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  • About
  • The Global ETD Search service is a free service for researchers to find electronic theses and dissertations. This service is provided by the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations.
    Our metadata is collected from universities around the world. If you manage a university/consortium/country archive and want to be added, details can be found on the NDLTD website.
1

Comparative Cognitive Development and Endocrinology in Pan and Homo

Wobber, Victoria Elizabeth 21 June 2014 (has links)
Key insights into the evolutionary origins of human social behavior can be gained via study of our closest living relatives, bonobos (Pan paniscus) and chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Despite being equally related to humans, these two species differ importantly in aspects of their morphology, physiology, behavior, and cognition. Morphological comparisons reveal numerous traits in bonobos that can be viewed as paedomorphic, or juvenile, relative to chimpanzees. Meanwhile, comparisons of endocrinology in the two species suggest that aspects of steroid physiology have changed significantly in bonobos in line with their reductions in male mating competition. Based on this evidence, I tested the hypothesis that behavioral and cognitive differences between bonobos and chimpanzees derive from changes in their 1) developmental trajectories of behavioral and cognitive traits and 2) neuroendocrine influences on behavior and cognition. I tested this hypothesis by studying semi free-ranging populations of bonobos and chimpanzees. First, I found that bonobos retained juvenile levels of food sharing and social inhibition into adulthood, leading them to differ from chimpanzees in these traits as adults. Second, I found that bonobos showed muted elevations in their levels of testosterone from infancy to adulthood in comparison to chimpanzees, suggesting that numerous aspects of development differ between these two species. Third, I found that male bonobos and chimpanzees differ in their immediate neuroendocrine shifts surrounding competition, implicating changes in proximate mechanisms influencing social behavior between the two species. Fourth, I found that patterns of cognitive development in these two apes differed significantly from those of human children. These results provide substantial support for my hypothesis that phenotypic differences between bonobos and chimpanzees evolved via shifts in bonobo development and neuroendocrine physiology. More broadly, they illustrate how behavioral and cognitive evolution can occur through changes in ontogenetic trajectories and neuroendocrine mechanisms. These findings thus show the merits of integrating ultimate and proximate levels of analysis in studies of the evolution of human behavior and cognition. / Human Evolutionary Biology
2

Effect of the Acute Stress Response on Foraging Behavior in Mountain White-Crowned Sparrows, Zonotrichia Leucophrys

Osborne, Sarah C 01 January 2015 (has links)
Free-living vertebrates likely encounter many stressors throughout their lifetime, from fighting off a predator to coping with unpredictable weather. As a result, vertebrates will mount an acute response to the stressors. Here, we outline previous research conducted in behavioral endocrinology and stress physiology as it relates to our research. We then discuss our study with white-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys) in Tioga Pass Meadow, in which we examined how the acute stress response affects foraging behavior 24 hours after a stressor. In birds that underwent a stress series, we found there to be a significant 57% decrease in foraging behavior 24 hours following the stressor. Additionally, we found no significant difference in foraging of unstressed birds during this same time frame. Our findings suggest that the acute stress response in this species causes a reduction in foraging activity 24 hours following a stressful event.
3

The Night Shift: Lighting and Nocturnal Strepsirrhine Care in Zoos

Fuller, Grace Anne 21 February 2014 (has links)
No description available.

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