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Alpha (ethology)
In the zoological field of ethology, a dominance hierarchy (formerly and colloquially called a pecking order) is a type of social hierarchy that arises when members of animal social groups interact, creating a ranking system. Different types of interactions can result in dominance depending on the species, including ritualized displays of aggression or direct physical violence. In social living groups, members are likely to compete for access to limited resources and mating opportunities. Rather than fighting each time they meet, individuals of the same sex establish a relative rank, with higher-ranking individuals often gaining more access to resources and mates. Based on repetitive interactions, a social order is created that is subject to change each time a dominant animal is challenged by a subordinate one. Definitions Dominance is an individual's preferential access to resources over another based on coercive capacity based on strength, threat, and intimidation, com ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mandrillus Sphinx (alpha Male)
The mandrill (''Mandrillus sphinx'') is a large Old World monkey native to west central Africa. It is one of the most colorful mammals in the world, with red and blue skin on its face and posterior. The species is Sexual dimorphism, sexually dimorphic, as males have a larger body, longer canine teeth and brighter coloring. Its closest living relative is the Drill (animal), drill, with which it shares the genus ''Mandrillus''. Both species were traditionally thought to be baboons, but further evidence has shown that they are more closely related to white-eyelid mangabeys. Mandrills mainly live in tropical rainforests but will also travel across savannas. They are Diurnality, active during the day and spend most of their time on the ground. Their preferred foods are fruit and seeds, but mandrills will consume leaves, piths, mushrooms, and animals from insects to juvenile bay duiker. Mandrills live in large, stable groups known as "hordes" which can number in the hundreds. Femal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bonnet Macaque
The bonnet macaque (''Macaca radiata''), also known as zati,Chambers English Dictionary is a species of macaque endemism, endemic to southern India. Its distribution is limited by the Indian Ocean on three sides and the Godavari River, Godavari and Tapti Rivers, along with its related competitor the rhesus macaque in the north. Land use changes in the last few decades have resulted in changes in its distribution boundaries with the rhesus macaque, raising concern for its status in the wild. The bonnet macaque is diurnality, diurnal, arboreal, and terrestrial. Males have a head-body length of with a tail while females are with a tail. Males weigh and females . It can live up to 35 years in captivity. The bonnet macaque feeds on fruits, nuts, seeds, flowers, invertebrates, and cereals. In southern India, this macaque exists as commensal to humans, feeding on food given by humans and raiding crops and houses. Taxonomy Two subspecies of bonnet macaques have been identified: ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flat Lizard
''Platysaurus'' is a genus of lizards, commonly known as flat lizards for their flat backs, in the family Cordylidae. Geographic range All species in the genus ''Platysaurus'' live in isolated populations in southern Africa. They are found in Mozambique, Zimbabwe, eastern Botswana, southern Namibia and northern and western South Africa. Description The species of ''Platysaurus'' exhibit sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different Morphology (biology), morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecy, di .... Females and juveniles often have black or brown backs with white stripes, while males are much more colored. Also, males are somewhat larger than females. Species The described species are: *'' Platysaurus attenboroughi'' – Attenborough's flat lizard *'' Platysaurus broadleyi'' – Broadley's flat lizard or Augrabies fla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pheromone
A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavior of the receiving individuals. There are ''alarm signal, alarm pheromones'', ''food trail pheromones'', ''sex pheromones'', and many others that affect behavior or physiology. Pheromones are used by many organisms, from basic unicellular prokaryotes to complex multicellular eukaryotes. Their use among insects has been particularly well documented. In addition, some vertebrates, plants and ciliates communicate by using pheromones. The ecological functions and evolution of pheromones are a major topic of research in the field of chemical ecology. Background The portmanteau word "pheromone" was coined by Peter Karlson and Martin Lüscher in 1959, based on the Greek language, Greek () and (). Pheromones are also sometimes classified as ec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burying Beetle
Burying beetles or sexton beetles, genus ''Nicrophorus'', are the best-known members of the family Silphidae (carrion beetles). Most of these beetles are black with red markings on the Elytron, elytra (forewings). Burying beetles are true to their name—they bury the carcasses of small vertebrates such as birds and rodents as a Necrophagy, food source for their larvae; this makes them carnivorous. They are unusual among insects in that both the male and female parents take Bi-parental care, care of the brood. The genus name is sometimes spelled ''Necrophorus'' in older texts: this was an unjustified Emendation (taxonomy), emendation by Carl Peter Thunberg (1789) of Fabricius's original name, and is not valid under the ICZN. The American burying beetle (''Nicrophorus americanus'') has been on the U.S. Endangered species, endangered species list since 1989. This species was native to 35 U.S. states but now is only known to exist in 9. Reproduction Burying beetles have large clu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bighorn Sheep
The bighorn sheep (''Ovis canadensis'') is a species of Ovis, sheep native to North America. It is named for its large Horn (anatomy), horns. A pair of horns may weigh up to ; the sheep typically weigh up to . Recent genetic testing indicates three distinct subspecies of ''Ovis canadensis'', one of which is endangered: Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep, ''O. c. sierrae''. Sheep originally crossed to North America over the Beringia, Bering Land Bridge from Siberia; the population in North America peaked in the millions, and the bighorn sheep entered into the mythology of Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Native Americans. By 1900, the population had crashed to several thousand due to diseases introduced through European livestock and overhunting. Taxonomy and genetics ''Ovis canadensis'' is one of two species of mountain Ovis, sheep in North America; the other species being ''O. dalli'', the Dall sheep. Wild sheep crossed the Bering land bridge from Siberia into Alaska during the Pl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Testosterone
