three angles, three chapters, in this dissertation. First, I used a three-year field survey of fish metacommunity assembly in Everglades National Park to investigate the influence of dispersal-limitation on trait-based metacommunity assembly, asking which traits were important under different levels of dispersal-limitation. I found that the relative influence of traits and local environmental factors decreased, and the influence of regional factors increased with increasing dispersal-limitation. The Rocky Glades has recently been invaded by a micropiscivore with many novel traits, the African Jewelfish. In the second chapter I used my field data to ask what influence this invader has on metacommunity assembly. Overall, African Jewelfish abundance was the third most influential factor in driving assembly. I also used data, which were previously collected by collaborators, from three years prior and two years following the invasion to observe shifts in assembly rules. Assembly became significantly more aggregative immediately following the invasion, a condition which persisted more than a decade later. All previous studies asking the same question, found the same result: invasive introductions correspond with increased species aggregation. This may be a consistent, taxa-independent signal of truly invasive species that can be detected early in the invasion process, making it a potentially useful management tool after further empirical review. In the final chapter, I investigate the potential influence of individual personalities on a metapopulation’s structure. To do this, I used a behavioral individual-based model to explore the influence of sociability, an individual’s propensity to associate with conspecifics, on metapopulation structure at ecologically relevant spatiotemporal scales. I found that individual sociability can significant influence key metapopulation parameters such as dispersal distance and patch density but may not influence landscape occupation. Chapter three concludes with new hypothesis to be evaluated by future field studies. Overall, this dissertation demonstrates the relative roles of invasions, species traits, and individual personalities on metacommunity assembly processes.

The Mediterranean fruit fly (Medfly), Ceratitis capitata Wiedemann (Diptera Tephritidae), is a ubiquitous pest in subtropical and tropical regions worldwide. The gravid female deposits eggs inside the fruit and the newly emerged larvae feed on fruit pulp, causing fruit decay. The mature larvae leave the fruit and pupate in the soil, where new adults emerge. C. capitata is a highly polyphagous, multivoltine pest species and it is one of the world’s most economically important fruit pests. From its supposed origin in Africa, it has spread to a number of countries, including the Mediterranean, parts of South and Central America and Australia. It was first detected in southern Italy in 1863, from where it gradually spread northward and it now infests all major temperate fruit crops, including the apple, throughout the country. C. capitata is reported to complete up to seven generations per year in the most southerly regions and this number gradually decreases as the pest spreads northward. The northern limit of its distribution has been indicated to be around the 41st parallel north and its presence above this is considered to be occasional, mainly due to infested fruit trading, as this species is reported to be unable to overwinter above this latitude. The presence of C. capitata was first reported in a limited area of Trentino in 1990. After this initial report, it was not observed until 2010, when severe apple damage caused by C. capitata was reported in a much larger area. From this year on, Mediterranean fruit fly infestation regularly appeared in the warmest apple growing areas of Trentino, claiming the attention of local research institutes and demanding in-depth study of the bio-ethology of this Tephritid pest in relation to environmental conditions and the apple production system in this northern Italian region. The main objectives of this project were:  to select the most effective trap in order to implement an efficient monitoring plan;  to evaluate the susceptibility of apple varieties to oviposition and larval development in relation to physical-chemical parameter values at harvest time;  to monitor the flight activity of the fly at area-wide level;  to validate Tassan’s degree-day model (Tassan et al., 1982) for estimation of the length of life-cycles and number of potential Medfly generations in Trentino;  to assess the survival of overwintering populations;  to evaluate the efficacy of different insecticides in controlling Medfly fruit infestation. Four types of differently baited commercial traps (chromotropic, pheromone and food attractant) were compared in an apple orchard. A Decis® trap baited with a food attractant and catching both males and females was shown to be the most suitable for monitoring pests. In Trentino, adult Medfly flight starts during the first week of July, but the intensity (number of captures) remains at a very low level until August, when it begins to increase, peaking during September. After this, adult activity decreases in October and stops by the end of November. According to our observations, performed both in the open field and under controlled conditions, C. capitata overwinters at the larval stage in infested apples falling to the ground in orchards. The application of Tassan’s degree-day model based on temperature records provided a good estimate of first generation development (325.2 °DD from eggs to adult and 44 °DD for the adult preoviposition period) in the area where direct behavioural observations were carried out. To evaluate apple susceptibility, qualitative parameters (e.g. hardness, acidity, sugar and starch) of the main apple varieties cultivated in Trentino (Gala, Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Kanzi, Morgen and Fuji) were measured and correlated with the oviposition preference and larval survival of two Medfly strains in laboratory and field tests. The results showed that susceptibility to C. capitata oviposition increased when fruits had a high sugar content and a low penetrating resistance, as in the case of Golden Delicious, Kanzi and Fuji. In contrast, Granny Smith, Red Delicious and Morgen showed low susceptibility, due to their lower sugar content and higher peel and pulp hardness. As regards larval fitness, the results suggested that the tested varieties considerably affected various aspects of the biology of both immature and adult stages such as larval survival, duration of larval and adult developmental stage and size of the pupae. Golden Delicious, Gala, Kanzi and Fuji were the most favourable environments among the seven tested varieties. In contrast, Granny Smith, Red Delicious and Morgen were shown not to be favourable for larval and adult development. Two Medfly strains, one from Trentino and one from Spain, were used to assess the efficacy of five commercial insecticides containing the following active ingredients: Etofenprox, Cyazypir, Beta-Cyfluthrin, Spinosad and Thiacloprid. Sublethal doses of Spinosad and Beta-Cyfluthrin caused high mortality in Spanish strains. Moreover, Beta-Cyfluthrin, Etofenprox and Spinosad also reduced damage by females to apples at the recommended field rate. When used against the Trentino strain, Spinosad caused high adult mortality at the recommended field dose, while Cyazypyr and Etofenprox did not work sufficiently to prevent puncture, egg laying and larval development in fruit. Recommended field rates of all the selected insecticide formulations were repellent for egg-laying females of both strains, so both oviposition and fruit damage were significantly reduced on treated ripening fruits. The behavioural observations and experimental results obtained in this thesis allow a better understanding of the bio-ethology of C. capitata in a northern fruit growing region such as Trentino, providing fundamental information for advisors and growers to optimise the current pest management strategy. In the future, some of the results obtained in this study will be of great relevance for developing innovative and more sustainable control tactics.

