Re: Dinosaur behavior.

[Ronald Orenstein <ornstn@inforamp.net>]

At 09:43 AM 2/23/97 -0600, you wrote:
>John Bois wrote:
>> But why would an unrelated dinosaur aid aniother
>> to protect her eggs?  I speculate that parental investment in an egg is
>> too low for altruism to evolve except, perhaps, in close kin (like the
>> Florida scrub jay).
>
>Predator satiation and the safety in numbers idea.  Many species of birds
lay 
>their eggs in large groups.  This of course means that it is not altruism
but 
>protection.  If there are many nests on the beach there are fewer chances 
>that the nest the predator gets will be yours.
>
>Joe DAniel

As a matter of fact unrelated helpers ARE known in birds.  Mexican Jays use
them; so do Henderson Island Reed Warblers, just to give two examples.
Helping unrelated animals may allow a subordinate access to territories or
mates it would otherwise not have; kin selection is not the only
explanation for this sort of "altruistic" behaviour.
--
Ronald I. Orenstein                           Phone: (905) 820-7886
International Wildlife Coalition              Fax/Modem: (905) 569-0116
1825 Shady Creek Court                 
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada L5L 3W2          Internet: ornstn@inforamp.net