Testosterone is the primary male sex hormone and androgen in Male, males. In humans, testosterone plays a key role in the development of Male reproductive system, male reproductive tissues such as testicles and prostate, as well as promoting secondary sexual characteristics such as increased muscle and bone mass, and the growth of androgenic hair, body hair. It is associated with increased aggression, sex drive, Dominance hierarchy, dominance, courtship display, and a wide range of behavioral characteristics. In addition, testosterone in both sexes is involved in health and well-being, where it has a significant effect on overall mood, cognition, social and sexual behavior, metabolism and energy output, the cardiovascular system, and in the prevention of osteoporosis. Insufficient levels of testosterone in men may lead to abnormalities including frailty, accumulation of adipose fat tissue within the body, anxiety and depression, sexual performance issues, and bone loss. Excessiv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baboon
Baboons are primates comprising the biology, genus ''Papio'', one of the 23 genera of Old World monkeys, in the family Cercopithecidae. There are six species of baboon: the hamadryas baboon, the Guinea baboon, the olive baboon, the yellow baboon, the Kinda baboon and the chacma baboon. Each species is native to one of six areas of Africa and the hamadryas baboon is also native to part of the Arabian Peninsula. Baboons are among the largest non-hominoid primates and have existed for at least two million years. Baboons vary in size and weight depending on the species. The smallest, the Kinda baboon, is in length and weighs only , while the largest, the chacma baboon, is up to in length and weighs . All baboons have long, dog-like muzzles, heavy, powerful jaws with sharp canine teeth, close-set eyes, thick fur except on their muzzles, short tails, and nerveless, hairless pads of skin on their protruding buttocks called callosity, ischial callosities that provide for sitting co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blackwell Science
Wiley-Blackwell is an international scientific, technical, medical, and scholarly publishing business of John Wiley & Sons. It was formed by the merger of John Wiley & Sons Global Scientific, Technical, and Medical business with Blackwell Publishing in 2007. Wiley-Blackwell is now an imprint that publishes a diverse range of academic and professional fields, including biology, medicine, physical sciences, technology, social science, and the humanities. Blackwell Publishing history Blackwell Publishing was formed by the 2001 merger of two Oxford-based academic publishing companies, Blackwell Science, founded in 1939 as Blackwell Scientific Publishing, and Blackwell Publishers, founded in 1922 as Basil Blackwell & Mott. Blackwell Publishers, founded in 1926, had its origins in the 19th century Blackwell's family bookshop and publishing business. The merger between the two publishing companies created the world's leading learned society publisher. The group then acquired BMJ Book ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
European Pied Flycatcher
The European pied flycatcher (''Ficedula hypoleuca'') is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family. One of the four species of Western Palearctic black-and-white flycatchers, it bird hybrid, hybridises to a limited extent with the collared flycatcher. It breeds in most of Europe and across the Western Palearctic. It is migratory, wintering mainly in tropical Africa. It usually builds its nests in holes on oak trees. This species practices Polygyny in animals, polygyny, usually bigamy, with the male travelling large distances to acquire a second mate. The male will mate with the secondary female and then return to the primary female in order to help with aspects of child rearing, such as feeding. The European pied flycatcher is mainly insectivorous, although its diet also includes other arthropods. This species commonly feeds on caterpillars, flies, spiders, ants, bees and similar prey. The European pied flycatcher has a very large range and population size and s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Tit
The great tit (''Parus major'') is a small passerine bird in the tit family Paridae. It is a widespread and common species throughout Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia and east across the Palearctic to the Amur River, south to parts of North Africa where it is generally resident in any sort of woodland; most great tits do not migrate except in extremely harsh winters. Until 2005 this species was lumped with numerous other subspecies. DNA studies have shown these other subspecies to be distinct from the great tit and these have now been separated as two distinct species, the cinereous tit (''Parus cinereus'') of southern Asia, and the Japanese tit (''Parus minor'') of East Asia. The great tit remains the most widespread species in the genus ''Parus''. The great tit is a distinctive bird with a black head and neck, prominent white cheeks, olive upperparts and yellow underparts, with some variation amongst the numerous subspecies. It is predominantly insectivorous in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Melipona Subnitida
''Melipona subnitida'' is a neotropical bee species in the Apidae family found in the dry areas of Northeastern Brazil. This species of stingless bees practices single mating, monogynous habits. This species nests in hollow trunks of living trees, where the workers create a vertical colony. The dominance hierarchy of these perennial colonies is defined by one queen who controls her workers. Out of all of the stingless bees, ''M. subnitida'' is fairly profitable given its ability to pollinate and create honey. There is ongoing field research on the behavioral ecology of this species. Taxonomy and phylogeny ''Melipona subnitida'' is part of the family Apidae. This species is within the tribe Meliponini ("stingless bees"), and was originally described by Adolpho Ducke, a Brazilian researcher. Description and identification The ''Melipona subnitida'' species is divided into the queen, female workers, and males within each colony. They are identifiable by their obscure metasomal ba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