Ceratitis capitata Wiedemann (Dittero: Tefritide), chiamata anche mosca mediterranea o mosca della frutta, è un insetto estremamente polifago e polivoltino originario delle aree tropicali e subtropicali. Si presume originaria dell’Africa diffusa successivamente in numerosi areali tra cui il bacino del Mediterraneo, parte del centro-sud America e Australia. Le femmine fecondate ovidepongono nell’epicarpo del frutto in via di maturazione e le larve, con la loro attività trofica, provocano il disfacimento della polpa causando una perdita commerciale del prodotto. Le larve a maturità fuoriescono dal frutto, si lasciano cadere a terra e si impupano nel suolo dove successivamente sfarfalleranno i nuovi adulti. La sua presenza è stata registrata per la prima volta in Italia nel 1863 e successivamente si è gradualmente spostata verso nord colonizzando la maggior parte delle piante coltivate nelle zone a clima temperato. Nelle regioni meridionali questo insetto è in grado di compiere fino a sette generazioni all’anno; questo numero decresce gradualmente mano a mano che la specie si trova a vivere in aree più a nord. In bibliografia, il limite settentrionale della sua distribuzione è indicato attorno al 41° parallelo. La sua presenza al di sopra di esso è imputabile ad infestazioni occasionali, data dal trasporto e commercializzazione di frutta infestata, in quanto è stata valutata incapace di superare l’inverno al di sopra di queste latitudini. La presenza di C. capitata in Trentino è stata registrata per la prima volta nel 1990, ma solo a partire dal 2010 sono stati individuati numerosi danni su frutta in via di maturazione su vasta superficie coltivata a melo. A partire da questo momento la mosca mediterranea si è riproposta costantemente sul territorio trentino richiamando l’attenzione di ricercatori e istituzioni locali per svolgere studi di comportamento e biologia su questo Tefritide in relazione alle condizioni ambientali ed al sistema melicolo di produzione della regione Trentino (nord Italia). I principali obiettivi di questo lavoro erano infatti: • individuare la miglior tipologia di trappola in grado di implementare un efficacie piano di monitoraggio; • valutare la sensibilità varietale alle ovideposizioni e allo sviluppo larvale in relazione al valore di alcuni parametri fisico-chimici delle mele al momento della maturità commerciale; • monitorare l’attività di volo di questo insetto a livello locale; • validare il modello gradi giorno di Tassan (Tassan et al., 1982) per stimare la durata del ciclo vitale e il numero delle potenziali generazioni di mosca mediterranea in Trentino: • valutare la capacità di svernamento della popolazione durante il periodo invernale; • valutare l’efficacia di diversi insetticidi per il controllo di infestazioni localizzate di C. capitata; Quattro tipi diversi di trappole commerciali, caricate con attrattivi diversi (cromotropiche, para-feromonale, attrattivi alimentari) sono state comparate in appezzamenti trentini di melo. Decis® Trap caricata con attrattivo alimentare, in grado di catturare sia maschi che femmine, è risultata essere la più adatta per il monitoraggio di questo insetto. In Trentino, il volo degli adulti di C. capitata inizia durante la prima settimana di luglio ma l’intensità delle catture (numero di catture per trappola) rimane a livelli molto bassi fino ad agosto quando incrementa producendo un picco di catture durante il mese di settembre. Nel mese di ottobre l’attività degli adulti decresce fermandosi completamente alla fine di novembre. Confermando le nostre osservazioni, eseguite in campo e in condizioni climatiche controllate, questo insetto riesce a superare l’inverno allo stadio di larva in mela caduta a terra in campo. L’applicazione del modello gradi giorno di Tessan, basato sulle temperature registrate durante tutta la stagione, è in grado di fornire una buona stima sullo sviluppo della prima generazione (da uovo ad adulto 325,2 °DD e 44 °D per il periodo di pre-ovideposizione) nell’area in cui sono state fatte osservazioni dirette sul comportamento di questo insetto. La suscettibilità varietale è stata valutata mettendo in relazione i parametri qualitativi (durezza, acidità, succosità e amido) delle principali varietà di mela coltivate in Trentino (Gala, Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Kanzi, Morgen and Fuji) con la preferenza di ovideposizione e la fitness larvale di due diversi ceppi di C. capitata in condizioni di laboratorio e di campo. I risultati ottenuti hanno dimostrato che la suscettibilità all’ovideposizione incrementa quando in frutti con un alto contento di zucchero e bassa resistenza alla penetrazione come nel caso delle varierà Gala, Golden Delicious, Kanzi and Fuji. Al contrario, le varietà Granny Smith, Red Delicious and Morgen hanno mostrato una bassa sensibilità per il basso contenuto zuccherino ed elevata durezza della buccia e polpa. Per quanto riguarda la fitness larvale, i risultati suggeriscono che le varietà testate influenzano in modo considerevole vari aspetti della biologia degli stadi pre-immaginali e degli adulti come la sopravvivenza larvale nei frutti, la durata del ciclo di sviluppo (da uovo ad adulto) e la dimensione delle pupe. Golden Delicious, Gala, Kanzi and Fuji sono risultate essere le più favorevoli delle sette varietà messe in prova. Granny Smith, Red Delicious e Morgen invece, non hanno premesso un adeguato sviluppo delle larve e degli adulti. Due diverse popolazioni di mosca mediterranea, una originaria del Trentino e una Spagnola (Girona) sono state utilizzate per testare l’efficacia di cinque insetticidi commerciali, ognuno con un principio attivo diverso quali: Etofenprox, Cyazypir, Beta-Cyfluthryn, Spinosad and Thiacloprid. Dagli studi di efficacia insetticidi è risultato che Spinosad e Beta-Cyfluthryn a dosi sub-letali causano elevata mortalità in adulti della popolazione spagnola. Inoltre, Beta-Cyfluthryn, Etofenprox e Spinosad, alla dose raccomandata di campo, riducono i danni da ovideposizione su frutta. Sulla popolazione trentina, alla dose raccomandata di campo Spinosad ha provocato una mortalità elevata negli adulti, mentre Cyazypyr ed Etofenprox non hanno funzionato a sufficienza per prevenire i danni di ovideposizione su frutta, sul numero di uova e sullo sviluppo larvale nei frutti. Tutti i formulate insetticidi utilizzati alla dose di etichetta sono comunque risultati repellenti per l’ovideposizione da parte delle femmine in entrambe le popolazioni testate infatti i danni su frutta sono risultati significativamente ridotti su frutta trattata. Le osservazioni comportamentali e i risultati sperimentali ottenuti nell'ambito di questo lavoro di tesi consentono di comprendere meglio la bio-etologia di C. capitata in una regione frutticola settentrionale come il Trentino. Queste informazioni sono fondamentali per consulenti tecnici e agricoltori al fine di ottimizzare le attuali strategie di gestione del fitofago. Nelle prospettive future, molti di questi risultati saranno di grande importanza per lo sviluppo di tattiche di controllo innovative e più sostenibili.
The Mediterranean fruit fly (Medfly), Ceratitis capitata Wiedemann (Diptera Tephritidae), is a ubiquitous pest in subtropical and tropical regions worldwide. The gravid female deposits eggs inside the fruit and the newly emerged larvae feed on fruit pulp, causing fruit decay. The mature larvae leave the fruit and pupate in the soil, where new adults emerge. C. capitata is a highly polyphagous, multivoltine pest species and it is one of the world’s most economically important fruit pests. From its supposed origin in Africa, it has spread to a number of countries, including the Mediterranean, parts of South and Central America and Australia. It was first detected in southern Italy in 1863, from where it gradually spread northward and it now infests all major temperate fruit crops, including the apple, throughout the country. C. capitata is reported to complete up to seven generations per year in the most southerly regions and this number gradually decreases as the pest spreads northward. The northern limit of its distribution has been indicated to be around the 41st parallel north and its presence above this is considered to be occasional, mainly due to infested fruit trading, as this species is reported to be unable to overwinter above this latitude. The presence of C. capitata was first reported in a limited area of Trentino in 1990. After this initial report, it was not observed until 2010, when severe apple damage caused by C. capitata was reported in a much larger area. From this year on, Mediterranean fruit fly infestation regularly appeared in the warmest apple growing areas of Trentino, claiming the attention of local research institutes and demanding in-depth study of the bio-ethology of this Tephritid pest in relation to environmental conditions and the apple production system in this northern Italian region. The main objectives of this project were: • to select the most effective trap in order to implement an efficient monitoring plan; • to evaluate the susceptibility of apple varieties to oviposition and larval development in relation to physical-chemical parameter values at harvest time; • to monitor the flight activity of the fly at area-wide level; • to validate Tassan’s degree-day model (Tassan et al., 1982) for estimation of the length of life-cycles and number of potential Medfly generations in Trentino; • to assess the survival of overwintering populations; • to evaluate the efficacy of different insecticides in controlling Medfly fruit infestation. Four types of differently baited commercial traps (chromotropic, pheromone and food attractant) were compared in an apple orchard. A Decis® trap baited with a food attractant and catching both males and females was shown to be the most suitable for monitoring pests. In Trentino, adult Medfly flight starts during the first week of July, but the intensity (number of captures) remains at a very low level until August, when it begins to increase, peaking during September. After this, adult activity decreases in October and stops by the end of November. According to our observations, performed both in the open field and under controlled conditions, C. capitata overwinters at the larval stage in infested apples falling to the ground in orchards. The application of Tassan’s degree-day model based on temperature records provided a good estimate of first generation development (325.2 °DD from eggs to adult and 44 °DD for the adult preoviposition period) in the area where direct behavioural observations were carried out. To evaluate apple susceptibility, qualitative parameters (e.g. hardness, acidity, sugar and starch) of the main apple varieties cultivated in Trentino (Gala, Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Kanzi, Morgen and Fuji) were measured and correlated with the oviposition preference and larval survival of two Medfly strains in laboratory and field tests. The results showed that susceptibility to C. capitata oviposition increased when fruits had a high sugar content and a low penetrating resistance, as in the case of Golden Delicious, Kanzi and Fuji. In contrast, Granny Smith, Red Delicious and Morgen showed low susceptibility, due to their lower sugar content and higher peel and pulp hardness. As regards larval fitness, the results suggested that the tested varieties considerably affected various aspects of the biology of both immature and adult stages such as larval survival, duration of larval and adult developmental stage and size of the pupae. Golden Delicious, Gala, Kanzi and Fuji were the most favourable environments among the seven tested varieties. In contrast, Granny Smith, Red Delicious and Morgen were shown not to be favourable for larval and adult development. Two Medfly strains, one from Trentino and one from Spain, were used to assess the efficacy of five commercial insecticides containing the following active ingredients: Etofenprox, Cyazypir, Beta-Cyfluthrin, Spinosad and Thiacloprid. Sublethal doses of Spinosad and Beta-Cyfluthrin caused high mortality in Spanish strains. Moreover, Beta-Cyfluthrin, Etofenprox and Spinosad also reduced damage by females to apples at the recommended field rate. When used against the Trentino strain, Spinosad caused high adult mortality at the recommended field dose, while Cyazypyr and Etofenprox did not work sufficiently to prevent puncture, egg laying and larval development in fruit. Recommended field rates of all the selected insecticide formulations were repellent for egg-laying females of both strains, so both oviposition and fruit damage were significantly reduced on treated ripening fruits. The behavioural observations and experimental results obtained in this thesis allow a better understanding of the bio-ethology of C. capitata in a northern fruit growing region such as Trentino, providing fundamental information for advisors and growers to optimise the current pest management strategy. In the future, some of the results obtained in this study will be of great relevance for developing innovative and more sustainable control tactics.

