Weighing density and kinship: Aggressive behavior and time allocation in fire salamander (Salamandra infraimmaculata)

Abstract Warning colouration reduces predation risk by signalling or mimicking the unpleasantness of prey and therefore increases survival. We tested in two experiments the evolutionary costs and benefits of the yellow colour pattern in fire salamanders (Salamandra salamandra), which display a yellow/black colour pattern usually associated with toxic alkaloids. Our first experiment aimed to test whether the development of colouration is condition dependent and thus related to developmental costs, i.e. influenced by resource availability during the developmental process. Therefore, we reared fire salamander larvae under different nutritional conditions and compared the relative amount of yellow they developed after metamorphosis. Fire salamander larvae reared under limited food conditions had a lower proportion of yellow following metamorphosis than control larvae reared under superior food conditions. In a second experiment we tested whether the proportion of yellow has an impact on the risk of being attacked using artificial models. We tested, in salamander-free and salamander-occupied natural habitats, whether artificial clay models with different proportions of yellow and black receive different attack rates from potential predators (birds, mammals, insects). In clay models the proportion of yellow and the site had a significant effect on predation risk. Models with larger amounts of yellow had fewer bite marks from predators such as carabid beetles and birds, but only in sympatry with salamanders. In conclusion, the early expression of conspicuous colouration seems to be condition dependent and therefore potentially costly. Furthermore, the yellow colouration of fire salamanders act as a signal that potentially reduces their risk of being attacked by predators. Thus, the yellow colouration of fire salamanders seems to represent an adaptive trait that reduces the risk of predation, which can be expressed in higher quantity by individuals of a certain condition.

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There is no place like home: Larval habitat type and size affect risk‐taking behaviour in fire salamander larvae ( Salamandra salamandra )

Ethology ◽

10.1111/eth.13070 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 126 (9) ◽

pp. 914-921

Author(s):

Pia Oswald ◽

Benjamin A. Tunnat ◽

Luca G. Hahn ◽

Barbara A. Caspers

Keyword(s):

Risk Taking ◽

Habitat Type ◽

Larval Habitat ◽

Fire Salamander ◽

Salamandra Salamandra ◽

In Fire ◽

Salamander Larvae

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Time shift, leisure and tourism: impacts of time allocation on successful products and services

Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development ◽

10.1080/01434630802614261 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 30 (4) ◽

pp. 365-366

Author(s):

Michael James

Keyword(s):

Time Allocation ◽

Time Shift ◽

Tourism Impacts

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Assessing Social Skills in Health Professional Services

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027/1015-5759.21.3.173 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 21 (3) ◽

pp. 173-181

Author(s):

Francisco Gil ◽

Jesús Sanz ◽

María Paz García-Vera ◽

José M. León ◽

Silvia Medina ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Social Skills ◽

Health Services ◽

Health Professional ◽

Aggressive Behavior ◽

Psychometric Properties ◽

Internal Consistency ◽

Intervention Program ◽

Professional Services ◽

Quality Of Health Services

Abstract. The quality of health services depends on the contribution of all the professionals involved in the system, including certain groups, usually forgotten and underrated, such as the health-transport technicians (HTT). With the aim of improving this group's performance, an intervention program, focusing on the development of the workers' technical and social skills, was designed in a collective of enterprises. Information about the first stage of this program, consisting of the assessment of these workers' social skills, is offered in this study. A specific questionnaire was developed: The Health-Transport Technicians Social Skills Questionnaire (HTT-SSQ), made up of three scales (assertive, passive, and aggressive behavior). It was administered to a large sample (N = 530) from the above-mentioned association. The psychometric properties of the questionnaire were analyzed, with quite satisfactory indexes of internal consistency and factor validity, and the group's deficiencies (excess or deficit) were evaluated.

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The Hitman Study

European Psychologist ◽

10.1027/1016-9040/a000010 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 15 (2) ◽

pp. 99-108 ◽

Cited By ~ 76

Author(s):

Christopher J. Ferguson ◽

Stephanie M. Rueda

Keyword(s):

Experimental Study ◽

Young Adults ◽

Aggressive Behavior ◽

Video Game ◽

Real Life ◽

Mood Management ◽

Video Game Play ◽

Video Game Playing ◽

Violent Video Game ◽

The Social

This article explores commonly discussed theories of violent video game effects: the social learning, mood management, and catharsis hypotheses. An experimental study was carried out to examine violent video game effects. In this study, 103 young adults were given a frustration task and then randomized to play no game, a nonviolent game, a violent game with good versus evil theme (i.e., playing as a good character taking on evil), or a violent game in which they played as a “bad guy.” Results indicated that randomized video game play had no effect on aggressive behavior; real-life violent video game-playing history, however, was predictive of decreased hostile feelings and decreased depression following the frustration task. Results do not support a link between violent video games and aggressive behavior, but do suggest that violent games reduce depression and hostile feelings in players through mood management.

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