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Books > Science & Mathematics > Biology, life sciences > Zoology & animal sciences > Animal behaviour
Any intelligent debate on the ethical treatment of animals hinges on understanding their mental processes. The idea that consciousness in animals is beyond comprehension is usually traced to the 17th-century philosopher Ren. Descartes whose concept of animals as beast machines lacking consciousness influenced arguments for more than 200 years. But in reviewing Descartes' theory of mind, Daisie and Michael Radner demonstrate in "Animal Consciousness" that he did not hold the view so frequently attributed to him. In fact, they contend that Descartes distinguished two types of consciousness, which make it easier to discuss the conscious experiences of animals and to trace the debate into the post-Darwinian era.
The last few years have seen a dramatic increase in the number of areas known to be involved in mammalian vision. It has also seen a far greater understanding of the importance of reciprocal connections, intrinsic connections, structure-specific modules and modules which span different structures, as well as the introduction of parallel processing models within the thalamocortical and corticocortical streams. The body of knowledge has become so vast, and is growing so rapidly, that periodic updates are essential even for experts in the field. This volume is based on a satellite meeting of an international group of researchers. It emphasizes the most current information regarding midbrain and extrastriate mechanisms underlying vision and visually-guided behavior. The book also places these data into the larger context of how interrelated components of the visual system function to produce coherent visual experiences and behavior. New research findings are presented that are unavailable elsewhere, as well as reviews and broad perspectives in which existing data from multiple sources are brought together in order to help understand the structure and function of extrageniculostriate visual areas.
The current literature on resource selection by animals is a maze of methodologies for data collection and interpretation. Field biologists need a guide through the labyrinth. This book provides such a guide. It gives a clear and consistent framework for the study of how animals select their resources (food and habitat) by taking the reader through different types of study design. It is an invaluable handbook for the field biologist, especially those concerned with the management and conservation of wildlife. The authors have clearly identified the need to pull together the diffuse literature, and biologists will greatly improve their experimental design, methodology, and analysis with this book. The second edition of this popular book has been updated to include many developments in the last few years. There is new material on discrete choice models, the analysis of data from geographical information systems, compositional analysis, Mahalanobis distance methods, and neural networks and related approaches. Resource Selection by Animals:
Genetics and the Behavior of Domestic Animals, Third Edition offers the latest and most valuable information on animal science and behavioral genetics, carrying on the book's legacy since its original publication in 1998. This book synthesizes research from behavioral genetics and animal and veterinary science, bridging the gap between these fields. The objective is to show that principles of behavioral genetics have practical applications to agricultural and companion animals. The continuing domestication of animals is a complex process whose myriad impacts on animal behavior are commonly under-appreciated. Genetic factors play a significant role in both species-specific behaviors and behavioral differences exhibited by individuals in the same species. Leading authorities explore the impact of increased intensities of selection on domestic animal behavior. Rodents, cattle, pigs, sheep, horses, herding and guard dogs, and poultry are all included in these discussions of genetics and behavior, making this book useful to veterinarians, livestock producers, laboratory animal researchers and technicians, animal trainers and breeders, and any researcher interested in animal behavior. Genetics and the Behavior of Domestic Animals, Third Edition is the most valuable resource for researchers and practitioners in animal and veterinary science, animal behavior, genetics, ethology, and similar fields. Advanced undergraduate and graduate students in these disciplines will also benefit from the global expertise featured in this newest edition.
Mites are very small animals, characterized by wingless and eyeless bodies, in which sociality has been discovered. This book offers detailed descriptions of the diverse social systems and the social evolution of mites, ranging from genetic to ecological aspects. Through a broad spectrum of studies including traditional natural history, taxonomy, modern evolutionary and behavioral ecology, and theoretical models as well, the book addresses a number of important findings on plant mite evolution and species radiation, with the author succeeding in combining theoretical and practical approaches in behavioral ecology by proposing a new game theory. These findings reflect the complex evolutionary history of these taxa and also help to point out clearly what is known and what is not yet known to date. Mites have been considered a minor animal group, but the author shows that mites actually possess great diversity and therefore make unique materials for evolutionary and behavioral studies.
In nine chapters, contributors explore how genetic, hormonal, and neurological factors affect the behavior of males and females within complex environmental settings. Based on the latest research, the essays theorize about the causes of variation in sex differences in behavior and related phenomena. Sex differences in behavior are examined as a cross-species phenomenon and as having numerous biological as well as environmental determinants.
