代写NSCI6739: Behavioural Ecology

NSCI6739: Behavioural Ecology

Report: Ideal Free Distribution

Assignment Aim: To design and carryout a behavioural study in the field and collate this information into a report.

Learning outcomes covered

LO3	Evaluate the evolution of animal communication, foraging and social behaviour.
LO4	Evaluate the evolutionary basis for sexual selection and mating systems.
LO5	Develop and evaluate experiments to test behaviour.

Submission instructions

•    Upload a copy of your assignment to the Turnitin drop box (on Moodle) by 11:59pm on the due date (see assessmentstab on Moodle).

•     You can upload to the Turnitin drop box prior to the due date as many times as you like to check  your Turnitin Similarity score. Aim to submit your assessment early enough to review the Turnitin score and make any necessary adjustments.

•    If you are having trouble uploading your assignment, please email your lecturer with your complete assignment attached as soon as possible before the due date/time.

•    As per the Unitec’s Assessment Submission, late submissions will incura late penalty of 10% per     day and will not be marked if submitted more than five days after the due date. Exceptions will be given only to students who have communicated with the course coordinator prior to the due date and/or have an accepted Affected Performance Consideration (APC). Please read the APC and

Extension Guidelines for Students carefully – it is your responsibility to submit all assessments on  time.

Writing

•    Evidence from peer-reviewed scientific literature should be included to support ALL statements and examples used; cited appropriately usingAPA 7th  Ed. referencing style.

•    Plagiarism will result in Academic Misconduct investigation.  Copying work from others, including your peers is not acceptable. Learn more about plagiarism and how to avoid ithere.

•    The use Generative Artificial Intelligence (Gen AI) tools such as ChatGPT, Bard, Grammarly Go etc    is not allowed in this course for any writing, including summarising texts on the subject.

Plagiarism regulations will apply to any assessment deemed to have used AI. You may, however, use these methods to help you perform. literature searches or to get help on a topic, as long as all written work produced is your own. If in doubt, ask your lecturer.

•    You may continue to use spelling/grammar checkers, e.g., Microsoft spell-check, and Grammarly and referencing software,e.g., Endnote and Mendeley.

•    An academic style. of writing is required. See theUnitec Library’s Study Toolboxfor academic  writing guidelines OR contact theAcademic Learning Advisorsfor help with writing and proof reading.

•    Please ensure you have proofread your assessment prior to submission. Use correct grammar and spelling and appropriate writing features for an academic assignment, e.g. correct sentence and paragraph structure.

•    Ensure correct technical terminology is used where appropriate.

•    If you exceed the total word count as stated above, any words following this will not be marked by your lecturer.

Assignment instructions

The ideal free distribution (IFD) is an ecological theory that predicts how animals distribute themselves in their environment to maximize their fitness and minimize competition for resources. The IFD model assumes that animals: Have perfect knowledge of the resource supply and distribution of competitors, Can move between patches without cost, Have equal food acquisition ability, Share resources equally, and Have equal competitive abilities.

The IFD model predicts that animals will distribute themselves proportionally to the distribution of resources across patches. This means that each animal will move to the patch where they can gain the most, and at equilibrium, the intake rate will be equal across patches and between competitors.

The aim of this field experiment is to determine whether the distribution of birds in relation to food resources is consistent with that expected under the ideal free distribution (IFD). You will design a method to collect a dataseton bird distributions at two sites and explain how your data relate to the IFD theory. To do this, you can work on ducks, pukeko, sparrows, pigeons or gulls. Most of these birds are present on campus or Western Springs. They are generally easy to find in groups and to attract with food (preferentially grains or soaked wholemeal bread).

Design and carry outfield experiments to answer the following questions:  

1.    Does your study animal follow an ideal free distribution when given different amounts of

resources at two feeding sites? This acts as your baseline experiment to test whether birds follow  the IFD in the absence of other potentially confounding factors.

2.    Choose ONE of below (a, b, cord) to test whether the following factors affect the IFD and the distribution of individuals. Some of these test assumptions of the IFD, while others test whether  the IFD holds in the presence of potentially perturbing forces.

a.   Rate of release of resources

What happens to the IFD when animals have to choose between patches with an all at once versus slow but continuous release of resources? Do they still follow the IFD?

b.   Competitive asymmetry

Does the presence of one or several particularly aggressive individuals modify the distribution of individuals?

c.   Memory

Are birds using memory to choose a patch rather than visual assessment? Can the birds remember which feeding site is more advantageous? [this requires using the same group of birds for several feeding trials]

d.   Distance between patches

Distance between patches may inhibit an animal’s ability to visually assess the quality of each  patch. Do the birds visually assess the value of each patch? Does the accuracy of assessment decrease with distance? [this requires using the same group of birds for several feeding trials]

3.    What potential biases in your methods could have influenced the distribution/foraging behaviour of the birds?

Experimental Tasks

4.    Work in groups of 3–5 students to perform. the experiment. Decide which types of behavioural data sampling methods and experimental design are the most appropriate for your two experiments.

5.    Conduct an experiment to test Question 1. This experiment will act as a baseline to which your results from Question 2 will be compared. This means you may have to think about the design of both experiments and how they work together before performing the first experiment, particularly if your second experiment works by manipulating one aspect of the first experiment while keeping all other factors the same.

