Parasites and the Behavior of Animals

Janice Moore

316 pages, parution le 06/03/2002

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Résumé

When a parasite invades an ant, does the ant behave like other ants? Maybe not - and if it doesn't, who benefits from the altered behaviors? The parasite? The ant? Parasites and the Behavior of Animals shows that parasite-induced behavioral alterations are more common than we might realize, and it places these alterations in an evolutionary and ecological context. Emphasizing eukaryotic parasites, the book examines the adaptive nature of behavioral changes associated with parasitism, exploring the effects of these changes on parasite transmission, parasite avoidance, and the fitness of both host and parasite.

These effects are not always straightforward. To the extent that virulence, for instance, is linked to parasite transmission, the evolutionary interests of parasite and host will diverge, and the current winner of the context to maximize reproductive rates may not be clear, or, for that matter, inevitable. Nonetheless, by affecting susceptibility, host/parasite lifespan and fecundity, and transmission itself, host behavior influences parameters that are basic to our comprehension of how parasites invade host populations, and fundamentally, how parasites evolve. Such an understanding is important for a wide range of scientists, from ecologists and parasitologists to evolutionary, conservation and behavioral biologists: The behavioral alterations that parasites induce can subtly and profoundly affect the distribution and abundance of animals.

Contents

1 Introduction 3
2 Life Cycles
3 Behavioral Alterations and Parasite Transmission 35
4 Behavioral Alterations and Avoiding Parasites 89
5 Behavioral Alterations and the Fitness and Longevity of Infected Hosts 119
6 Concluding Remarks 157

App.: Tables 165
Bibliography 227
Index 297

Caractéristiques techniques

	PAPIER
Éditeur(s)	Oxford University Press
Auteur(s)	Janice Moore
Parution	06/03/2002
Nb. de pages	316
Format	15,5 x 23,5
Couverture	Broché
Poids	577g
Intérieur	Noir et Blanc
EAN13	9780195146530
ISBN13	978-0-19-514653-0