Electroreception has become one of the most revealing areas in the study of the neural basis of behavior, and neurobiologists recognize it as a model sensory system for experimental study. Through studies of electroreception, researchers have gained extensive knowledge about a complete sensory system, from molecular biology to computation, communication, and behavior. The book Electroreception will examine the behavior, structure, and function of the electrosensory systems of fish and other vertebrates. As a comprehensive volume on the subject, the book will serve as both an introduction to the study of electroreception and a reference and review volume for researchers in related fields.

Gregory Bateson s contribution to 20th century thinking has appealed to scholars from a wide range of fields dealing in one way or another with aspects of communication and epistemology. A number of his insights were taken up and developed further in anthropology, psychology, evolutionary biology and communication theory. But the large, trans-disciplinary synthesis that, in his own mind, was his major contribution to science received little attention from the mainstream scientific communities.

This book represents a major attempt to revise this deficiency. Scholars from ecology, biochemistry, evolutionary biology, cognitive science, anthropology and philosophy discuss how Bateson's thinking might lead to a fruitful reframing of central problems in modern science. Most important perhaps, Bateson's bioanthropology is shown to play a key role in developing the set of ideas explored in the new field of biosemiotics. The idea that organismic life is indeed basically semiotic or communicative lies at the heart of the biosemiotic approach to the study of life.

The only book of its kind, this volume provides a key resource for the quickly-growing substratum of scholars in the biosciences, philosophy and medicine who are seeking an elegant new approach to exploring highly complex systems."

Sensory Neuroscience: Four Laws of Psychophysics organizes part of psychophysics -- a science of quantitative relationships between human sensations and the stimuli that evoke them. Although psychophysics belongs to sensory neuroscience, and is coupled to neurophysiology, it has also branched out to various specialized disciplines, including the disciplines of vision and hearing, ophthalmology, optometry, otology, and audiology. Due to this diversification and fragmentation, psychophysics has had an ad-hoc, phenomenological orientation. Besides Weber's law of differential sensitivity, and the still-controversial Stevens' power law, it has lacked a systematic grid of scientific laws. Sensory Neuroscience: Four Laws of Psychophysics provides valid unifying principles and systematic applications for this otherwise fragmented precursor of experimental psychology, and defines four multisensory relationships of substantial generality between sensations and the underlying stimulus variables. This book will be particularly useful to auditory researchers, experimental psychologists, and behavioral neuroscientists.

Lemurs: Ecology and Adaptation brings together information from recent research, and provides new insight into the study of lemur origins, and the ecology and adaptation of both extant and recently extinct lemurs. In addition, it addresses issues of primate behavioral ecology and how environment can play a major role in explaining species variation. Moreover, in a larger context, the information contained in this volume expands our knowledge of primate ecology and allows us further insight into mammalian adaptations to unusual and often harsh environmental conditions that arise from both natural and anthropogenic factors.

The book is divided into two sections. The first section is a background to lemurs and their ecology and it includes chapters on origins of lemurs, history of ecological studies on lemurs in Madagascar, theories relating to the evolution of lemur traits, and ecology of the recently extinct (sub-fossil) lemurs. Section two is comprised of chapters focusing on the ecology and adaptations of many species of extant lemurs to the diverse habitats found on Madagascar, and in some cases, adaptations to extreme climatic variability and natural disasters.

Predation is considered one of the distinct phenomena related to the interrelationships between species on the Earth. In general, predation is widespread not only in wildlife but also in marine environments where big fishes eat small fishes and other organisms of the sea. This book considers predation in organisms and is aimed at the prevention of predation in wildlife and marine environments.

