The hottest Animal Behavior Substack posts right now

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My Little Cockroach

Banana Peel Pirouette • 79 implied HN points • 22 Nov 23
🔬 Science Biology Ecology Evolution Urbanization Animal Behavior
  1. Cockroaches have been around for millions of years and are found on every continent except Antarctica, adapted to urban environments due to global commerce.
  2. Humans have a unique disgust towards cockroaches, though other pests like mice and pigeons coexist with us and are even celebrated in popular culture.
  3. Our fear and loathing towards cockroaches stem from the way they challenge our perceptions of hygiene and control over the environment, showing how closely intertwined our lives are with these creatures.

Animals Play Coordination Games - Coordination Part I

Living Fossils • 10 implied HN points • 21 Feb 24
🔬 Science Evolutionary biology Animal Behavior Game Theory
  1. Animals play coordination games to survive, such as cicadas coordinating emergence to avoid predators.
  2. In coordination games, like fireflies with unique flashing patterns, the key is for all individuals to use the same strategy for successful coordination.
  3. Coordination games are not only seen in animals playing over evolutionary time but also in real-time situations, like fish schooling or starlings murmuration.
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Can a Hermit Crab Be Rich?

Creating Inequality • 39 implied HN points • 07 Oct 23
🔬 Science Animal Behavior Wealth Distribution Ecology
  1. Hermit crabs can be seen as 'rich' based on the size of the snail shells they possess, which determines their level of wealth.
  2. The distribution of wealth in hermit crabs closely resembles that of human societies, showing similarities in terms of inequality.
  3. Factors like individual differences and wealth transfer through vacancy chains may explain the similarity in wealth distributions between hermit crabs and humans.

Meaning and the firefly

Banana Peel Pirouette • 79 implied HN points • 28 Jun 23
🔬 Science Animal Behavior Communication Biodiversity
  1. Animals like songbirds and insects communicate through sounds and movements that hold specific meanings for them, unlike the fixed characteristics of their appearances.
  2. Fireflies communicate with light patterns, where their visual signals guide them in finding mates and coordinating activities; their world of light holds deep communication that contrasts human mediums like language.
  3. The impact of human actions, like light pollution, can disrupt the meaningful communication patterns of fireflies, leading to potential disturbances in their mating behaviors and survival.

The Intricate Beauty of Pecking Orders

Creating Inequality • 4 HN points • 14 Jun 23
🔬 Science Animal Behavior Social Dynamics Research Methods
  1. Pecking orders in animals might not be based on individual abilities but on dynamic interactions within a group.
  2. Linear pecking orders can arise from intricate behavioral dynamics rather than differences in individual qualities.
  3. Pecking orders are not stable and enduring, but rather constantly changing structures formed by ongoing aggressive interactions within a group.