Syllabus
Animal Behavior, Fall 2008
EPOB 3240
Michael Breed, Office: Ramaley
N333, Porter Biosciences B116, Telephone: 2-7687
Email: michael.breed@colorado.edu
Office Hours: Tuesdays, 3:00-5:00,
Thursdays 2:00-5:00
Class: TR 12:30PM-1:45PM Room ATLS
100
Labs: Ramaley C209
Text: Alcock, J. Animal Behavior 8th
Ed.
Lab Manual: Tillberg, Breed and
Hinners, Field and Laboratory Exercises in Animal Behavior
Web text: www.animalbehavioronline.com
Syllabus and other course related
postings:
http://spot.colorado.edu/~breed/animbehav.html or
http://www.colorado.edu/eeb/courses/3240mbreed/
Teaching Assistants
(email the is best way to contact your TA):
Carolina Quintero
Labs: Tuesday morning and
afternoon
Office hours:
Office:
email: Carolina.quintero@colorado.edu
Sarah Wagner
Labs:
Office hours:
Office:
email: Sarah.K.Wagner@Colorado.EDU
Mariana Cadavid
Labs:
Office: Ramaley N333
Office hours: Tuesdays 11-12,
4-5
email: mariana.cadavid@colorado.edu
Chrissy Mott
email: c_mott44@yahoo.com
Undergraduate TAs:
Rhonda Burge, John Lariviere
|
Date |
Topic |
Reading in Alcock and online text |
|
08-26-08 |
Chapter 1 in Alcock |
|
|
08-28-08 |
Chapters 5 and 6 in Alcock,
which provide important background information |
|
|
09-02-08 |
Chapter 9 in Alcock |
|
|
|
|
|
|
09-9-08 |
Behavioral genetics, how are animals constrained by their genes? |
|
|
09-11-08 |
|
|
|
09-16-08 |
||
|
09-18-08 |
Chapter 2 in Alcock |
|
|
09-23-08 |
Chapter 4, pages 130-143, and
Chapter 8, pages 242-263, in Alcock |
|
|
09-25-08 |
Navigation 2 |
|
|
09-30-08 |
Foraging |
Chapter 7 in Alcock |
|
10-02-08 |
Foraging 2 |
|
|
10-07-08 |
Foraging 3 |
|
|
10-09-08 |
Self-defense |
|
|
10-14-08 |
Territoriality |
Chapter 6 in Alcock |
|
10-16-08 |
Male and female: the biology of gender differences |
Chapter 8, pages 264-275 in
Alcock |
|
10-21-08 |
Mating systems |
Chapter 5, pages 160-174, and Chapter 10 in Alcock |
|
10-23-08 |
Exam I (covers material through October 16) |
Chapter 11 in Alcock |
|
10-28-08 |
Mating systems 2 |
|
|
10-30-08 |
Mating systems 3 |
|
|
11-04-08 |
Parental behavior |
Chapter 12 in Alcock |
|
11-06-08 |
The ugly side of animal behavior: infanticide and siblicide |
|
|
11-11-08 |
Kin recognition |
|
|
11-13-08 |
Kin selection and the evolution of cooperation |
|
|
11-18-08 |
Cooperation 2 |
|
|
11-20-08 |
Cooperation 3 |
|
|
11-27-08 |
Fall Break --no class |
Chapter 13 in Alcock |
|
11-29-08 |
Thanksgiving--no class |
|
|
12-04-08 |
Cooperation 4 The social insects |
|
|
12-06-08 |
Cognition I |
|
|
12-11-08 |
Cognition II |
|
Final Exam:
Saturday, December 13th, 7:30am to 10:00am
University legal syllabus Information about course and University
policies concerning sexual harassment, students with disabilities, religious
observances, classroom behavior, and the honor code.
Lab Schedule
All labs meet in Ramaley C209
Week of:
September 1 Pollination. Lab Manual
Chapter 4
September 8 Foraging: Introduction
to semester papers or projects. Lab Manual Chapters 1 and 5
September 15 Navigation. Project
or paper topic due Lab
Manual Chapter 6
September 22 Dominance-discovery
trade-offs Lab Manual Chapter 3
September 29 Sensory physiology
Lab Manual Chapter 16
October 6 Vigilance. Project
plan or paper outline due
Lab Manual Chapter 8
October 13 Pheromones. Lab Manual
Chapter 11
October 20 Habitat preferences. Paper
or project bibliography due
Lab Manual Chapter 10
October 27 Bettas I Learning Lab
Manual Chapters 12 and 13
November 3 Bettas II.
Fighting in fish
November 10 Bettas III. Mate choice in bettas
Optional draft review for Betta papers and term papers
November 17 Game theory Lab
Manual Chapter 9 Betta lab write-up due in lab this week
November 24 No
Labs--Thanksgiving Break
December 1 Semester
projects: Oral reports, semester papers due Lab Manual Chapter 2
Course Grade Calculations:
Exam I: 30%
In-class five minute essays: 10%
Final: 30%
Lab: 30%
Lab grading:
Participation: 10%
Betta paper: 15%
Semester Paper or Project: 75%
Laboratory grading policies:
Laboratory attendance is required.
You may miss one lab without penalty. Each subsequent missed lab will result in
a 10% (one letter grade) penalty on your semester laboratory grade.
Students may choose to either write
a term paper based on library research or to do an independent investigation
for their semester project.
Please pay attention to the
deadlines for project and paper topics, plans or outlines, and turning in the
final version. The penalty for a missed (either turning in the work late or not
at all) paper or project deadline is 10% (one letter grade) of the paper or
project grade.