Download or read book Behavioral Responses by Cottonmouths Agkistrodon Piscivorus to Chemical and Visual Predator Cues written by Kristen Lee Kohlhepp and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 92 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Predator detection and assessment of predation risk have important survival consequences for animals. However, responses to predatory threats can vary with different stimuli. Chemical cues are important for predator recognition but visual cues may elicit defensive responses. Cottonmouths (Agkistrodon piscivorus) exhibit an array of antipredatory behaviors that have been thoroughly characterized in response to human aggressors, but their responses to cues from other predators are poorly known. I conducted three experiments to evaluate cottonmouth responses to visual and chemical stimuli from predators and non-predators. Snakes exposed to predator chemical cues exhibited elevated tongue-flick rates compared to controls but did not perform any antipredatory behaviors. Snakes exposed to mobile silhouettes of predators and nonpredators performed significantly more defensive displays in response to red-tailed hawk models than controls. However, snakes exposed to visual models of terrestrial predators and non-predators exhibited elevated responses to taxidermed mink and muskrat compared to an inanimate object of similar size and color. My results are consistent with risk-sensitivity predictions in that cottonmouths can use chemical cues to recognize predators and use visual cues to distinguish predatory bird silhouettes from those of nonpredatory birds. However, snakes generalized their antipredator responses to stationary mammals based on visual cues alone.
Download or read book Behavioral Aspects of Chemoreception in Juvenile Cottonmouths Agkistrodon Piscivorus written by Chelsea E. Martin and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 96 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For snakes, chemical recognition of predators, prey, and conspecifics has important ecological consequences. For example, detection of predator cues can reduce predation risk. Similarly, scent trailing of conspecifics to communal hibernacula can improve overwinter survival for neonates. I used y-maze choice trials to examine scent-trailing ability of 32 captive-born juvenile cottonmouths (Agkistrodon piscivorus) in two separate experiments. In conspecific trailing tests, subjects preferred to follow cues from their own mothers over a blank control cue, but also preferred to trail cues from unrelated adult females compared to cues from their own mothers. My results are consistent with previous reports and suggest that juvenile cottonmouths also trail conspecifics to hibernacula. However, the preference for trailing non-maternal cues, given the occurrence of post-partum mother-offspring affiliations in cottonmouths, is not easily explained. In predator avoidance trials, test subjects showed no preference for the blank control versus the king snake cue arm, or non-predator control (crayfish) and kingsnake arm. Indifference to kingsnake cues is inconsistent with results from tests with colubrids where kingsnake cues were clearly avoided. Although kingsnakes are known predators of venomous snakes, it is possible that cottonmouths may not avoid chemical cues without visual confirmation of a threat. My results support a growing awareness that pitviper behaviors are more complex than currently appreciated.
Download or read book Behavioral and Physiological Evidence for Musk Gland Secretions as a Chemical Alarm Cue in the Cottonmouth Agkistrodon Piscivorus written by Joseph Matthew Churilla and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 74 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Snakes release malodorous secretions from cloacal musk glands when harassed by predators. Although these secretions have mainly been evaluated as predator deterrents, they have also been suggested to function as alarm pheromones. I conducted two experiments to test the hypothesis that musk gland secretions function as an alarm signal in the cottonmouth (Agkistrodon piscivorus), using behavioral and physiological response variables. In a repeated-measures experiment snakes were exposed to solutions of musk gland secretions, integumentary chemicals from conspecifics, and distilled water as a blank control. In behavior trials, snakes exhibited elevated tongue-flick rates, engaged in longer periods of immobility, and took significantly longer to complete a foraging task in the presence of musk cues relative to controls. Metabolic trials showed a similar general pattern consistent with reduced activity in musk treatments relative to controls. However, metabolic responses were highly variable due to confounding influences of a testing order effect, and litter-specific differences. Overall, my study provides new evidence for alarm signal functionality of musk gland secretions in snakes and adds to the understanding of chemically mediated communication in snakes.
Download or read book Do Arthropod Prey Alter Behavior when Exposed to Different Combinations of Sensory Cues from Predators written by Kelly I. Pniewski and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Behavioural Biology Abstracts written by and published by . This book was released on 1983 with total page 666 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Role of Stressors in the Behavioral Responses of Lesser Sirens to Chemical Cues written by Mackenzie Hanna Nichols and published by . This book was released on 2023 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Organisms must make choices to improve their survival, and often perform behaviors in response to stimuli in the environment. I examined behavioral responses under conditions of stress in a species of fully aquatic salamander, Western Lesser Sirens (Siren intermedia nettingi Goin 1942). First, I presented individuals with chemical cues from a variety of known prey items to determine a potential prey preference. Sirens did not exhibit a preference by prey type. I then exposed individuals to chemical cues from prey, predator, and insecticide sources and evaluated behavioral responses, while also administering a nonlethal physical injury to a subset of subjects prior to cue presentation. Sirens did not associate preferentially with any chemical cue type, although trends emerged in duration of performing certain behaviors. Finally, I considered the regeneration rate of siren tail tissue, and found that minor excisions from this region are effective short-term individual markings for mark-recapture studies.