Les études de bioacoustique animale, qui reposent traditionnellement sur des modèles primates non humains et oiseaux chanteurs, convergent vers l'idée que la vie sociale serait la principale force motrice de l'évolution de la complexité de la communication. La comparaison avec les cétacés est également particulièrement intéressante d'un point de vue évolutif. Ce sont des mammifères qui forment des liens sociaux complexes, ont des capacités de plasticité acoustique, mais qui ont dû s'adapter à la vie marine, faisant de l'habitat une autre force de sélection déterminante. Leur habitat naturel impose des contraintes sur la production sonore, l'utilisation et la perception des signaux acoustiques, mais, de la même manière, limite les observations éthologiques. Etudier les cétacés captifs devient alors une source importante de connaissances sur ces animaux. Au-delà de l'analyse des structures acoustiques, l'étude des contextes sociaux dans lesquels les différentes vocalisations sont utilisées est essentielle à la compréhension de la communication vocale. Par rapport aux primates et aux oiseaux, la fonction sociale des signaux acoustiques des dauphins reste largement méconnue. En outre, les adaptations morpho-anatomiques de l’appareil vocal et auditif des cétacés à une vie sous-marine sont uniques dans le règne animal. Leur capacité à percevoir les sons produits dans l'air reste controversée en raison du manque de démonstrations expérimentales. Les objectifs de cette thèse étaient, d'une part, d'explorer l'utilisation contextuelle spontanée des signaux acoustiques dans un groupe captif de dauphins et, d'autre part, de tester expérimentalement les capacités à percevoir les sons sous l’eau comme dans l’air. Notre première étude observationnelle décrit la vie quotidienne de dauphins en captivité et montre que les signaux vocaux reflètent, à grande échelle, la répartition temporelle des activités sociales et non sociales dans un établissement sous contrôle humain. Notre deuxième étude met l'accent sur le contexte d’émission des trois principales catégories acoustiques précédemment identifiées dans le répertoire vocal des dauphins, à savoir les sifflements, les sons pulsés et les séries de clics. Nous avons trouvé des associations préférentielles entre chaque catégorie vocale et certains types d'interactions sociales ainsi que des combinaisons sonores non aléatoires et également dépendantes du contexte. Notre troisième étude a testé expérimentalement, dans des conditions standardisées, la réponse des dauphins à des « labels » acoustiques individuels donnés par l’homme et diffusés dans l’eau et dans l’air. Nous avons constaté que les dauphins peuvent reconnaître et réagir uniquement à leur propre « label » sonore, même lorsqu'il est diffusé dans l’air. En plus de confirmer l'audition aérienne, ces résultats soutiennent l’idée que les dauphins possèdent une notion d'identité. Dans l'ensemble, les résultats obtenus au cours de cette thèse suggèrent que certains signaux sociaux dans le répertoire des dauphins peuvent être utilisés pour communiquer des informations spécifiques sur les contextes comportementaux des individus impliqués et que les individus sont capables de généraliser leur concept d'identité à des signaux générés par l'homme
Studies on animal bioacoustics, traditionally relying on non-human primate and songbird models, converge towards the idea that social life appears as the main driving force behind the evolution of complex communication. Comparisons with cetaceans is also particularly interesting from an evolutionary point of view. They are indeed mammals forming complex social bonds, with abilities in acoustic plasticity, but that had to adapt to marine life, making habitat another determining selection force. Their natural habitat constrains sound production, usage and perception but, in the same way, constrains ethological observations making studies of captive cetaceans an important source of knowledge on these animals. Beyond the analysis of acoustic structures, the study of the social contexts in which the different vocalizations are used is essential to the understanding of vocal communication. Compared to primates and birds, the social function of dolphins’ acoustic signals remains largely misunderstood. Moreover, the way cetaceans’ vocal apparatus and auditory system adapted morphoanatomically to an underwater life is unique in the animal kingdom. But their ability to perceive sounds produced in the air remains controversial due to the lack of experimental demonstrations. The objectives of this thesis were, on the one hand, to explore the spontaneous contextual usage of acoustic signals in a captive group of bottlenose dolphins and, on the other hand, to test experimentally underwater and aerial abilities in auditory perception. Our first observational study describes the daily life of our dolphins in captivity, and shows that vocal signalling reflects, at a large scale, the temporal distribution of social and non-social activities in a facility under human control. Our second observational study focuses on the immediate context of emission of the three main acoustic categories previously identified in the dolphins’ vocal repertoire, i.e. whistles, burst-pulses and click trains. We found preferential associations between each vocal category and specific types of social interactions and identified context-dependent patterns of sound combinations. Our third study experimentally tested, under standardized conditions, the response of dolphins to human-made individual sound labels broadcast under and above water. We found that dolphins were able to recognize and to react only to their own label, even when broadcast in the air. Apart from confirming aerial hearing, these findings go in line with studies supporting that dolphins possess a concept of identity. Overall, the results obtained during this thesis suggest that some social signals in the dolphin repertoire can be used to communicate specific information about the behavioural contexts of the individuals involved and that individuals are able to generalize their concept of identity for human-generated signals