This book develops and tests an ecological and evolutionary theory of the causes of human values the core beliefs that guide people s cognition and behavior and their variation across time and space around the world. We call this theory the parasite-stress theory of values or the parasite-stress theory of sociality. The evidence we present in our book indicates that both a wide span of human affairs and major aspects of human cultural diversity can be understood in light of variable parasite (infectious disease) stress and the range of value systems evoked by variable parasite stress. The same evidence supports the hypothesis that people have psychological adaptations that function to adopt values dependent upon local infectious-disease adversity. The authorshave identified key variables, variation in infectious disease adversity and in the core values it evokes, for understanding these topics and in novel and encompassing ways. Although the human species is the focus in the book, evidence presented in the book shows that the parasite-stress theory of sociality informs other topics in ecology and evolutionary biology such as variable family organization and speciation processes and biological diversity in general in non-human animals."
Foreword by Phillip V. Tobias The introduction of rhesus macaques to Cayo Santiago, Puerto Rico in 1938, and the subsequent development of the CPRC for biomedical research, continues its long history of stimulating studies in physical anthropology. The CPRC monkey colonies, and the precise demographic data on the derived skeletal collection in the Center's Laboratory of Primate Morphology and Genetics (LPMG), provide rare opportunities for morphological, developmental, functional, genetic, and behavioral studies across the life span of rhesus macaques as a species, and as a primate model for humans. The book grows out of a symposium Wang is organizing for the 78th annual meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists to be held in April 2009. This symposium will highlight recent and ongoing research in, or related to, physical anthropology, and reveal the numerous research opportunities that still exist at this unusual rhesus facility. Following an initial historical review of CPRC and its research activities, this book will emphasize recent and current researches on growth, function, genetics, pathology, aging, and behavior, and the impact of these researches on our understanding of rhesus and human morphology, development, genetics, and behavior. Fourteen researchers will present recent and current studies on morphology, genetics, and behavior, with relevance to primate and human growth, health, and evolution. The book will include not only papers presented in the symposium, but also papers from individuals who could not present their work at the meeting due to limitations in the maximum number (14) of permitted speakers.
A critical companion of zoosemiotics is the first attempt to systematise the study of animal communication and signification through its most important and/or problematic terms and concepts, and its most representative scholars. It is a companion, in that it attempts to cover the entire range of key terms in the field, and it's critical, in that it aims not only to describe, but also to discuss, problematise and, in some cases, resolve, these terms.
From the world-famous expert on chimpanzees - the powerfully compelling sequel to the international bestseller IN THE SHADOW OF MAN: 'An instant animal classic' Time Equipped with little more than a notebook, binoculars, and her fascination with wildlife, Jane braved a realm of unknowns to give the world a remarkable window into humankind's closest living relatives. On the shores of Lake Tanganyika, Gombe is a community where the principal residents are chimpanzees. Through Goodall's eyes we watch as the younger chimpanzees vie for power, and how the leaders must deal with this challenge. We learn how one mother successfully rears her children, whilst another appears to doom her offspring to failure. All life is here - glorious births and heart-breaking deaths, moments of brutality, alongside the most tender displays of affection. In THROUGH A WINDOW, as Jane Goodall reveals the story of this intimately intertwined community, we are shown the parallels with human emotions laid bare. Indeed, in the mirror of chimpanzee life, we see ourselves reflected.
The editors and contributors to this volume should be justifiably proud of their participation in the tenth triennial meeting of the Chemical Signals in Vertebrates International Symposium. This meeting was held 27 years after the initial gathering of participants in Saratoga Springs, New York from June 6* to 9*, 1976. Subsequent meetings have been held every three years in Syracuse, New York; Sarasota, Florida; Laramie, Wyoming; Oxford, England; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Tubingen, Germany; Ithaca, New York; and Krakow, Poland. This tenth aimiversary symposium was held from July 29* through August 1*' in Corvallis, Oregon and was hosted by the Zoology Department and Biology Programs of Oregon State University. This book also represents the tenth in a series of books on chemical communication, chemical ecology, olfactory and vomeronasal research in vertebrate species. The species covered in the chapters herein range from fish to mammals including humans. By taxonomic breakdown the mammals are the most represented in number of species and chapter contributions. However, the hosts of the meeting endeavored to have some representative contributions covering all of the major vertebrate taxa. As in past years, the meeting was well-represented with just over 100 participants from 13 different nations. Plenary talks focused on some of the non-mammalian groups that have tended to be less represented in these symposia. Thus, we had a very nice overview of comparisons and contrasts of invertebrate chemical commimication to vertebrate systems.
This compelling volume provides a broad and accessible overview on the rapidly developing field of social neuroscience. A major goal of the volume is to integrate research findings on the neural basis of social behavior across different levels of analysis from rodent studies on molecular neurobiology to behavioral neuroscience to fMRI imaging data on human social behavior.