This book is a contribution to the history of ethology-not a definitive history, but the personal view of a major figure in that story. It is all the more welcome because such a grand theme as ethology calls for a range of perspectives. One reason is the overarching scope of the subject. Two great questions about life that constitute much of biology are "How does it work (structure and function)?" and "How did it get that way (evolu tion and ontogeny)?" Ethology addresses the antecedent of "it. " Of what are we trying to explain the mechanism and development? Surely behav ior, in all its wealth of detail, variation, causation, and control, is the main achievement of animal evolution, the essential consequence of animal structure and function, the raison d' etre of all the rest. Ethology thus spans between and overlaps with the ever-widening circles of ecol ogy over the eons and the ever-narrowing focus of physiology of the neurons. Another reason why the history of ethology needs perspectives is the recency of its acceptance. For such an obviously major aspect of animal biology, it is curious how short a time-less than three decades-has seen the excitement of an active field and a substantial fraternity of work ers, the addition of professors and courses to departments and curricula in biology (still far from universal}, and the normal complement of spe cial journals, symposia, and sessions at congresses."

This volume contains the proceedings of the conference of the same name held in July 2006 at the University of Chester in the United Kingdom. It includes all the latest research on chemical communication relevant to vertebrates, particularly focusing on new research since the last meeting in 2003. Topics covered include the chemical ecology, biochemistry, behavior, olfactory receptors, and the neurobiology of both the main olfactory and vomeronasal systems of vertebrates.

This unique book brings together research and theorizing on human-animal relations, animal advocacy, and the factors underlying exploitative attitudes and behaviors towards animals. Why do we both love and exploit animals? Assembling some of the world's leading academics and with insights and experiences gleaned from those on the front lines of animal advocacy, this pioneering collection breaks new ground, synthesizing scientific perspectives and empirical findings. The authors show the complexities and paradoxes in human-animal relations and reveal the factors shaping compassionate versus exploitative attitudes and behaviors towards animals. Exploring topical issues such as meat consumption, intensive farming, speciesism, and effective animal advocacy, this book demonstrates how we both value and devalue animals, how we can address animal suffering, and how our thinking about animals is connected to our thinking about human intergroup relations and the dehumanization of human groups. This is essential reading for students, scholars, and professionals in the social and behavioral sciences interested in human-animal relations, and will also strongly appeal to members of animal rights organizations, animal rights advocates, policy makers, and charity workers.

Studies of the evolution of animal signals and sensory behaviour have more recently shifted from considering 'extrinsic' (environmental) determinants to 'intrinsic' (physiological) ones. The drive behind this change has been the increasing availability of neural network models. With contributions from experts in the field, this book provides a complete survey of artificial neural networks. The book opens with two broad, introductory level reviews on the themes of the book: neural networks as tools to explore the nature of perceptual mechanisms, and neural networks as models of perception in ecology and evolutionary biology. Later chapters expand on these themes and address important methodological issues when applying artificial neural networks to study perception. The final chapter provides perspective by introducing a neural processing system in a real animal. The book provides the foundations for implementing artificial neural networks, for those new to the field, along with identifying potential research areas for specialists.

Grooming is among the most evolutionary ancient and highly represented behaviours in many animal species. It represents a significant proportion of an animal's total activity and between 30-50% of their waking hours. Recent research has demonstrated that grooming is regulated by specific brain circuits and is sensitive to stress, as well as to pharmacologic compounds and genetic manipulation, making it ideal for modelling affective disorders that arise as a function of stressful environments, such as stress and post-traumatic stress disorder. Over a series of 12 chapters that introduce and explicate the field of grooming research and its significance for the human and animal brain, this book covers the breadth of grooming animal models while simultaneously providing sufficient depth in introducing the concepts and translational approaches to grooming research. Written primarily for graduates and researchers within the neuroscientific community.

Nobel laureate Niko Tinbergen laid the foundations for the scientific study of animal behaviour with his work on causation, development, function and evolution. In this book, an international cast of leading animal biologists reflect on the enduring significance of Tinbergen's groundbreaking proposals for modern behavioural biology. It includes a reprint of Tinbergen's original article on the famous 'four whys' and a contemporary introduction, after which each of the four questions are discussed in the light of contemporary evidence. There is also a discussion of the wider significance of recent trends in evolutionary psychology and neuroecology to integrate the 'four whys'. With a foreword by one of Tinbergen's most prominent pupils, Aubrey Manning, this wide-ranging book demonstrates that Tinbergen's views on animal behaviour are crucial for modern behavioural biology. It will appeal to graduate students and researchers in animal behaviour, behavioural ecology and evolutionary biology.