Os escorpiões são únicos dentre os artrópodes terrestres em muitos aspectos da biologia reprodutiva. A corte em escorpiões envolve sequências complexas de comportamentos ritualizados; é dividida em três fases: iniciação, dança e transferência de espermatozoides. Cerca de 50 espécies de escorpiões dentre as 1600 atualmente reconhecidas tiveram a corte descrita. Do mesmo modo, são poucos os estudos com tamanho de prole e investimento reprodutivo em escorpiões. Até o momento, a descrição da corte em Tityus bahiensis foi realizada com base em poucas observações incompletas. Os objetivos deste trabalho foram: estudar a corte em T. bahiensis para reconhecer os repertórios comportamentais e padrões de comportamento para espécie, através de um etograma e de um fluxograma; investigar prováveis funções das categorias comportamentais; abordar aspectos da época reprodutiva; e estudar o tamanho de prole, tempo de gestação e investimento reprodutivo. Dezenove cortes, de 202 pareamentos realizados, foram utilizadas para elaboração do etograma e do fluxograma. As sequências de comportamentos foram analisadas com o programa JWacher sup TM/sup e compiladas através de um script em Perl. Para o estudo do tamanho de prole, data de nascimento e período de gestação, foram compilados dados de 76 fêmeas. Desses nascimentos, 12 foram provenientes de cortes observadas em laboratório. A corte em T. bahiensis é complexa e está organizada de modo que a realização de uma fase prepara e condiciona o aparecimento da seguinte. A fase de iniciação tem funções como a procura por parceiros sexuais e o reconhecimento específico, sexual e da predisposição dos parceiros à corte. A fase de dança é dividida em dois módulos. No módulo I, o macho estimula e conduz a fêmea a uma superfície adequada para deposição do espermatóforo, preferencialmente uma casca de árvore (X2=24,314; g.l.=5; p<0,001). O módulo II apresenta comportamentos frequentes e repetitivos, com a função de estimular a fêmea e preparála para a fase seguinte. A fase de transferência de espermatozoides é rápida e estereotipada. Tem a função de inseminar e estimular a fêmea para uma cópula bemsucedida. Durante a cópula, o macho executa cortejo copulatório (tateamento com pernas e roçar com quelíceras). A fase de pós-transferência segue um padrão, mas apresenta poucas categorias, sendo que a maioria tem a provável função de romper o flagelo do espermatóforo inserido no gonóporo do macho; o macho pode consumir o espermatóforo e não ocorre canibalismo sexual. As fêmeas de T. bahiensis são capazes de controlar diferentes fases da corte obrigando os machos a utilizar comportamentos de estímulo, ao invés de coerção, para serem aceitos. A exibição de cortejo copulatório pelos machos é um forte indicativo da existência de seleção críptica feminina em T. bahiensis, sendo uma estratégia reprodutiva para estimular a fêmea a aceitar os espermatozoides do macho durante a aquisição do esperma. Apesar da época reprodutiva compreender o ano todo, os meses de maior atividade sexual são novembro a abril. O tamanho de prole na primeira parição é 2-25 filhotes (n=76). Além disso, T. bahiensis é capaz de produzir 1-4 proles com uma inseminação. O tempo de gestação é 2,5-12,8 meses e, apesar da capacidade de parir o ano todo, a maioria das parições ocorreu nos meses quentes, sobretudo, entre novembro e janeiro (X2=164,912; g.l.=11; p<0,001). Adicionalmente, o tamanho de prole é correlacionado com o tamanho corpóreo materno (rs=0,593; p=0,042; n=12). Assim, fêmeas maiores produzem mais filhotes e, portanto, apresentam maior investimento reprodutivo.
Scorpions are unique among terrestrial arthropods in many reproductive biology traits. Courtship involves a complex series of ritualized behaviors; it is divided into three phases: initiation, Promenade à deux, and sperm transfer. Courtship behavior has been described for about 50 of the 1600 extant scorpion species. Likewise, litter size and reproductive investment in scorpions are poorly known. Previous studies on Tityus bahiensis described courtship based on few and incomplete observations. The aims of this work were to study courtship behavior in T. bahiensis in order to recognize behavior repertories and behavior patterns for the species by making an ethogram and fluxogram; investigate probable functions of behavior categories; address aspects of the reproductive season; and study litter size, gestation period, and reproductive investment. Nineteen courtships, out of 202 interactions, were used to make the ethogram and the fluxogram. Behavioral sequences were analyzed with JWacherTM and compiled by a Perl script. For the study of litter size, date of birth, and gestation period, data of 76 females were compiled. Of these, 12 births were obtained from courtship observed in the laboratory. Courtship in T. bahiensis is complex and it is organized in a way that the execution of one phase prepares and regulates the appearance of the next. Initiation phase has functions such as the search for mating partner and species, sexual, and predisposition to court recognition. Promenade à deux phase is divided into two modules. In module I, male stimulates and leads female to a suitable surface for spermatophore deposition, preferentially a bark (X2=24,314; g.l.=5; p<0,001). Module II is characterized by frequent and repetitive behaviors, with the function of stimulating the female and preparing her to the next phase. Sperm transfer phase is rapid and stereotyped. Its function is to inseminate and stimulate the female for a successful mate. During mate, male executes copulatory courtship (feeling and kissing). Post transfer phase has a pattern, but with feel categories; most of them has the probable function of breaking the spermatophore flagellum inserted in the male gonopore; male may consume spermatophore, and there is no mating cannibalism. The females of T. bahiensis are capable of controlling different courtship phases, engaging males to use stimulating behaviors, rather than coercion, to be accepted. The exhibition of copulatory courtship by males strongly indicates the existence of cryptic female choice in T. bahiensis, being a reproductive strategy to stimulate the female to accept male spermatozoids during sperm uptake. Although reproductive season takes place all year long, the months in which reproductive activity is greater are throughout November to April. Litter size at the first parturition is 2-25 offspring (n=76). Moreover, T. bahiensis is capable of producing 1-4 broods with a single insemination. Gestation period is 2,5-12,8 months, and, although the capacity of giving birth throughout the year, most of the parturition occurred in the warm season, specially throughout November to January (X2=164,912; g.l.=11; p<0,001). In addition, litter size is correlated to female body size (rs=0,593; p=0,042; n=12). Thus, larger females produce more offspring and invest more into reproduction.