Various parallels have been drawn between wolves and humans from the perspective of their social organisation. Therefore, studying wolves may well shed light on the evolutionary origins of complex human cognition and, in particular, on the role that cooperation played in its development. Humans closely share their lives with millions of dogs - the domesticated form of wolves. Biologically, wolves and dogs can be considered to be the same species; yet only dogs are suitable living companions in human homes, highlighting the importance of cognitive and emotional differences between the two forms. The behaviour of wolves and dogs largely depends on the environment the animals grew up and live in. This book reviews more than 50 years of research on the differences and similarities of wolves and dogs. Beyond the socio-ecology, the work explores different theories about when and how the domestication of wolves might have started and which behaviours and cognitive abilities might have changed during this process. Readers will discover how these fascinating animals live with their conspecifics in their social groups, how they approach and solve problems in their daily lives and how they see and interact with their human partners.
Benjamin Kidd (1858-1916), well-known for his ground-breaking application of social Darwinism in his premier work Social Evolution (1894), was a sociologist and a keen observer of nature. First published posthumously in 1921, A Philosopher with Nature is a collection of Kidd's most profound writings concerning natural habitats. Although the book is not to be considered scientific, Kidd's method of uniting biology and sociology sheds remarkable insights into the animal kingdom. This title is suitable for both students of Anthropology and Sociology.
How dogs defied science and changed the way we think about animals What do dogs really think of us? What do dogs know and understand of the world? Do their emotions feel like our own? Do they love like we do? Driven by his own love of dogs, Charles Darwin was nagged by questions like these. To root out answers, his contemporaries toyed with dog sign language. To reveal clues, they made special puzzle boxes and elaborate sniff tests using old socks. Later, the same perennial questions about the minds of dogs drove Pavlov and Pasteur to unspeakable cruelty in their search for truth. These big names in science influenced leagues of psychologists and animal behaviourists, each building upon the ideas and received wisdom of previous generations but failing to see what was staring them in the face - that the very methods humans used to study dogs' minds were influencing the insights reflected back. To discover the impressive cognitive feats that dogs are capable of, a new approach was needed. Treated with love and compassion, dogs would open up their unique perspective on the world, and a new breed of scientists would be provided answers to life's biggest questions. Wonderdog is the story of those dogs - a historical account of how we came to know what dogs are capable of. It's a celebration of animal minds and the secrets they hold. And it's a love letter to science, through the good times and the bad.
First published in 1998. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.
ON THE FUTURE OF PERSPECTIVES When Patrick Bateson and Peter Klopfer offered me the editorship of Perspectives in 1992, the world of academic publishing was in one of its periodic upheavals. Subscriptions to series-even distinguished series such as Perspec tives-had been declining and individual volume prices had been rising, a trend that if continued could only result in the series pricing itself out of the market. In the course of the negotiations around the change of editors, the publishers offered a cost-cutting solution: change the production pattern to "camera ready" and elimi nate the costs of indexing and proofreading. While I could see the sense in this proposal, I was reluctant to accept it. Part of what I had always liked about the volumes in this series was that they were real books, intelligently proofread, nicely laid out, and provided with proper indexes. Thus, I in return offered a "Devil's bargain" the publisher should maintain the present quality of the series for two more volumes and make a renewed effort to advertise the series to our ethological and sociobiological colleagues, while I as the new series editor committed myself to a renewed effort to make Perspectives the publication of choice for writers who are trying to get their message out to the world intact and readers who are seeking clear, coherent, comprehensive and untrammeled presentations of authors' ideas and research programs."
What can the evolution of animal behaviour tell us about human behaviour? More specifically, how good an account of animal behaviour can we give in terms of evolution, and how do humans fit in with or deviate from the pattern established for other animals? The biological approach to the study of animal behaviour has important implications for psychology, but it is distinctly different. Originally published in 1984, this book provides a basic introduction to biological theories about behaviour, from the classic ethological tradition of Lorenz and Tinbergen to the later sociobiological approach. The principles of experimentation and research involved are assessed critically, especially with regard to their implications for the study of human behaviour. Written specifically for those with little biological knowledge, this book will still be of interest to students of biology and introductory psychology alike.
This volume presents the proceedings of Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 11, hosted by the University of Liverpool and held July 25 - 28, 2006 at the University of Chester in the United Kingdom. Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 11 contains the latest research on chemical communication relevant to vertebrates, particularly focusing on new research since the last meeting in 2003. Topics covered include chemical ecology, biochemistry, behavior and neurobiology of both the main olfactory and vomeronasal systems of vertebrates, from amphibia to mammals including humans. A broad range of taxonomic groups and topics are discussed, including sections on new directions in semiochemistry, olfactory response and function, recognition within species, sexual communication, maternal-offspring communication, communication between species, and applications for zoo animal enrichment and pest control. The volume is dedicated to the memory of Dr. Bets Rasmussen and includes a special tribute chapter on her ground-breaking research on elephant communication. About the Editors: Dr. Jane L. Hurst is a Professor in the Faculty of Veterinary Science at the University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK, where she heads the Mammalian Behaviour and Evolution Research Group. Dr. Rob Beynon is also a Professor in the Faculty of Veterinary Science at the University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK where he heads the Proteomics and Functional Genomics Research Group. Dr. S. Craig Roberts is a Lecturer in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK where he is a member of the Evolutionary Psychology Research Group. Dr. Tristram Wyatt is the Director of Distance and OnlineLearning at the University of Oxford, Oxford, UK and also a research associate at the Department of Zoology.