Download or read book Wildlife Research written by and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 404 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Secrets of the Snake Charmer written by John C. Murphy and published by iUniverse. This book was released on 2010-04-16 with total page 421 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Note that there is a companion website for this book and it can be seen at: http://secretsofthesnakecharmer.blogspot.com/ Humans and snakes have an intimate and ancient relationship that often revolves around either love or hate. Snakes can be seen as gods, spiritual messengers, symbols of fertility, and guardians of resources in virtually all cultures. But to those that fear them, snakes are seen as venomous creatures that cannot be trusted. In Secrets of the Snake Charmer, John Murphy, a research associate of the Division of Amphibians and Reptiles in the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, provides an in-depth, twenty-first century look at snakes utilizing the published research of other herpetologists as well as his own personal experiences and speculations. Murphy covers a wide range of topics such as the adaptability of snakes, the ways in which evolution has tinkered with snakes during the last 160 million years, and the impact snakes have on the ecological communities they live in. While sharing ideas about the origin of snakes, rattlesnake rattles, and spitting in cobras, Murphy presents an innovative portrayal of snakes that proves they co-evolve with their prey, predators, and parasites in order to fulfill a significant and novel role in the web of life.
Download or read book Snakes written by Richard A. Seigel and published by McGraw-Hill Companies. This book was released on 1993 with total page 440 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A comprehensive reference for herpetologists, biologists, and others interested in such aspects of snakes as their population genetics, neurobiology, functional morphology, behavioral ecology, and evolution. Also includes a chapter on strategies for conservation. Acidic paper. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
Download or read book Feeding in Vertebrates written by Vincent Bels and published by Springer. This book was released on 2019-04-23 with total page 865 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides students and researchers with reviews of biological questions related to the evolution of feeding by vertebrates in aquatic and terrestrial environments. Based on recent technical developments and novel conceptual approaches, the book covers functional questions on trophic behavior in nearly all vertebrate groups including jawless fishes. The book describes mechanisms and theories for understanding the relationships between feeding structure and feeding behavior. Finally, the book demonstrates the importance of adopting an integrative approach to the trophic system in order to understand evolutionary mechanisms across the biodiversity of vertebrates.
Download or read book Snakes written by Stephen J. Mullin and published by Cornell University Press. This book was released on 2011-08-15 with total page 383 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Destruction of habitat due to urban sprawl, pollution, and deforestation has caused population declines or even extinction of many of the world's approximately 2,600 snake species. Furthermore, misconceptions about snakes have made them among the most persecuted of all animals, despite the fact that less than a quarter of all species are venomous and most species are beneficial because they control rodent pests. It has become increasingly urgent, therefore, to develop viable conservation strategies for snakes and to investigate their importance as monitors of ecosystem health and indicators of habitat sustainability. In the first book on snakes written with a focus on conservation, editors Stephen J. Mullin and Richard A. Seigel bring together leading herpetologists to review and synthesize the ecology, conservation, and management of snakes worldwide. These experts report on advances in current research and summarize the primary literature, presenting the most important concepts and techniques in snake ecology and conservation. The common thread of conservation unites the twelve chapters, each of which addresses a major subdiscipline within snake ecology. Applied topics such as methods and modeling and strategies such as captive rearing and translocation are also covered. Each chapter provides an essential framework and indicates specific directions for future research, making this a critical reference for anyone interested in vertebrate conservation generally or for anyone implementing conservation and management policies concerning snake populations. Contributors: Omar Attum, Indiana University Southeast; Steven J. Beaupre, University of Arkansas; Xavier Bonnet, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique; Frank T. Burbrink, College of Staten Island-The City University of New York; Gordon M. Burghardt, University of Tennessee; Todd A. Castoe, University of Colorado; David Chiszar, University of Colorado; Michael E. Dorcas, Davidson College; Lara E. Douglas, University of Arkansas; Christopher L. Jenkins, Project Orianne, Ltd.; Glenn Johnson, State University of New York at Potsdam; Michael Hutchins, The Wildlife Society; Richard B. King, Northern Illinois University; Bruce A. Kingsbury, Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne; Thomas Madsen, University of Wollongong; Stephen J. Mullin, Eastern Illinois University; James B. Murphy, National Zoological Park; Charles R. Peterson, Idaho State University; Kent A. Prior, Parks Canada; Richard A. Seigel, Towson University; Richard Shine, University of Sydney; Kevin T. Shoemaker, College of Environmental Science and Forestry, State University of New York; Patrick J. Weatherhead, University of Illinois; John D. Willson, University of Georgia