Circadian rhythms are endogenous molecular clocks that correspond to the 24-hour day and are regulated by light stimulus, allowing organisms to entrain to the dawn-dusk cycle. These clocks may allow organisms to anticipate daily events, influencing their behavior. In arthropods, including spiders, circadian rhythmicity is tested using activity monitors, which house individuals in tubes. However, this does not reflect the natural habitat of many spiders. We compared the locomotor activity of the cellar spider Pholcus phalangiodes in activity monitors with the locomotor activity in web boxes. After being entrained to a 12:12 light:dark cycle, the spiders were recorded in constant darkness. The resulting free-running periods demonstrated similar clock data for spiders in tubes as in boxes. This validates the activity-monitor research method.

Pigs do naturally have a high motivation to explore their environment. In a poor environment pigs still display this motivation and when there is no stimulation in the pen, pigs direct their behavior at pen-mates and pen components. Lack of stimulation can lead to decreased welfare and increased stress. This study investigates if extra stimuli by toys would affect pigs growth, health and welfare. Growing pigs (219) were followed during 7 weeks and divided into twenty two pens, eleven with toys and eleven without toys. I found partly support for the prediction that toys would help in a short time perspective but there was no support for the prediction that in a longer run the toys (used in this experiment) would increase pigs welfare. One explanation to this might be the straw that all the pens had (by law in Sweden), which seemed to be the most importuned component for satisfying pigs behavioral needs.

