|
|
Behavioural patterns of heifers under intensive and extensive continuous grazing on species-rich pasture in the Czech Republic
Hejcmanová, Pavla ; Frynta, Daniel (referee)
Thesis: Behavioural patterns of heifers under intensive and extensive continuous grazing on species-rich pasture in the Czech Republic Author: doc. Mgr. Pavla Hejcmanová, Ph.D. Abstract The consumption of food is one of the most fundamental activities in all animals and takes its ultimate part in maximizing an animal's inclusive fitness. Foraging response mechanisms issue essentially from animal intrinsic characteristics, animal's cognitive abilities and environment, namely quantity and quality of available food resources. Understanding of animal's foraging decisions is not possible without the knowledge of other types of behaviour and factors they affect it. Therefore, the aim of the investigation was to evaluate heifers' behavioural pattern on species-rich semi-natural pasture under a continuous intensive (IG) and extensive (EG) grazing regime as this is currently the most extensive management system employed in central Europe. Ten or eight (IG), and six or four (EG) heifers were continuously stocked in two completely randomized blocks from June to late September in 1998, 1999, 2000, 2006 and 2007. Swards were maintained at a target height of 5 and 10 cm, respectively. Grazing, ruminating, resting, and other activities were monitored during 24-hour observations, and grazing, chewing and ruminating rates...
|
|
|
Responses of naive primates to snakes: experiments with selected species kept in Prague zoo
Kutinová, Lucie ; Frynta, Daniel (advisor) ; Fuchs, Roman (referee)
In the wild, snakes are known to elicit strong antipredator responses in primates. Primates often mob the snakes, which is also accompanied by loud calls. In evolution, the deadly threat posed by snakes goes as far as to the origin of placental mammals. In this study, the reactions of naïve individuals to snakes were tested. Naïve pigtail macaques (Macaca nemestrina) and mouse lemurs (Microcebus murinus) avoided the snake stimulus. For the macaques there was a longer latency to touch the rubber snake compared to the latency to touch the rubber lizard. The mouse lemurs avoided feeding on the side of experimental box where the snake odor was presented. The reactions of macaques and mouse lemurs were not accompanied by vocalizations and they seemed to be overall mild. Nevertheless, the snake stimuli used here were strong enough for these naïve primates. For ringtail lemurs (Lemur catta), the reactions to uncovering a hidden rubber snake was tested. But the lemurs showed no avoiding reactions. A question for further research is whether the different results for lemurs were not caused by different experimental procedure. As well as in macaques and mouse lemurs, the reactions seemed to be very mild. But no deeper analysis of the behavior was performed. Thus, a reaction could have been overlooked, which...
|
|
|
Personality in spiny mice (genus Acomys)
Müllerová, Lenka ; Frynta, Daniel (advisor) ; Sedláček, František (referee)
The differences in behaviour of animals are not found only between species or populations but also between individuals within a population. If individuals differ in their behaviour constantly in time and across various situations, then we find diverse personality among them. The aim of my diploma thesis was to seek personality in spiny mice (Acomys cahirinus). For verification of stability of behaviour (of the same age) in various situations we tested animals in series of behavioural tests focusing on activity, exploration and anxiety. Every test was repeated twice with each individual in order to verify the stability of their behaviour in time. It was demonstrated that the behaviour of experimental animals is repeatable across different situations in time (the results of tests were correlated between each other as well as between two series), thus we confirmed the existence personality in the animals. However the personality does not participate on the results of individual tests by a great degree, its occurance is more evident from the series of more tests. Animals differ from each other primarily in coping with new situations. Keywords: personality, series of behavioural tests, PCA
|
|
|
The effects of mating with multiple males on reproductive success of a female: An experimental study in leopard gecko (Eublepharis macularius)
Ševčíková, Pavlína ; Frynta, Daniel (advisor) ; Rehák, Ivan (referee)
The aim of the project was to test female advantages of promiscuous and/or polyandrous mating. Although, previous studies reported improved reproductive success of females copulating with multiple males in many model species, including Eublepharis macularius, this study failed to demonstrate such a benefit of polyandry. Traits reflecting female reproductive success, i.e. the number of produced eggs, egg mass, hatchability, hatchling mass, growth and survival were not influenced by copulation with multiple partners, but some of them were dependent on female condition. Only initial stages of juvenile growth were influenced by female identity and/or investment.
|
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
|
The effect of social factors on reproduction and stress in spiny mouse (Acomys cahirinus)
Fraňková, Marcela ; Frynta, Daniel (advisor) ; Pavelková Ricanková, Věra (referee) ; Valeš, Karel (referee)
1 Summary This thesis deals with relationships among social factors, behaviour, physiology and reproduction in spiny mouse (Acomys cahirinus). Spiny mice are social rodents with that should be kept in families consisting of an adult male, multiple females and their descendants which mimic their wild social system. In contrast to many other muroid rodents, spiny mice produce after an extended gestation period only small litters consisting of relatively large and well developed (precocoial) newborns. The first part of the thesis is focused on effects of selected social parameters on glucocorticoid levels, which are widely used as a marker of stress. We focused on non-invasive monitoring of glucocorticoid metabolites (GCM) in faeces via enzyme immunoassay. For this purpose two specific antibodies were validated via an ACTH challenge test. Further, we constructed a special experimental apparatus which allowed us routine repeated collection of faecal samples in socially living rodents without noticeable disturbance to studied animals. Next, we monitored baseline concentrations of faecal GCM levels of individuals in family groups of commensal and non-commensal population. We found no effect of age (i.e., social dominance) and only a small effect of sex (in the commensal population only, with males exhibiting...
|
|
|
Social organisation in nocturnal primates
Papoušková, Monika ; Frynta, Daniel (advisor) ; Stopková, Romana (referee)
Noční primáti byli dlouho popisováni jako samotářští, bez sociálních vztahů a s minimem přímého kontaktu mimo dobu páření. Byli nahlíženi jako homogenní skupina s uniformní a primitivní sociální organizací. Většina těchto primátů si sice hledá potravu o samotě, studie z poslední doby však ukazují, že řada druhů nočních primátů sociální je. Vytvářejí sítě sociálních vztahů a škála sociálních projevů se příliš neliší od té, kterou známe u denních primátů. Navíc zde existuje velká diverzita a variabilita mezi druhy. Tato práce shrnuje dosavadní poznatky o sociální organizaci u nočních primátů, věnuje se historii jejího výzkumu a také evolučním vlivům, které mohou na socialitu u nočních primátů působit. Klíčová slova: sociální organizace; noční primáti; Tarsius; radio-telemetrie, sociální chování ABSTRACT Nocturnal primates have been described as solitary, without social networks and with minimum direct contact outside the mating season. They have been perceived as a homogenous group with uniform and primitive social organisation. Most of these primates forage solitarily, however recent studies have shown that a substantial number of nocturnal primate species is social. They possess social networks and the scale of their social interactions does not differ much from the one we know in diurnal primates....
|
guest ::
