Once a Loser Always a Loser? Using Crayfish to Teach Behavioral Endocrinology

 

Anna Goldina, Tanya M. Simms, & Thomas Pitzer

Tested Studies in Laboratory Teaching, 2011, Volume 32

Abstract

Using live animals to address questions about evolutionary and proximate mechanisms of behavior is often avoided in high-enrollment introductory biology labs because of the difficulties involved in maintaining a large animal colony. However, by working with live animals students can understand the relationship between behavior and the endocrine mechanisms that drive it. We present a behavioral endocrinology lab using live crayfish to examine aggressive behavior and the role of serotonin in the maintenance of a “loser effect,” i.e. the likelihood that an individual that has lost an aggressive encounter in the past will be defeated in future confrontations.

Keywords:  aggression, behavior, serotonin

Dalhousie University (2010)