Welcome to the proceedings of the Tenth International Conference on Simulation of Adaptive Behavior (SAB 2008). A symbolic creature in the SAB 2008 poster is based on GAKUTENSOKU, Japan's first modern robot created in 1928 by Makoto Nishimura. The robot, Gakutensoku (or "learning from natural law"), "was 7' 8'' tall, painted gold, could open and close its eyes, could smile, could puff out its cheeks, and at the beginning of each performance would touch its mace to its head and then begin to write (from http: //www. robmacdougall. org/index. php/2008/04/gakutensoku/). " Gakutensoku was actuated by pneumatics and seems to have been "a sort of early Japanese animatronics. " Designed 80 years ago, it still stimulates researchers' minds. This year, we received 110 submissions, among which we selected 30 for oral pr- entations and 21 for posters. In the main conference, we had four very interesting plenary talks: "Modelling Adaptive and Intelligent Behaviour: Some Historical and Epistemological Issues" by Roberto Cordeschi, "Insect-Machine Hybrid System for Understanding an Adaptive Behavior" by Ryohei Kanzaki, "Body Shapes Brain - Emergence and Development of Behavior and Mind from Embodied Interaction Dynamics" by Yasuo Kuniyoshi, and "Thinking and Learning Close to the Sensory- Motor Surface Creates Knowledge That Transcends the Here and Now" by Linda Smith. On the second day, we had a special joint session with the British Council featuring special talks by Giacomo Rizzolatti and Ron Chrisley followed, by a panel discussion. After the main conference, we had a workshop and two tutorials.

In Space Enterprise - Living and Working Offworld, Dr Philip Harris provides the vision and rationale as to why humanity is leaving its cradle, Earth, to use space resources, as well as pursuing lunar industrialization and establishing offworld settlements. As a management/space psychologist, Dr. Harris presents a behavioral science perspective on space exploration and enterprise. In this his 45th book, Phil has completely revised and updated the two previous editions of this classic, placing new emphasis on the need for more synergy and participation by the private sector. He not only provides a critical review of what is happening in the global space community, but offers specific strategies for lunar economic development. The author analyzes the human factors in contemporary and future space developments, especially relative to the deployment of people aloft. This user-friendly volume offers numerous photographs, diagrams, exhibits, and case studies.

What are the benefits of owning a dog on health and well-being? Why does a problem dog behave as it does and how can owners deal with unwanted behaviour? How do dogs communicate with humans and each other? The Psychology of Dog Ownership explores the nature of our unique relationship with dogs and its effect on our mental and physical welfare. The book uses psychological learning theory to examine dog behaviour and highlights the importance of determining between typical dog behaviour and behaviour disorders that need treatment. Focusing on how dog owners can communicate effectively with their pets, and always with the dogsbest interests in mind, The Psychology of Dog Ownership enhances our understanding of the modern human-canine bond and shows how important and enjoyable this relationship can be.

Key features: Presents a contemporary snapshot of the mechanisms underlying the evolution and adaptation of behavior Explores how genetics, epigenetics, development, and environment shape behavior Discusses a broad range of behavioral repertoires and responses, including those related to thermoregulatory, foraging, predatory, displaying, social and escape strategies. Examines physiological and sensory mechanisms Covers the effects of various aspects of global change on behavior, with chapters that focus on the impacts of climate change on hydroregulatory behavior and behavioral responses to the effects of habitat alteration resulting from human-mediated change and colonization by invasive species. Lizards serve as focal organisms for many of biological questions related to evolution, ecology, physiology, and morphology. They are studied at multiple spatial and temporal scales, from the individual to the community level. This book, authored by expert contributors from around the world, explores behaviors underlying the evolution and adaptation of these organisms. It covers conceptual, empirical, and methodological approaches to the understanding of the role that natural and sexual selection play in molding the behavioral traits of lizards. This thorough, illustrated reference should stimulate discussion of the conceptual and methodological approaches for studying the behavioral traits of these fascinating and highly diverse vertebrates.