Start a simple observation with two different amounts of food provided at two feeding sites

simultaneously. Carryout at least four replicate trials to calculate means and standard errors for each feeding site. Limit each experimental observation to less than 20 minutes and only provide a limited amount of food overall and in bite-size portions.

6.    Select one of the options in Question 2 (a, b, cord) and modify your experimental protocol

accordingly to answer your selected question. Conduct the same number replicates and groups as your baseline experiment. Keep everything the same across the two experiments as far as possible (total bird numbers may change), apart from your experimental variable.

7.    Observe and think about any potential biases that may have also affected the behaviour of the birds during your experiments (Question 3).

Tasks for submission  

On your own, write up your assignment as a scientific report. Although you worked together with others to conduct the experiment, the write-up must be your own. Use the following headings:

8.    Abstract: An abstract is a summary of each of the sections below (Intro, Methods, Results,

Discussion). Generally a couple of sentences is reserved for each section, which outline the main points. An abstract should be between 200 and 250 words. It is probably best written last.

9.    Introduction: Provide background information from the peer-reviewed literature about the IFD

theory, and relevant background on the ecology/social behaviour of your study species as it might  relate to the IFD, the objectives of your experiment, and predictions in three paragraphs.

10.  Methods: State your research (alternate) hypotheses for Q1 and your chosen option in Q2.

Describe your experimental design (i.e. methods for each experiment) and the type of data

collected. You can use illustrations, photographs and/or tables. Make sure these are numbered, have detailed captions, and are referenced in the text.

11.  Results: Compare and present your results in tabulated and graph form, i.e. synthesised figures

and tables (i.e. not raw data) accompanied by a short in-text description of your results. Calculate means and standard errors for your data that will aid comparisons between groups. Make sure

your figures and tables are numbered, have detailed captions, and are referenced in the text. In this section you can also add any relevant anecdotal observations or mention any errors that occurred during the data recording.

12.  Discussion : State your main findings clearly, relating your discussion to your predictions and

hypotheses. Interpret your results in light of IFD theory, using published past studies on the topic to explain or contrast your findings. Discuss the potential limitations and biases in your study or your experimental design.

Bibliography and helpful resources on IFD and sampling methods

Note, you may wish to search for other references that are relevant to the variable you have tested in Question 2 (a,b,c,or d).

•     Altmann, J. 1974. Observational study of behaviour: sampling methods. Behaviour 48: 227-265.

•     Harper D. G. C. 1982. Competitive Foraging in Mallards: ‘Ideal Free’ Ducks. Animal Behaviour 30: 575-584.

•     Martin, P., & Bateson, P. P. G. 1993. Measuring behaviour: an introductory guide. Cambridge University Press.

•     Ploget, B. J. & Yasukawa, K. 2003. Exploring animal behaviour in laboratory and field. Academic Press, San Diego.

•     Baum, W.M., and Kraft,J.R., 1998. Group choice: competition, travel and the ideal free distribution. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behaviour 69: 227-245.

•     Harper, D.G.C., 1982. Competitive foraging in mallards: 'ideal free' ducks. Animal Behaviour 30: 575-584.

•     Kennedy, M., and Gray, R.D., 1993. Can ecological theory predict the distribution of foraging animals? A critical analysis of experiments on the ideal free distribution. Oikos 68: 158-166.

•     Milinski, M.  1979.  An evolutionarily stable feeding strategy in sticklebacks.  Zeitschrift fur Tierpsychologie 51:36-40.

•     Milinski, M. and Parker, G.A., 1991. Competition for resources. In: Krebs, J.R. and Davies, N.B.,

Editors, 1991. Behavioural Ecology, An Evolutionary Approach (3rd Edition), Blackwell Scientific, Oxford: 137-168.

•     An IFD experiment on pigeons:www.andrewgray.com/essays/pigeons.htm

•     Milinski, M. 1994. Long-Term Memory for Food Patches and Implications for Ideal Free Distributions in Sticklebacks. Ecology 75(4): 1150-1156

NSCI 6739 Assignment One Marking Schedule

Area	Available Marks	Marks breakdown
General	4
Clarity of communication Ideas, information and discussion are clear and easily understood. Word limit: 1,500 words (excluding references).		2
References Use of at least 4 peer-reviewed papers or books. Consistent referencing style (APA 7th).		2
Abstract	4
Abstract summarises main points from Intro, Methods, Results, Discussion in ≤ 250 words.		4
Introduction	10
Background to IFD from peer-reviewed literature is given that is relevant to the research questions, and which forms a logical argument throughout.		5
Background on study species given that is relevant to the research questions.		2
Objectives and predictions of the study are clearly outlined.		3
Methods	7
Justification of data recording method is given.		2
Description of field experimental design is clearly presented.		5
Results	12
In-text description of results outlines key results, values, and is backed up by figures and tables without repetition.		6
Presentation of synthesised figures and tables (not raw data) with appropriate captions, referred to in text.		6
Discussion	13
Discussion highlights main findings and draws conclusions from these without repeating results.		3
Discussion puts findings into context of previously published literature; compares and contrasts with previously published findings on the research question.		6
Discussion of the limitations and potential biases of the experimental methods.		3
TOTAL	50