Lecture 7 - Behavior and Animal Welfare

Behavioral diversity (types) Behavioral frequency (how often) Temporal patterns (consistency) Behavioral function (purpose)

Latency Frequency Duration Intensity

The interval between stimulation and response • measured in units of time • period of observation is usually limited

The number of occurrences of the behavior pattern per unit of time • rate of occurrence • ex feeding bouts, pressing a lever 2x/min

Length of time for which a single behavior occurs • actual units or as percentage

No universal definition - how extreme the behavior is Ex vocalization or lameness

• relatively short duration • Discrete body movements (biting, kicking) • vocalizations

-relatively long duration Ex lying

A catalogue of the discrete species typical behavior patterns that form the basic repertoire of the species

R - all the species behaviors C - part of the species behaviors also known as an ethogram

• no constraints on the duration of the observation period, how many individuals are observed, or what data or observations are recorded • usually results in copious field notes • often used when behaviors of interest are being identified

• observing a dingle individual of a particular species, usually for a specified period of time • often used to study specific behavior patterns • the observer recorded all instances of the behavior under study within a given time interval

• observer focuses on a particular behavior rather than an individual • provides the rate of occurrence of a behavior (# occurrences/unit of time) • ex alarms calls given in a group of monkeys

• observer censuses a large number of individuals and records their behavior at the instant they are observed • must be done relatively quickly • usually restricted to broad categories of behavior such as “foraging”, “flying”, or “resting” • may take a few seconds or several minutes

• exact and faithful record of what behavior - measuring true frequencies and durations and the time when behaviors start and stop

• instantaneous (what is happening at that moment when you took the info) • one zero (did it happen or not in given period of time)