Salinization has been identified as an increasing threat to freshwater mussel diversity in recent years. Native mussels have been observed to display reduced salinity tolerance in comparison to some invasive bivalve species, but methods by which organismal tolerance is achieved are not well understood. This study was designed to compare the behavioral and physiological responses of the native Lampsilis ovata to that of the invasive Corbicula fluminea. Lampsilis were found to exhibit strong behavioral avoidance to salinity exposure, whereas Corbicula displayed very weak avoidance to comparable salinity concentrations followed by indications of osmotic conformation through physiological mechanisms. Prolonged valve closure in Lampsilis could translate to adverse consequences related to feeding, waste removal, and energetics. Alternatively, while physiological osmotic conformation in Corbicula is associated with increased energetic costs, it allows continued respiration and feeding. These differences could convey a competitive advantage with the increasing prevalence and severity of freshwater salinization events.

Whereas circadian rhythms in humans and many other organisms are closely linked to the solar day and even slight deviations could cause significant health problems, several spider species thrive despite extremely shortened or extended circadian clocks. These naturally occurring clocks influence a variety of behaviors, which may help spiders maintain a precarious balance between their conflicting roles as predator and prey. The southern black widow, Latrodectus mactans, is primarily nocturnal in its locomotor activity, but this activity appears only loosely regulated by its circadian clock. This study attempts to determine how internal circadian oscillators affect other aspects of black widow behavior, since preliminary data suggest that they also possess potentially irregular circadian patterns. The behavioral patterns of twenty female black widows were recorded over a span of several weeks. Approximately 3,400 hours of footage in standard (12-hour light-dark cycles) and constant conditions (complete darkness) were analyzed and specific behaviors were recorded using the software BORIS. This study focused on three specific sets of behavior: foraging versus retreat patterns, general activity levels throughout a 24-hr period, and waste disposal. Predation stimuli were also introduced during each cycle set to determine how the widows’ responses were affected by their internal circadian oscillators. Free-run behaviors (behavior no longer entrained to the standard 24hr cycle) observed during the dark-dark cycles differed from the behavior observed during light-dark cycles in both frequency and duration of actions, particularly those related to foraging or web work. Likewise, certain behaviors and prey avoidance techniques observed during light-cycle periods were not observed during constant conditions. This experiment examines several previously unstudied black widow behaviors for generating a better understanding on how they act in natural conditions and to determine how their actions may be influenced by their highly unusual circadian rhythms. Ultimately, this experiment will contribute to a larger, ongoing study investigating circadian-controlled behaviors and rhythms in spiders.

Marine mammals are in a precarious conservation position because of anthropogenic impacts and historic perceptions that they are a consumable commodity. In light of changing abiotic conditions, further evaluation is needed on the habitat use, behavior, and interactions among marine mammals. Conservation legislation has helped protect species, but the greatest ground swelling may be the advent of the commercial whale watching industry. The feeding grounds in Alaskan waters have made this area a prime tourism location, and these nutrient-rich waters have resulted in a confluence of marine mammal species, including the appealing and abundant humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) that may associate with three ecotypes of killer whales (Orcinus orca). These species are interesting because they may travel together to feed on prey or be adversaries in a predator-prey relationship. Using whale watching as a platform, this study evaluated the effects of the presence of these two species separately and together, and of the type of interaction between them, on human perception. Data were collected via opportunistic observations and a retrospective pre- and post-survey instrument. Differences in humpback whale distribution and group size patterns were found relative to killer whale occurrence, although humpback whale behavioral states were unchanged. Changes in passenger conservation attitudes could not be attributed to species and behaviors but they were important determinates to whale watching satisfaction. Overall, more positive conservation attitudes and an increase in knowledge about marine mammals were reported after whale watching. These tours provide an opportunity for collecting meaningful scientific data and providing more in-depth education such as enhancing the appreciation for ecosystem services provided by marine mammals.

Aspectos do repertório comportamental e de estruturas resultantes de comportamento foram levantados para aranhas da infraordem Mygalomorphae. Os principais objetivos são buscar subsídios em informações provindas de caracteres comportamentais para auxiliar a elucidação da história evolutiva do grupo e entender como estes evoluíram dentro do grupo. Foi realizado um levantamento de informações sobre refúgios nas migalomorfas, a partir das quais foram delimitados 8 caracteres. Os caracteres foram incorporados a uma matriz de dados morfológicos provinda do trabalho de Goloboff e foi realizada uma análise de evidência total. A árvore resultante do consenso estrito da análise de evidência total mostrou-se melhor resolvida do que a árvore obtida apenas com os dados morfológicos. Foi realizada a otimização para a verificação da evolução dos padrões de teias dentro do grupo. Nossa análise mostra a existência de um padrão geral na evolução destes caracteres, com muitos deles apresentando fortes correlações. A construção de buracos está presente no ancestral comum entre migalomorfas e Mesothelae e aparece correlacionada com refúgios de alta conexão com o substrato. A hipótese de Coyle de que as tiras de seda teriam originado os lençóis de captura não é corroborada por nosso estudo. Ao contrário do que sugerem alguns autores, as estruturas finais resultantes de comportamentos podem ser uma fonte confiável de caracteres para o estudo da filogenia dos indivíduos que as produzem, além de possibilitar um melhor entendimento da evolução dos comportamentos que as originam. Também foi realizada uma análise comparativa do comportamento de autolimpeza em dois gêneros da família Theraphosidae. Observações deste comportamento resultaram na elaboração de um catálogo comportamental composto por 11 categorias. Análise das sequências comportamentais demonstra que este é um comportamento bastante fixo, com realização repetitiva de algumas sequências por longos períodos de tempo, não existindo um padrão geral que permita detectar início, meio e fim de uma sequência. São sugeridas algumas funções para este comportamento nas caranguejeiras, como a limpeza de estruturas sensoriais e/ou a proteção contra parasitas. A autolimpeza observada em indivíduos de outras famílias de Mygalomorphae mostrou a realização das mesmas categorias de modo semelhante. A manutenção destas categorias em famílias que divergiram há milhões de anos pode indicar um alto valor adaptativo das mesmas. A partir destes resultados, sugerimos que o tanto o comportamento quanto as estruturas finais são boas fontes de dados para análises filogenéticas.
Aspects of behavior and end-products of behavior were studied on Mygalomorph spiders. The main goal is to understand the evolution of these behavioral characters and to discover the evolutionary history of the group. As a result of an extensive review of the literature, 8 web characters were delimited in mygalomorphs. The characters were incorporated to a morphological matrix used by Goloboff and a total evidence analysis was performed. The resulting tree was better resolved than the strictly morphological one. Web related characters show a clear evolutionary signal, and some of them evolve in a correlated fashion. Burrow construction is an ancestral feature of spiders and appears correlated with silk-lining behavior. Coyles hypothesis that sheetwebs derive from silk lines is not supported by our analysis. Contrarily to some authorss suggestions, in our study the end-products proved to be a reliable source of characters for phylogenetic reconstructions, besides making possible a better understanding of the evolution of the behaviors that give rise to them. We performed a comparative analysis of grooming behavior in two genera of the family Theraphosidae. A behavioral catalog including 11 categories was concluded. Analysis of the behavioral sequences shows that grooming behavior is stereotyped, with some sequences being repeated for long periods of time, without a general pattern that let us detect the beginning, the middle or the end of a sequence. Spiders from distant Mygalomorph families perform the same repertoire of grooming behaviors, performed in similar ways. The maintenance of this ancestral repertoire in families that are separated for millions of years points to its strong adaptive value. Grooming could be used to clean some sensorial structures and/or to protect the spiders against parasites. From these results, we suggest that not only behavior, but also the structures resulting from it, are a good source of data for phylogenetic analysis.

