Teaching

New course: Introduction to Animal Behavior (BIO 318). This course will be offered next spring (3/4/23 - 4/26/23). In this 8-week online course (asynchronous), we will explore animal behavior, such as competition, mating systems, cooperation, and migration in animals. This course is designed for all students from a variety of majors. Insight will be drawn from lectures, readings, and personal reflections. The course consists of the following eight modules:

Module #1: Introduction to Animal Behavior

We will discuss the history of the study of animal behavior and why it is relevant to various fields of enquiry and our own lives. We will identify different approaches to study animal behavior using both proximate (mechanistic) studies as well as ultimate studies that are more guided by evolutionary principles.

Module #2: Learning and Development of Behavior

We will provide examples of innate (instinctive) behaviors in seagulls, sticklebacks, and other animals. We will then also discuss the role of learning, focusing on the classical studies of Konrad Lorenz of sexual imprinting in geese and other animal species.

Module #3: Brain, Hormones, and Behavior

We will provide a brief overview of the role of the nervous system and hormones in the development and manifestation of animal behavior. This will be illustrated with several interesting examples, including the rapid escape response in fish and sexual development in mammals.

Module #4: Animal Migration

In this module we will discuss the adaptive value of seasonal migration. Examples of extraordinary migration journeys will be discussed, primarily in birds. We will then identify how animals navigate during migration, with a special focus on navigation in the Monarch butterfly.

Module #5: Foraging and Competition

We will discuss how animals optimize behavior to successfully compete for and acquire food.

Module #6: Sexual Selection and Mating Systems

We will explore how mate choice and mate competition can drive the evolution of exaggerated sexual traits such as complex courtship display or extravagant colors. We will then turn our attention to variation in mating systems, including the evolution of monogamy mammals, sneak mating strategies in birds, and sex change in fish.

Module #7: Dominance Hierarchies

Many animal species form dominance hierarchies where position in the hierarchy determines access to mates and resources. We will explore how rank is achieved and maintained in both human and animal societies, and how it influences health and fitness.

Module #8: Conflict and Cooperation 

In this final module, we will first discuss interactions between species with a special focus on brood parasitism. We will then explore cooperation in animal societies and identify different hypothesis that can explain cooperation between individuals even if they are not related to one another.