Deck 8: Principles of Communication

Question 1

The evolution of communication requires

A) fitness benefits for both the sender and the receiver.
B) signal perception by the receiver and signal production by the sender.
C) the relay of information via cues.
D) selection pressure only on the sender of a signal.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

The elbow orchid sends a deceitful signal to a male wasp, who will sometimes mistakenly fly to the orchid, mistaking it for a female. Why does this maladaptive male response persist, despite the costs it incurs in time and energy?

A) The fitness gains that male wasps gain on average for responding to the signal outweigh the fitness losses of those individuals that are deceived.
B) The male wasp's response is a by-product of a different adaptation, so it persists despite its fitness costs.
C) The orchid's signal is recently evolved, and wasps haven't yet adapted in response.
D) The elbow orchid is relaying a multicomponent signal, which contains additional beneficial information for the wasp.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

White-tailed deer raise their tails when they spot a predator approaching; the predator typically gives up its pursuit once it knows that the faster prey species has seen it. This is an example of

A) cueing.
B) eavesdropping.
C) honest signaling.
D) deceitful signaling.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The American kestrel is a small falcon that is occasionally taken as prey by larger birds. It has two large spots on the back of its head that somewhat resemble large eyes. This is an example of

A) cueing.
B) eavesdropping.
C) honest signaling.
D) deceitful signaling.

Question 5

Both the sender and receiver of a signal benefit from the transfer of information. This is an example of

A) cueing.
B) eavesdropping.
C) honest signaling.
D) deceitful signaling.

Question 6

A hunting owl hears the rustling of a mouse while it is foraging. This is an example of

A) cueing.
B) eavesdropping.
C) honest signaling.
D) deceitful signaling.

Question 7

Refer to the figure.
These findings about the male red-collared widowbird's tail length and red collar show that

A) a male's red collar area and tail length are unrelated.
B) resident males have a longer tail but a smaller red collar area than floater males.
C) males with a larger red collar area also have a shorter tail length.
D) as a male's tail length increases, his red collar area also increases.

Question 8

Refer to the figure.
Based on these findings, the male red-collared widowbird's tail length and red collar are

A) deceitful signals because they incur a cost to the receiver.
B) honest signals because males are incapable of cheating the system by investing in both traits.
C) badges of status because they indicate the male's dominance status.
D) redundant signals because they increase robustness of the same information.

Question 9

Refer to the figure.
These results show that

A) ground-nesting warblers beg more than tree-nesting warblers.
B) some ground-nesting warblers, such as the black-and-white and Louisiana waterthrush, beg at lower frequencies than tree-nesting warblers.
C) both tree-nesting and ground-nesting warbler chicks beg at a high sound frequency.
D) tree-nesting warblers beg at a lower sound frequency than ground-nesting warblers.

Question 10

Refer to the figure.
Calls at higher frequencies do not travel as far as calls at lower frequencies. This suggests that the begging frequencies of ground-nesting warblers are

A) an adaptation to evade eavesdropping by predators due to their higher nest exposure.
B) non-adaptive per se, but the by-product of another adaptive trait.
C) an honest signal that communicates the chick's health to its parents.
D) an adaptation that evolved in an ancestor of both tree and ground nesting warblers.

Question 11

Refer to the figure.
These findings most directly support the

A) by-product hypothesis, in which the pseudopenis developed as a by-product of some other adaptive change that had positive fitness effects.
B) extra-androgen hypothesis, which states that the female pseudopenis develops as a result of the exposure in utero to elevated androgens.
C) submission hypothesis, which states that the pseudopenis signals subordination or willingness to bond with other individuals.
D) social-bonding hypothesis, which states that the pseudopenis promotes the formation of cooperative coalitions.

Question 12

Refer to the figure.
Based on these results, the push-up threat display of male side-blotched lizards is a(n)

A) deceitful signal that males use to fake a greater strength than they actually possess.
B) signal that other rival males eavesdrop on, thus incurring a cost to the displaying male.
C) honest signal that advertises the male's fighting capacity.
D) cue that transfers information but did not coevolve between the sender and receiver.

Question 13

According to Gould's "panda principle"

A) selection can only act on traits that already exist.
B) signals can evolve even when they are maladaptive.
C) communication coevolves between signal senders and receivers.
D) sensory systems are under selection to optimize behaviors according to the specific environment.

Question 14

A spider researcher, Pia Stålhandske, knew that males of Pisaura mirabilis offer their mates a nuptial gift-a prey item, such as a cricket-whose acceptance by the female is critical for male mating success. Males wrap their generally dark-colored food gifts in white silk. Stålhandske wondered if the males wrapped their gifts to make them look like the white, silk-covered egg sacs that mated females make and protect by holding them in their jaws until the spiderlings hatch.
The last sentence in the paragraph above constitutes

A) a causal question.
B) a hypothesis.
C) a prediction.
D) test evidence.

Question 15

A spider researcher, Pia Stålhandske, knew that males of Pisaura mirabilis offer their mates a nuptial gift-a prey item, such as a cricket-whose acceptance by the female is critical for male mating success. Males wrap their generally dark-colored food gifts in white silk. Stålhandske wondered if the males wrapped their gifts to make them look like the white, silk-covered egg sacs that mated females make and protect by holding them in their jaws until the spiderlings hatch.
What theory was Stålhandske using to explore this species' courtship behavior?

A) Sensory exploitation
B) Ritualization
C) Signal
D) Descent with modification

Question 16

A spider researcher, Pia Stålhandske, knew that males of Pisaura mirabilis offer their mates a nuptial gift-a prey item, such as a cricket-whose acceptance by the female is critical for male mating success. Males wrap their generally dark-colored food gifts in white silk. Stålhandske wondered if the males wrapped their gifts to make them look like the white, silk-covered egg sacs that mated females make and protect by holding them in their jaws until the spiderlings hatch.
Which prediction might Stålhandske have felt could be correct, given her presumption that males might be making their nuptial gifts look like egg sacs?

A) The time for a female to accept a nuptial gift should be less for prey covered in silk that has been experimentally colored brown instead of white.
B) Natural silk-covered prey should not be comparable in light reflectance to silken egg sacs.
C) Females should be prepared to accept silken egg sacs that had been taken from them and offered back as if they were nuptial gifts.
D) Males that offer nuptial gifts should be larger than males that fail to do so.

Question 17

What information is communicated through the waggle dance of the honeybee? Give a plausible hypothesis for the origin of this behavior.

Question 18

Refer to the figure.
Each data point on the graph represents a population of guppies. What can be inferred from the data concerning the female guppies' interest in orange foods and the male guppies' orange coloring? State a hypothesis for why males are orange.

Question 19

Elaborate male traits that are used in mate choice of birds in a given species B are entirely absent in distantly related sister taxon,A. However, males of species A that are artificially altered to possess these elaborate traits are preferred by females of species,A. Which is more likely to have evolved first in species B, the male trait or the female preference?

Question 20

In animal communication, why does it benefit a sender to use honest signaling for body size and shape?

Question 21

How does a sensory drive contribute to sensory exploitation and the evolution of signals via preexisting biases?

Question 22

Female spotted hyenas have a pseudopenis that is used in greeting displays. Describe a potential hypothesis for the evolution of the pseudopenis if the pseudopenis is non-adaptive, and if the pseudopenis is adaptive.