This book has three primary themes: identification, natural history, and conservation. This is the first guide yet produced to the amphibians and reptiles of New York State, a large and heavily populated state that hosts a surprisingly diverse and interesting community of amphibians and reptiles. The book presents the results of the New York State Amphibian and Reptile Atlas for the first time (a compilation of ~60,000 distributional records collected 1990-1999); thus, the volume is a repository for detailed distributional data on the 69 species native to the state. The book presents in-depth species accounts based on the six authors' decades of collective experience as teachers, researchers and conservationists. Supporting chapters focus on the biology of amphibians and reptiles, New York's environment, finding and studying these creatures, and the rich folklore of New York State as it pertains to amphibians and reptiles, particularly rattlesnakes. A heavy emphasis on conservation biology of amphibians and reptiles sets the book apart from any comparable volume yet produced in the United States. To this end, chapters on threats, legal protections, habitat conservation guidelines, and conservation case studies are presented. An expanded color insert presents striking photographs contributed by over 30 photographers. The book is intended for use by natural history buffs generally interested in the vertebrate animals of New York and adjoining regions (Pennsylvania, Connecticut, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Vermont, Quebec and Ontario), students in the many herpetology, vertebrate biology, and natural history courses offered at colleges and field stations in the northeast, public and college libraries, and natural resource professionals interested in learning more about approaches to conserving reptiles and amphibians.

Social behavior occurs in some of the smallest animals as well as some the largest, and the transition from solitary life to sociality is an unsolved evolutionary mystery. In The Evolution of Social Wasps, James H. Hunt examines social behavior in a single lineage of insects, wasps of the family Vespidae. He presents empirical knowledge of social wasps from two approaches, one that focuses on phylogeny and life history and one that focuses on individual ontogeny, colony development, and population dynamics. He also provides an extensive summary of the existing literature while demonstrating how it can be clouded by theory. Hunt's fresh approach to the conflicting literature on sociality highlights how oft repeated models can become fixed in the thinking of the scientific community. Instead, Hunt presents a mechanistic scenario for the evolution of sociality in wasps that changes our perspective on kin selection, the paradigm that has dominated thinking about social evolution since the 1970s. This innovative new model integrates life history, nutrition, fitness and ecology in which social insect biologists will find a rich storehouse of ideas and information, and behavioral ecologists will find a bracing challenge to long accepted models. Engagingly written, bold, and provocative, The Evolution of Social Wasps marks a milestone in our understanding of one of lifes major evolutionary transitions - the origin of social behavior.

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER I wanted to know what they were experiencing, and why to us they feel so compelling, and so close. This time I allowed myself to ask them the question that for a scientist was forbidden fruit: Who are you? Weaving decades of field observations with exciting new discoveries about the brain, Carl Safina's landmark book offers an intimate view of animal behavior to challenge the fixed boundary between humans and animals. Travelling to the threatened landscape of Kenya to witness struggling elephant families work out how to survive poaching and drought, then on to Yellowstone National Park to observe wolves sort out the aftermath of one pack's personal tragedy, the book finally plunges into the astonishingly peaceful society of killer whales living in the crystalline waters of the Pacific Northwest. Beyond Words brings forth powerful and illuminating insight into the unique personalities of animals through extraordinary stories of animal joy, grief, jealousy, anger, and love. The similarity between human and nonhuman consciousness, self-awareness and empathy calls us to re-evaluate how we interact with animals. Wise, passionate, and eye-opening at every turn, Beyond Words is ultimately a graceful examination of humanity's place in the world.

Parasites have evolved numerous complex and fascinating ways of interacting with their hosts. The subject attracts the interest of numerous biologists from the perspective of ecology and behavioral biology, as well as from those concerned with more applied aspects of parasitology. However, until now there has been no recent book to synthesize this field. This book, written by leading authorities from the USA, Europe, Australia and New Zealand, provides the most comprehensive coverage of this important topic on the market.