Anolis carolinensis has been a model organism for ecology and evolutionary biology since the seventies, yet there are still understudied aspects of their ecology. A five-year study has provided microsatellite genotypes to be used in building a pedigree and assess relatedness, enabling us to evaluate the spatial distribution of an urban population of A. carolinensis. Results indicate no correlation between a male’s size and the distance others keep from it; however, males belonging in the heavyweight morph are dictating the spatial distribution in this population. In addition, juvenile dispersal of male offspring and partial philopatry of female offspring are key in this dynamic, where a single heavyweight male will actively defend a small area that contains multiple females, some of which are be daughters, and multiple unrelated males, most likely sneaker males.

Dissertação de Mestrado em Etologia
Em cativeiro, o tipo de vida que os animais selvagens estão sujeitos é em geral consideravelmente diferente do meio natural. Este facto põe em causa, com frequência, a satisfação das suas necessidades. No caso dos felinos esta situação pode conduzir ao aparecimento, principalmente, das estereotipias locomotoras ou pacing e/ou ao excesso de inactividade, com consequente diminuição da diversidade comportamental. O presente trabalho consistiu num estudo de enriquecimento ambiental num grupo de cinco tigres alojados no parque zoológico Badoca Park (Alentejo, Portugal). Com a estratégia de enriquecimento adoptada esperou-se que os animais exibissem mais comportamentos naturais associados à exploração e caça e que este facto viesse a contribuir para o incremento das interacções com o meio ambiente, incluindo um melhor uso do espaço, para uma diversificação geral da actividade e para uma redução dos comportamentos anormais inicialmente observados. O estudo, com duração de 30 dias, consistiu na observação dos tigres em três períodos distintos de 30 minutos cada: de manhã (9h30), início da tarde (13h00) e final da tarde (16h30). O tempo despendido (% de scans) por cada tigre em seis categorias comportamentais e alguns dos respectivos comportamentos foi comparado antes, durante e após o enriquecimento (6 dias cada). Esta comparação foi igualmente feita para os índices de diversidade comportamental e ocupação do espaço. O primeiro enriquecimento consistiu em sacos com alimento pendurados e enterrados e o segundo em blocos de gelo com alimento e um recipiente com alimento escondido. De um modo geral, a estratégia adoptada de enriquecimento ambiental influenciou significativamente, em todos os períodos de amostragem, o comportamento dos tigres nos dias do seu uso e após o mesmo. A presença directa dos enriquecimentos estimulou e aumentou a realização de uma série de comportamentos activos típicos e não estereotipados [ex. exploratórios (cheirar, lúdicos), de caça (apetitivos e consumatórios) e sociais] e conduziu à diminuição do pacing nos três períodos de amostragem. Quando o interesse pelo enriquecimento diminuiu (final da tarde), a inactividade aumentou significativamente, mas não o pacing. O enriquecimento fomentou igualmente o uso da área central do recinto anteriormente pouco utilizada pela maioria dos tigres. Nos dias após o enriquecimento a maioria dos comportamentos activos tenderam a voltar aos valores da baseline, porém o pacing apresentou valores semelhantes aos dos dias de enriquecimento e a inactividade (repouso) aumentou. Pela natureza dos estímulos oferecidos aos tigres, o aumento da interactividade observado esteve também associado a um maior controlo sobre o ambiente e a um incremento da diversidade comportamental. No seu conjunto esta resposta implicou oportunidades de expressão que estão associadas a uma maior integração e interesse em relação ao meio em que vivem. Desta forma, é possível admitir que o enriquecimento ambiental apresentado possui um potencial positivo para o bem-estar destes tigres em cativeiro.

