Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Searching Behaviour

The behavioural ecology of finding resources

  • Book
  • © 1990

Overview

Authors:
  1. William J. Bell

    1. Lawrence, USA

    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Part of the book series: Chapman & Hall Animal Behaviour Series (CHABS)

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this book

Log in via an institution
eBook USD 169.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 219.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 219.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access

Licence this eBook for your library

Institutional subscriptions

Table of contents (18 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xii
    Download chapter PDF

  2. Introduction

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1
      Download chapter PDF

    2. Theoretical framework

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 3-24

  3. Information for the localization and assessment of resources

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 25-25
      Download chapter PDF

    2. Orientation cues: information for searching

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 27-35

    3. Scanning mechanisms

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 37-46

    4. Initiating factors: when to search

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 47-52

    5. Assessment mechanisms: resource, patch and habitat selection

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 53-65

  4. Search mechanisms

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 67-67
      Download chapter PDF

    2. Locating patches and distant resources

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 69-82

    3. Restricting search to a patch

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 83-94

    4. Foraging in the most profitable patches and leaving when profitability declines

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 95-115

    5. When to return to a resource patch

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 117-129

    6. Learning to forage efficiently

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 131-163

    7. Exploratory behaviour

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 165-169

    8. Central place foraging

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 171-187

  5. Sources of variability

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 189-189
      Download chapter PDF

    2. External environment

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 191-228

    3. Internal environment

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 229-243

    4. Genetic factors

      • William J. Bell
      Pages 245-265
Back to top

Keywords

About this book

This is a book about proximate mechanisms. Although some theoreti­ cal structure is used to introduce the subject, the intent is to offer a comprehensive view of the mechanistic side of searching (or foraging) so as to balance the current emphasis of books on mathematical and functional models. It seems to me that the pendulum needs to swing back to studies of how animals behave, and that maybe in so doing models will become valuable again in driving experimentation. I have probably included too many examples in this book, and some are even presented in great detail. Hopefully, they provide a complete picture of the kind of animals used, the experimental setup, the kinds of data yielded, and how the data were analysed. I have done this in response to frustrating experiences of reading chapters in behavioural ecobgy books that provide insufficient information with which to evaluate an author's conclusion.

Reviews

it can be recommended to anyone interested in learning about the background to this field of research - The Biologist

Authors and Affiliations

  • Lawrence, USA

    William J. Bell

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Searching Behaviour

  • Book Subtitle: The behavioural ecology of finding resources

  • Authors: William J. Bell

  • Series Title: Chapman & Hall Animal Behaviour Series

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-3098-1

  • Publisher: Springer Dordrecht

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

  • Copyright Information: Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 1990

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-0-412-29210-1Published: 31 January 1991

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-94-010-5372-3Published: 29 October 2012

  • eBook ISBN: 978-94-011-3098-1Published: 06 December 2012

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XII, 358

  • Topics: Animal Ecology, Animal Systematics/Taxonomy/Biogeography

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Back to top

Search

Navigation