This book is written around the central message that collectivist societies produce security, but destroy trust. In collectivist societies, people are connected through networks of strong personal ties where the behavior of all agents is constantly monitored and controlled. As a result, individuals in collectivist networks are assured that others will abide by social norms, and gain a sense of security erroneously thought of as "trust." However, this book argues that this security is not truly trust, based on beliefs regarding the integrity of others, but assurance, based on the system of mutual control within the network. In collectivist societies, security is assured insofar as people stay within the network, but people do not trust in the benevolence of human nature. On the one hand, transaction costs are reduced within collectivist networks, as once accepted into a network the risk of being maltreated is minimized. However, joining the network requires individuals to pay opportunity cost, that is, they pay a cost by forgoing potentially superior opportunities outside the security of the network. In this era of globalization, people from traditionally collectivistic societies face the challenge of learning how to free themselves from the security of such collectivistic networks in order to explore the opportunities open to them elsewhere. This book presents research investigating how the minds of individuals are shaped by the conflict between maintaining security inside closed networks of strong ties, and venturing outside of the network to seek out new opportunities.
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.
Cutting edge technologies can propel a simple finding in basic science to a concept that can be of immense value to the society. While applying novel techniques to unravel the mysteries of biological processes, an offshoot of applied branch emerged. This field, which is now widely referred to as Translational Research utilizes basic science findings and translates these findings into innovative concepts for the benefit of mankind. This branch of science has evolved into a multidisciplinary juggernaut encompassing all known fields of science as varied as biomedicine, environment, law, economics, sociology, etc. With the ever increasing interest in this branch and the dreams and aspirations that this field can bring, basic science researchers are now taking a bold step into this new realm, merging different fields of knowledge to come up with novel inventions. This book "Translational research in environmental and occupational stress" provides and insight into the research that led to discoveries, inventions and development of novel technologies which will have a tremendous impact on the future of mankind.
Originally published in 1953, this is a classic study in animal behaviour, drawing on the author's own extraordinary studies of insects, fish, and birds, as well as on the literature. The concept 'community' is taken in its widest sense to include all types of association of individuals, not only flocks and herds, but also the family, the pair, and even two animals engaged in combat. The author received the Nobel Prize for his work in this field in 1973.
Movement, dispersal, and migration on land, in the air, and in water, are pervading features of animal life. They are performed by a huge variety of organisms, from the smallest protozoans to the largest whales, and can extend over widely different distance scales, from the microscopic to global. Integrating the study of movement, dispersal, and migration is crucial for a detailed understanding of the spatial scale of adaptation, and for analysing the consequences of landscape and climate change as well as of invasive species. This novel book adopts a broad, cross-taxonomic approach to animal movement across both temporal and spatial scales, addressing how and why animals move, and in what ways they differ in their locomotion and navigation performance. Written by an integrated team of leading researchers, the book synthesizes our current knowledge of the genetics of movement, including gene flow and local adaptations, whilst providing a future perspective on how patterns of animal migration may change over time together with their potential evolutionary consequences. Novel technologies for tracking the movement of organisms across scales are also discussed, ranging from satellite devices for tracking global migrations to nanotechnology that can follow animals only a millimetre in size. Animal Movement Across Scales is particularly suitable for graduate level students taking courses in spatial animal ecology, animal migration, and 'movement ecology', as well as providing a source of fresh ideas and opinions for those already active within the field. It will also be of interest and use to a broader audience of professional biologists interested in animal movements and migrations.
Myth and media typically cast animals we consider predators or carnivores as unthinking killers-dangerous, unpredictable, and devoid of emotion. But is this portrait valid? By exploring their inner lives, this pioneering book refutes the many misperceptions that hide the true nature of these animals. We discover that great white sharks express tender maternal feelings, rattlesnakes make friends, orcas abide by an ancient moral code, and much more. Using the combined lenses of natural history, neuroscience, and psychology, G. A. Bradshaw describes how predators share the rainbow of emotions that humans experience, including psychological trauma. Renowned for leading research on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in elephants and other species, Bradshaw decries the irrational thinking behind wildlife policies that equate killing carnivores with "conservation." In its place, she proposes a new, ethical approach to coexistence with the planet's fiercest animals. |
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