Catherine Foliaco animal observation

AD LIB OBSERVATION DATA SHEET —

Date:2/4/16Observer: Catherine Foliaco

Subject (give common and scientific name of species): Squirrel, Scuriae

Location (name and subjective description): Jefferson Park Avenue, outside of an apartment building in a tree & grass

Enter observations below. Use additional copies of this sheet as needed.

Start TimeDescription

12:40Squirrel is digging at the base of a fence post

12:41Sniffing around the grass

12:46Runs away from the fence and scales a tree

12:47Stays on a low hanging branch in the tree; runs around on it

12:56Squirrel scampers down the tree and back up about two feet high

12:57Repeats scampering up and down the bottom part of the tree 3-4 times

1:00Squirrel remains very still

1:05Circles the tree

1:11Squirrel returns to the fence post; prods around the base of it

1:12Digs and sticks nose into a hole near the fence post

1:15Squirrel runs down the parking lot and finds another tree

1:18Sits very still and looks off to the right

1:19Second squirrel approaches; both run up the tree

1:22First squirrel chases the other down the tree and around the base of tree

1:25Squirrels go back up the tree

Part II: Reflection

Review your notes and respond to the following questions.

1. What did the animal(s) spend the most time doing?

It was generally just running back and forth spastically. It attended to the fence post and then spent a lot of time scampering in and around the trees.

2. What do you think the current function of that behavior is? That is, how does it help the animal(s) survive and/or reproduce?

I would think that the squirrel was trying to obtain food. He was in the tree, and he dug around the bottom of the fence post a lot, so he looked like he was in search of a food source. This would help him survive (because food is necessary for life) and reproduce because being healthier would make him/her either a better candidate for mating or a more fit parent for offspring.

3. What external events or objects in the environment did the animal(s) respond to? How did the animal(s) sense that the event happened or the object was present?

I think at one point the squirrel actually was responding to me, the observer. It got very still and looked at me, almost like it was freezing. Also, it responded to the other squirrel when it approached by chasing it around. The first squirrel seemed to sense the other one well before I did. It was looking to its right side for a little while, and then seemingly out of nowhere the second squirrel ran towards it. It was easy to tell the two squirrels apart because the second one had a much thinner tail. The first squirrel chased him around for a little while, and they were still at the same tree together when I left.

4. How might this behavior have developed? What aspects do you think were learned?

The behavior of interacting with other squirrels was probably a learned behavior. He or she likely learned throughout life how to interact with others through both observation and experience. As for the food collecting, it may have been a combination of an instinctive and learned behavior. Squirrels probably naturally search and locate food, but the process of digging in certain areas and looking in certain trees may have been something it learned through trial and error.

5. What events or environmental factors might have caused this behavior to evolve?

The more fit squirrels were likely the ones best able to obtain food over the others. The more effective the squirrel is at collecting food, the better he is able to survive, and the more likely he is to reproduce. Then, his offspring are more likely to survive if they use the same methods of food collecting as their parents.

6. Come up with a question of your own about one of the behavior(s) you observed. Is this a question you could answer through further observation? If so, how would you change your observational strategy? If not, what information would you need?

Do the two squirrels compete for food/space? How do they assert dominance?

I could observe the behavior of these two squirrels further and see whether or not one will chase the other away or make any movements or noises to assert themselves. I could also watch for ways that they subtly communicate that might indicate that they get along peacefully. Most importantly, I could wait for them to uncover a food source and see how they react to it.

DMU Timestamp: January 30, 2016 12:09

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