Aims
This course will:
1. Introduce students to a range of issues and topics of central theoretical importance in the field of behavioural ecology in relation to reproduction.
2. Show how a combination of observation, and field and laboratory experimentation is used to test hypotheses originating from theoretical work.
3. Indicate how different areas of behavioural ecology are inter-related and to encourage the synthesis of ideas.
4. Provide an introduction to the primary literature on particular topics currently at the 'cutting edge' of behavioural ecology, and to use this to stimulate independent thought.
Contents
This course builds on the fundamental ideas of conflict and co-operation introduced in APS301. The first part of the course will describe how variation in potential reproductive rates provides the basis for sexual selection. The processes and models of sexual selection will be discussed and evaluated. The second part of the course examines how individuals pursue reproductive strategies to maximise their fitness. The profound influence that sperm competition and ecological factors can have on vertebrate and invertebrate reproductive systems will be discussed. The course will blend both functional and mechanistic approaches to these central questions in evolutionary biology.
Delivery Method: 15 Lectures
Student Contact Hours: 15 Hours
Assessment Method: 1½ hour examination
Assessment Weighting: 100% Exam
JISC Submisssion: None
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