Animal behavior researchers often face problems regarding standardization and reproducibility oftheir experiments. This has led to the partial substitution of live animals with artificial virtual stim-uli. In addition...Animal behavior researchers often face problems regarding standardization and reproducibility oftheir experiments. This has led to the partial substitution of live animals with artificial virtual stim-uli. In addition to standardization and reproducibility, virtual stimuli open new options for re-searchers since they are easily changeable in morphology and appearance, and their behavior canbe defined. In this article, a novel toolchain to conduct behavior experiments with fish is presentedby a case study in sailfin mollies Poecilia latipinna. As the toolchain holds many different and novelfeatures, it offers new possibilities for studies in behavioral animal research and promotes thestandardization of experiments. The presented method includes options to design, animate, andpresent virtual stimuli to live fish. The designing tool offers an easy and user-friendly way to definesize, coloration, and morphology of stimuli and moreover it is able to configure virtual stimuli ran-domly without any user influence. Furthermore, the toolchain brings a novel method to animatestimuli in a semiautomatic way with the help of a game controller. These created swimming pathscan be applied to different stimuli in real time. A presentation tool combines models and swim-ming paths regarding formerly defined playlists, and presents the stimuli onto 2 screens.Experiments with live sailfin mollies validated the usage of the created virtual 3D fish models inmate-choice experiments.展开更多
Mate-choice copying is a fascinating and widespread mate-choice strategy. Individuals gather public information about potential mates by observing others during sexual interactions and choose or reject the same indivi...Mate-choice copying is a fascinating and widespread mate-choice strategy. Individuals gather public information about potential mates by observing others during sexual interactions and choose or reject the same individual as a mate as the observed individual did before. The influence of copying behavior on an individual＇s mate choice can be so strong that socially acquired information can override genetically based preferences for certain phenotypes. Thus, mate-choice copying enforces dy- namic processes in sexual selection. Here, we review the current state of research on mate-choice copying and focus on sex-specific aspects. We present evidence that mate-choice copying can support the evolution of novel sexual ornaments, and we discuss potential costs of mate-choice copying when public information is not reliable. Moreover, we discuss the conflict faced by males that copy since mate-choice copying increases sperm competition. In conclusion we suggest interesting topics for future research in mate-choice copying .展开更多
The use of computer animation in behavioral research is a state-of-the-art method for designing andpresenting animated animals to live test animals. The major advantages of computer animations are：（1） the creation ...The use of computer animation in behavioral research is a state-of-the-art method for designing andpresenting animated animals to live test animals. The major advantages of computer animations are：（1） the creation of animated animal stimuli with high variability of morphology and even behavior; （2）animated stimuli provide highly standardized, controlled and repeatable testing procedures; and （3）they allow a reduction in the number of live test animals regarding the 3Rs principle. But the use of ani-mated animals should be attended by a thorough validation for each test species to verify that behaviormeasured with live animals toward virtual animals can also be expected with natural stimuli. Here wepresent results on the validation of a custom-made simulation for animated 3D sailfin mollies Poecilialatipinna and show that responses of live test females were as strong to an animated fish as to a videoor a live male fish. Movement of an animated stimulus was important but female response was stron-ger toward a swimming 3D fish stimulus than to a ＂swimming＂ box. Moreover, male test fish wereable to discriminate between animated male and female stimuli; hence, rendering the animated 3D fisha useful tool in mate-choice experiments with sailfin mollies.展开更多
文摘Animal behavior researchers often face problems regarding standardization and reproducibility oftheir experiments. This has led to the partial substitution of live animals with artificial virtual stim-uli. In addition to standardization and reproducibility, virtual stimuli open new options for re-searchers since they are easily changeable in morphology and appearance, and their behavior canbe defined. In this article, a novel toolchain to conduct behavior experiments with fish is presentedby a case study in sailfin mollies Poecilia latipinna. As the toolchain holds many different and novelfeatures, it offers new possibilities for studies in behavioral animal research and promotes thestandardization of experiments. The presented method includes options to design, animate, andpresent virtual stimuli to live fish. The designing tool offers an easy and user-friendly way to definesize, coloration, and morphology of stimuli and moreover it is able to configure virtual stimuli ran-domly without any user influence. Furthermore, the toolchain brings a novel method to animatestimuli in a semiautomatic way with the help of a game controller. These created swimming pathscan be applied to different stimuli in real time. A presentation tool combines models and swim-ming paths regarding formerly defined playlists, and presents the stimuli onto 2 screens.Experiments with live sailfin mollies validated the usage of the created virtual 3D fish models inmate-choice experiments.
文摘Mate-choice copying is a fascinating and widespread mate-choice strategy. Individuals gather public information about potential mates by observing others during sexual interactions and choose or reject the same individual as a mate as the observed individual did before. The influence of copying behavior on an individual＇s mate choice can be so strong that socially acquired information can override genetically based preferences for certain phenotypes. Thus, mate-choice copying enforces dy- namic processes in sexual selection. Here, we review the current state of research on mate-choice copying and focus on sex-specific aspects. We present evidence that mate-choice copying can support the evolution of novel sexual ornaments, and we discuss potential costs of mate-choice copying when public information is not reliable. Moreover, we discuss the conflict faced by males that copy since mate-choice copying increases sperm competition. In conclusion we suggest interesting topics for future research in mate-choice copying .
文摘The use of computer animation in behavioral research is a state-of-the-art method for designing andpresenting animated animals to live test animals. The major advantages of computer animations are：（1） the creation of animated animal stimuli with high variability of morphology and even behavior; （2）animated stimuli provide highly standardized, controlled and repeatable testing procedures; and （3）they allow a reduction in the number of live test animals regarding the 3Rs principle. But the use of ani-mated animals should be attended by a thorough validation for each test species to verify that behaviormeasured with live animals toward virtual animals can also be expected with natural stimuli. Here wepresent results on the validation of a custom-made simulation for animated 3D sailfin mollies Poecilialatipinna and show that responses of live test females were as strong to an animated fish as to a videoor a live male fish. Movement of an animated stimulus was important but female response was stron-ger toward a swimming 3D fish stimulus than to a ＂swimming＂ box. Moreover, male test fish wereable to discriminate between animated male and female stimuli; hence, rendering the animated 3D fisha useful tool in mate-choice experiments with sailfin mollies.
