Read more
A synthesis of more than twenty years of behavioural research on an established society of nearly 1000 free-living greylag geese.
List of contents
List of contributors; Preface Kurt Kotrschal; Acknowledgements; Part I. Research Background: 1. Greylag geese: from general principles to the Konrad Lorenz flock Josef Hemetsberger, Brigitte M. Weiß and Isabella B. R. Scheiber; 2. Goose research then and now Katharina Hirschenhauser, Heidi Buhrow, Helga Fischer and Kurt Kotrschal; Part II. From Individual to Clan: 3. Individuals matter: personality Simona Kralj-Fišer, Jonathan Niall Daisley and Kurt Kotrschal; 4. Maintenance of the monogamous pair bond Iulia T. Nedelcu and Katharina Hirschenhauser; 5. Alternative social and reproductive strategies Brigitte M. Weiß; 6. Beyond the pair bond: extended family bonds and female-centred clan formation Isabella B. R. Scheiber and Brigitte M. Weiß; Part III. Costs and Benefits of Social Life: 7. Causes and consequences of aggressive behaviour and dominance rank Brigitte M. Weiß; 8. The costs of sociality measured through heart rate modulation Claudia A. F. Wascher and Kurt Kotrschal; 9. 'Tend and befriend': the importance of social allies in coping with social stress Isabella B. R. Scheiber; 10. How to tell friend from foe: cognition in a complex society Brigitte M. Weiß, Christian Schloegl and Isabella B. R. Scheiber; Part IV. Lessons for Vertebrate Social Life: 11. The greylag goose as a model for vertebrate social complexity Isabella B. R. Scheiber, Kurt Kotrschal and Brigitte M. Weiß; Index.
About the author
Isabella B. R. Scheiber is a visiting researcher at the Behavioural Ecology and Self-Organization Group of Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, The Netherlands, and an Associate Scientist at Konrad Lorenz Forschungsstelle, Austria.Brigitte M. Weiß is a visiting researcher at the Institute of Evolution and Ecology, Eberhard-Karls-Universität Tübingen, Germany and an associate scientist at Konrad Lorenz Forschungsstelle, Austria.Josef Hemetsberger is a scientist at the Department of Behavioural Biology, Universität Wien, Austria, and Konrad Lorenz Forschungsstelle, Austria.Kurt Kotrschal is Professor of Zoology at the Department of Behavioural Biology, Universität Wien, Austria, and Director of Konrad Lorenz Forschungsstelle, Austria.
Summary
Based on unique records of nearly 1000 free-living greylag geese, this is a synthesis of more than twenty years of behavioural research. It provides a comprehensive overview of a complex bird society, placing it in an evolutionary framework and drawing on a range of approaches, including behavioural, physiological and cognitive.
