1. Behaviour

2. Courtship behaviour What is the role of courtship in successful mating
How does courtship help members of a species recognise each other?

3. Surely individuals just mate with others of the same species
The following criteria are paramount to successful reproduction
Ensure mating take place between species
Both individuals must be sexually mature
Form a pair band that will successfully raise offspring
Synchronise mating so t takes place to allow maximum probability of sperm and egg meeting

4. Mallard Courtship

5. Why?
Females are often only receptive to mating for a short time. ( In season) This is when their eggs are ready for fertilisation
If the female responds favourably to courtship, offspring are likely to be produced

6. How? The female comes into season The males display a ritual
The female responds with a signal for mating to begin
If not the male goes elsewhere to try again.
This ensure successful mating.

7. What Happens?

8. Closely related species show subtle differences in courtship
Individuals of the same species show the same courtship.
How many different species are shown here?
Answer 5 not 6

9. Sticklebacks

10. This diagram shows Tinbergen's main findings. Male sticklebacks:
"Ethology and fish behaviour" In Spring male sticklebacks change colour, establish a territory and build a nest. They attack male sticklebacks that enter their territory, but court females and entice them to enter the nest to lay eggs.
                                                                                                                       The ethologist Tinbergen used crude 'models' of sticklebacks to investigate which features of male and female sticklebacks elicited attack and courtship behaviour from male sticklebacks.
This diagram shows Tinbergen's main findings.
Male sticklebacks:
attacked a model with a red belly
courted a model with a swollen silver belly  
The term sign stimulus or releaser was used to describe simple features (e.g. red belly, swollen belly) of a complex stimulus (e.g. male stickleback, female stickleback) that bring about a particular fixed behaviour pattern (e.g. head down attack behaviour in male sticklebacks).
"Ethology and fish behaviour" In Spring male sticklebacks change colour, establish a territory and build a nest. They attack male sticklebacks that enter their territory, but court females and entice them to enter the nest to lay eggs. The ethologist Tinbergen used crude 'models' of sticklebacks to investigate which features of male and female sticklebacks elicited attack and courtship behaviour from male sticklebacks.
This diagram shows Tinbergen's main findings.
Male sticklebacks:
attacked a model with a red belly
courted a model with a swollen silver belly  
The term sign stimulus or releaser was used to describe simple features (e.g. red belly, swollen belly) of a complex stimulus (e.g. male stickleback, female stickleback) that bring about a particular fixed behaviour pattern (e.g. head down attack behaviour in male sticklebacks).

11. Birds of Paradise
Watch the video