This volume is a collection of fourteen essays by leading philosophers on issues concerning the nature, existence, and our knowledge of animal minds. The nature of animal minds has been a topic of interest to philosophers since the origins of philosophy, and recent years have seen significant philosophical engagement with the subject. However, there is no volume that represents the current state of play in this important and growing field. The purpose of this volume is to highlight the state of the debate. The issues which are covered include whether and to what degree animals think in a language or in iconic structures, possess concepts, are conscious, self-aware, metacognize, attribute states of mind to others, and have emotions, as well as issues pertaining to our knowledge of and the scientific standards for attributing mental states to animals.

In exploring socially-maintained behavioral traditions in animals other than humans, this study treats traditions as biological phenomena amenable to comparative evaluation in the same way as other biological phenomena. Concerned with how widely shared features of social life and learning abilities can lead to traditions in many species, it differs from other books in its emphasis on explicit evaluation of alternative theories and methods, and in the breadth of species covered. It is essential reading for students and researchers in animal behavior, anthropology and psychology.

In Minding Animals, Marc Bekoff takes us on an exhilarating tour of the emotional and mental world of animals, where we meet creatures who do amazing things and whose lives are filled with mysteries.

Following in the footsteps of Konrad Lorenz and Niko Tinbergen, Bekoff has spent the last 30 years studying animals of every stripe--from coyotes in Wyoming to penguins in Antarctica. He draws on this vast experience, as well as on the observations of other naturalists, to offer readers fascinating stories of animal behavior, including grooming and gossip, feeding patterns, dreaming, dominance, and mating behavior. He offers a thought-provoking look at animal cognition, intelligence, and consciousness and he presents vivid examples of animal passions, highlighting the deep emotional lives of our animal kin. All this serves as background for his thoughtful conclusions about humility and animal protection and animal well-being, where he urges a new paradigm of respect, grace, compassion, and love for all animals.

Minding Animals is an important contribution to our understanding of animal consciousness, a major work that will be a must read for anyone who loves nature.

"To find out about the rich emotional life of nonhuman species, read Minding Animals."---Natural History

Reviews: Methods and Technology in Fish Biology and Fisheries published by Kluwer Academic Publishers is a book series dedicated to the publication of information on advanced, forward-looking methodologies, technologies, or perspectives in fish and is especially dedicated to relevant topics addressing global, fisheries. This series international concern in fish and fisheries. Humans continue to challenge our environments with new technologies and technological applications. The dynamic creativity of our own species often tends to place the greatest burden on our supporting ecosystems. This is especially true for aquatic networks of creeks, lakes, rivers and ocean environments. We also frequently use our conceptual powers to balance conflicting requirements and demands on nature and continue to develop new approaches and tools to provide sustainable resources as well as conserve what we hold most dear on local and global scales. This book series will provide a window into the developing dynamic among humans, aquatic ecosystems (both freshwater and marine), and the organisms that inhabit aquatic environments. There are many reasons to doubt the increasing social and economic value technology has gained over the last two centuries. Science and technology represent stages in human development. I agree with Ernst Mayer when he said in Toward a New Philosophy of Biology (1988) that "endeavors to solve all scientific problems by pure logic and refined measurements are unproductive, if not totally irrelevant.

We live in a world teeming with parasites. Many animal behaviors, including social interactions, mating displays, and decisions about where to move, nest, and forage are shaped by interactions with parasites. The same is true for humans, where our attraction to mates, hygienic behaviors, food choices, and decisions about when and where to gather in groups often depend on current and perceived infection risk. In turn, behaviors like social distancing and self-medication can alter the trajectories of parasite transmission and evolution, as vividly illustrated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The myriad connections between animal behavior and parasitism have been the subject of growing research interest since the 1970s and 80s, when fundamental theories linking the two fields of study emerged. Since then, a combination of conceptual and technological advances, and increased integration of ideas across disciplines, have helped to uncover fascinating new connections between animal behavior and the ecology and evolution of infectious diseases. This accessible text surveys emerging research in this vibrant field. Chapters focus on fundamental topics at the interface of animal behavior and parasitism, and authors have been selected to provide a diverse and international perspective. Animal Behavior and Parasitism is an upper-level text suitable for senior undergraduate and graduate level students as well as professional researchers in animal behavior/behavioral ecology, disease ecology, parasitology, and evolutionary biology.