Parasites often have profound effects on the survival and evolution of their hosts, and hence on the structure and health of entire ecosystems. Yet basic questions, such as the degree of virulence of a given parasite on its host, and factors influencing which hosts in a population are at the greatest risk of infection, are vexingly difficult to resolve. The western blacklegged tick-western fence lizard (Ixodes pacificus-Sceloporus occidentalis) system is important, primarily because I. pacificus, a vector of the Lyme disease spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, is dependent on S. occidentalis for blood meals in its subadult stages, and this lizard possesses an innate immune response that removes the Lyme disease pathogen from attached ticks. My study focused on two aspects of the I. pacificus-S. occidentalis interaction. In Chapter 1, I investigated factors correlating with the intensity of I. pacificus infestations on S. occidentalis. Infection intensity (parasites per host) is often highly variable within a host population, though certain individuals, such as males, tend to be more heavily infected. Previous work in the I. pacificus-S. occidentalis system suggests that differences in behavior, such as the frequency of territorial patrols, may contribute to variation in tick intensity among lizards. I therefore hypothesized that lizard traits that correlate with dominance would also correlate with infestation intensity. Specifically, I predicted that larger and more colorful males would have higher infestation intensities than less impressive animals. In this chapter, I also focused on site selection by ticks infesting S. occidentalis. Skin folds on the necks of these lizards (nuchal pockets) may function to divert ectoparasites away from eyes, ears, and other potentially vulnerable structures. I therefore also looked for factors correlating with tick attachment in these pockets. I sampled ticks on adult male S. occidentalis in the spring and summer, which is the seasonal peak for both S. occidentalis territorial behavior and subadult I. pacificus abundance. After determining the site of infestation and intensity of ticks on these lizards, I re-infested lizards with laboratory-reared I. pacificus larvae, and again quantified tick intensity and attachment location. Contrary to expectation, no host traits correlated with tick intensity among ticks naturally infesting lizards, and lab-reared larval intensity was negatively correlated with lizard body size. As expected, ticks acquired by lizards naturally concentrated inside nuchal pockets, and I also observed this site preference among ticks in lab-based experimental infestations. Although the general pattern, lab-reared ticks were more varied in the sites on which they fed. There was a negative correlation between infestation intensity and the proportion of ticks attached in nuchal pockets. Unsurprisingly, the most reliable predictor of tick intensity and site selection was the season. In Chapter 2, I explored how tick attachment affects male S. occidentalis contest behavior. I. pacificus infestation has been shown to have negative physiological impacts on S. occidentalis, but mechanisms linking physiological changes to ultimate fitness consequences have been largely underexplored. I hypothesized that tick infestation reduces male S. occidentalis fighting ability by reducing O2 carrying ­­capacity­, or by obstructing or damaging vulnerable structures on their hosts. I held fifty half-hour trials between pairs of size- and ventral badge-matched male S. occidentalis, with one male in each pair infested with lab-reared I. pacificus larvae. I found that tick infestation negatively correlated with aggressive behavior in these staged contests. In support of reduced O2 capacity as the mechanism of reduced aggression, my ecologically relevant infestation intensities seemed to cause significant declines in hematocrit among experimentally infested lizards relative to controls. However, the site at which ticks attached did not significantly correlate with the aggressiveness of their lizard hosts. This is one of only a handful of studies to address the direct effect of I. pacificus on S. occidentalis. My study demonstrates that tick infestation can be detrimental to the fitness of their lizard hosts even without the transmission of pathogens. This insight may prove informative in future work on the ecology of I. pacificus-borne diseases in the western United States. This study is also one of only a few to use parasite infection to induce an asymmetry in fighting ability in intrasexual contests.

Eshkol-Wachmann Movement Notation was applied to describe and quantify nonverbal behavioral synchrony between romantic partners. The interaction of 30 couples was observed across three study conditions, Pre-Stressor, and two Post-Stressor conditions when the female partner had been targeted with a stress manipulation. Participant-level behavior, and forms of dyadic synchrony were predicted with the male and females' self-reported attachment style. Results support theories from the attachment literature.

Due to the expansion of the human population we are an increasing threat to all wild animals. They are driven to exist in smaller areas and in the worst case scenario extinction. Zoos are being encouraged to improve the animal’s physical and social surroundings. Environmental enrichment is a term used for such improvements. In this behavioural study, the enrichment introduced to two Pallas cats (Felis manul) at Parken Zoo in Eskilstuna, Sweden, consisted of a fishing rod and a clothes peg with a dead mouse or chick attached. The intention was to see if the feeding enrichment could increase activity levels and how the cats were using their enclosure. The enclosure was divided into seven zones which have a varying degree of opportunities for the animals to climb, hide and rest above ground level. The environmental enrichment effects on the Pallas cats´ behaviour, activity levels and use of the enclosure were measured and recorded using instantaneous scan sampling, and the mean value was calculated for each individual. The behavioural and enclosure results proved that enrichment benefits the cats activity levels. The behaviours that showed a variation when presented with enrichment were: walking, climbing, grooming, aggressive behaviour, out of sight behaviour, crouching position, sitting and standing still.  The results showed that the cats preferred the zones in the enclosure that offered a larger view of the nearby enclosures. This study shows that providing captive felids with inexpensive, easy to administer enrichment objects can have profound effects on activity behaviours and their enclosure.

The curiosity whether or not animals have the characteristics of long term planning skills is fairly new. Some researchers agree that certain species have a form of episodic-like memory, in the terms of where, when and what. But the most difficult thing is to find out if these species have an aim for the future which involves what some call mental time travel. This study is a part of the discussion if the tests in long term planning and foresight can be explained by associative learning and the ability of self control in highly trained animals. Many self control and delay tasks have been conducted with laboratory animals such as rats, pigeons, monkeys and apes. Here we made a self control test with a reinforcement delay in pygmy hippos (Hexaprotodon liberiensis), an endangered species (listed as vulnerable at Cites, 2000), to extend the test among species. Also for trying to find out more about their cognitive skills, so we can better fulfil their needs in captivity. In this study, the female succeeded in 71,1 % (27 out of 38 trials) of the opportunities and the male in 84,2 % (32 out of 38 trials). To our knowledge this is the first study of learning and cognition in Pygmy hippos.

Alloparenting has played a pivotal role in every society throughout human history in ensuring the survival and healthy development of children. A large amount of theory (e.g. kin-selection) and evidence exists to support this claim, and though alloparenting is certainly not unique to humans, it is difficult to suggest that any other species benefits from it more, and certainly not one as ubiquitous as Homo sapiens. However, there is a surprising dearth of empirical research examining the causes of individual variation in the amount and type of alloparental behavior that a child receives, and what effect this variation has on previously validated measures of child well-being. We propose how different measures of familial relatedness and the spatial distribution of relatives might be used to predict the amount and type of alloparental care a child receives, and how these variables may interact to affect a child’s health. We employed a variety of different methods; genealogical modeling, genetic analysis, geospatial mapping, ethological behavioral observations, and anthropometric measurements in order to generate objective data to test these predictions. As members of a relatively isolated native people in Sonora, Mexico, our study population (the Comca'ac) is uniquely suited to help us test our hypotheses. From just this pilot study, we have made many methodological developments and found strong support for many of our hypotheses. There are many new questions to answer as well, which together suggest the future directions for an intensive study of a broader sample of this population, and alloparental behavior in humans in general.