Download or read book A Primer on Reptiles and Amphibians written by Micha Petty and published by . This book was released on 2019-01-02 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Primer on Reptiles and Amphibians is an innovative educational resource designed to forge a connection between the reader and the creeping critters of the world. Turtles, frogs, lizards, salamanders, snakes, and crocodiles¿ these animals evoke fear and fascination. This primer dispels myths and unlocks mysteries surrounding these diverse survivors which have mastered virtually every habitat on Earth. Tragically, these animals now face pressures of unprecedented severity, but there is still time to make a difference if more of us work together.Micha Petty is an international award-winning Master Naturalist and wildlife rehabilitator. This critically-acclaimed debut volume is a collection of Micha's interpretive writings, carefully crafted to make learning easy for everyone. These bulletins display his passion for Conservation Through Education while covering topics such as living harmoniously with wildlife, physiology, natural history, observation, and conservation. Flip to any page to be instantly introduced to new facets of reptiles, amphibians, the perils they face, and how you can join the fight to save them.
Download or read book Chemical Signals written by D. Muller-Schwarze and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 440 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Research on chemical communication in animals is in a very active and exciting phase; more species are studied, data are accumulating, concepts are changing, and practical application seems feasible. While most of the work on chemical ecology and chemical sig nals deals with insects, vertebrate communication provides a formidable challenge and progress has been slow. Joint efforts and frequent direct contacts of ecologists, behaviorists, psychologists, physiologists, histologists and chemists are required. Such an interdisciplinary exchange of information took place on the occasion of the Symposium on Chemical Signals in Vertebrates and Aquatic Animals in Syracuse, New York, from May 31 to June 2, 1979. More than one hundred investigators from seven countries participated, and the papers presented comprise this volume. Since the first Symposium on Vertebrate Chemical Signals at Saratoga Springs in 1976, considerable progress has been made with field studies, the physiology of the vomeronasal organ, and its role in reproductive behavior. The behavioral functions and chemi cal nature of priming pheromones are better understood. Efforts to isolate and identify mammalian pheromones are gaining ground, and the bioassays are becoming more sophisticated. In addition to formal presentations, one evening of the Symposi um was devoted to round-table discussions of particular topics. The selected themes indicate the "growing points" of chemical communi cation research: priming pheromones, vomeronasal organ, bioassay, and practical applications.
Download or read book Rattlesnakes written by Laurence M. Klauber and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 1982 with total page 392 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Their habits, life histories, and influence on mankind.
Download or read book The Behavioral Ecology of the Komodo Monitor written by Walter Auffenberg and published by University Press of Florida. This book was released on 1981 with total page 406 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Effects of Climate Change on Birds written by Anders Pape Møller and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2010-08-12 with total page 332 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Effects of Climate Change on Birds provides an exhaustive and up-to-date synthesis of the science of climate change as it relates to birds." -- Back cover.
Download or read book Lemur Social Systems and Their Ecological Basis written by J. Ganzhorn and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-06-29 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The past decade has seen a steady increase in studies oflemur behavior and ecology. As a result, there is much novel information on newly studied populations, and even newly discovered species, that has not yet been published or summarized. In fact, lemurs have not been the focus of an international symposium since the Prosimian Biology Conference in London in 1972. Moreover, research on lemurs has reached a new quality by addressing general issues in behavioral ecology and evolutionary biology. Although lemurs provide important comparative information on these topics, this aspect of research on lemurs has not been reviewed and compared with similar studies in other primate radiations. Thus, as did many in the field, we felt that the time was ripe to review and synthesize our knowledge of lemur behavioral ecology. Following an initiative by Gerry Doyle, we organized a symposium at the XIVth Congress of the International Primatological Society in Strasbourg, France, where 15 contributions summarized much new information on lemur social systems and their ecological basis. This volume provides a collection of the papers presented at the Strasbourg symposium (plus two reports from recently completed field projects). Each chapter was peer-reviewed, typically by one "lemurologist" and one other biologist. The first three chapters present novel information from the first long-term field studies of three enigmatic species. Sterling describes the social organization of Daubentonia madagascariensis, showing that aye-aye ranging patterns deviate from those of all other nocturnal primates.
