Applied Animal Behaviour Science 131 (2011) 153–154 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Applied Animal Behaviour Science journa l homepage: www.e lsev ier .com/ locate /applan im Book revi Behavioral G.K.H. Zup (2010). 40 978019920 Tinberge his influen ask when s (causation, concept lat concept, i.e into two gr and ultima Mayr, 1993 mate appro EdwardO.W of behaviou (Wilson, 19 parative ps neurophysi sociobiolog some autho diction has secondedit an opportun son’s dumb to be swallo If you mammalian nisms contr disappointe broadspect insects thro spectrum o nication, le address. One of m title does n and thus it readers, as m the author neuroethol ing angle of the book, he does not use this term as the book title. Maybe the existence of two older books enti- tled Neuroethology (Camhi, 1984; Ewert, 1980) led Zupanc to name his book Behavioral Neurobiology. However, argum other aps in lso a m while tural b tle, ‘an e auth Introd ndent , altho rstand uld at viour o e first ters, o ology, urobio and th imal b de to a ioned viour i e rem es illu as neu ensor otivat naviga g the find fo n bats, ey an of sou e wea sh ag al cloc lmon, et son sis and mice. Wecandiscusswhether someadditional topics and case studies would not also be good candidates to be involved in a textbook of behavioural neurobiology. Topics like the 0168-1591/$ – doi:10.1016/j. see front matter applanim.2011.02.005 ew Neurobiology: An Integrative Approach, anc., second ed., Oxford University Press 0 pp., Paperback, Price: $59.95, ISBN: 8302 n (1963) formulated almost 50 years ago in tial paper the four major questions we can tudying animal behaviour – the four ‘whys’ ontogeny, evolution and survival value). This er on merged with the proximate/ultimate . the four questions are frequently collapsed oups: proximate (causation and development) te (evolution and function) (Dewsbury, 1999; ). A dichotomy between the proximate and ulti- ach to the study of behaviour was reflected in ilson’s 1975prediction of the future directions ral biology, the so called ‘dumb-bell model’ 75). He predicted that both ethology and com- ychology ‘are destined to be cannibalized by ology and sensory physiology fromone end and y and behavioural ecology from the other’. As rs admit (Alcock, 2003; Slater, 2003), this pre- been largely right (with some exceptions). The ionofZupanc’sBehaviouralNeurobiologyoffers ity to seewhat is happening onone side ofWil- -bell, in the region where ethology is supposed wed up by neurobiology. expect from Zupanc an anthropo- and/or -centric view of the neurobiological mecha- olling behaviour you may be surprised or even d. However, if you are after a review of a rumof species ranging fromprotozoa,molluscs, ugh fish and birds to mammals and a broad f behaviours ranging from geotaxis to commu- arning and memory, than you are at the right y few reservations about the book is that its ot specify its content with enough precision can disappoint expectations of some potential entioned in the previous paragraph. Although is using throughout most of the book the term ogy to delineate clearly the scope and the view- this of an overl has a side, of na subti not. Th in an depe Thus unde it wo beha Th chap roeth of ne ogy, of an provi ment beha of it. Th studi such put, s in m tion, Amon will tion i of pr tion of th crayfi logic in sa crick gene ent is slightly complicated by the existence Behavioral Neurobiology (Carew, 2000), which several ways with Zupanc’s book and which ostly neuroethological approach. On the other Carew’s book subtitle ‘the cellular organization ehaviour’ at least indicates this fact, Zupanc’s integrative approach’, in my opinion does or formulates the main philosophy of the book uction. ‘Progress in neuroethology is crucially upon choosing the right level of simplicity. ugh the ultimate goal of neuroethology is to the neural mechanisms underlying behaviour, present not be sensible to examine the entire f an animal.’ (p. 3) section of the book consists of four opening ut of which the first one introduces neu- the second one is devoted to fundamentals logy, the third one to fundamentals of ethol- e fourth one to a brief history of the study ehaviour. These chapters are well written and non-specialist basic orientation in the above- areas. Maybe the history of study of animal s a bit biased towards an ethologist’s perception aining nine chapters represent a series of case strating various principles and phenomena, ronal control of sensory input and motor out- imotor integration, the role of neural plasticity ion, neurobiological aspects of communica- tion, biological clocks, learning and memory. chosen topics and taxonomical groups you r example geotaxis in vertebrates, echoloca- escape swimming in toad tadpoles, recognition d predators in the toad, directional localiza- nd in the owl, jamming avoidance response kly electric fish Eignemannia, modulation of gressive behaviour, molecular nature of bio- ks, long-distance orientation in birds, homing orientation in sea turtles, neuroethology of g, sensitization in Aplysia, and adult neuro- memory formation in the hippocampus of 154 Book review neurobiology of filial imprinting (classical ethological con- cept), neurobiology of birdsong (with its nature/nurture implications), and neurobiology of pair-bonding, etc. come tomymind.Nevertheless, Zupanc’s choice of topics is legit- imate and his collection of themes represents a coherent unit. The book is readable, well documented by adequate black and white figures. Most of the chapters are livened up by biographical sketches of key investigators, the fea- ture that makes the stories more authentic. All chapters include Summary, Recommended reading, Questions and Advanced topic that all increase the value of thematerial as a textbook for neuroethology courses. The same applies for the companion website of the book which has both student and lecturer resources. To summarize, Behavioural Neurobiology by Günther Zupanc is a book worth reading, and is suitable, and appar- ently frequently used (its first edition), as a textbook for neuroethology and behavioural neuroscience courses. I agree with the author (p. 94) that: ‘Like many areas of biology, neuroethology is on the verge of a new era. The current rapid development of computational neuroscience, neuroendocrinology, and molecular genetics will provide exciting opportunities for neuroethology’. We are looking forward to that. References Alcock, J., 2003. A textbook history of animal behaviour. Anim. Behav. 65, 3–10. Camhi, J., 1984. Neuroethology: Nerve Cells and the Natural Behavior of Animals. Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, Massachusetts. Carew, T.J., 2000. Behavioral Neurobiology: The Cellular Organization of Natural Behavior. Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, Massachusetts. Dewsbury, D., 1999. The proximate and the ultimate: past, present, and future. Behav. Process 46, 189–199. Ewert, J.-P., 1980. Neuroethology: An Introduction to the Neurophysio- logical Fundamentals of Behavior. Springer-Verlag, Berlin and New York. Mayr, E., 1993. Proximate and ultimate causations. Biol. Philos. 8, 93–94. Slater, P., 2003. Fifty years of bird song research: a case study in animal behaviour. Anim. Behav. 65, 633–639. Tinbergen, N., 1963. On aims and methods of ethology. Z. Tierpsychol. 20, 410–433. Wilson, E.O., 1975. Sociobiology: The New Synthesis. Cambridge, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts. L’ubor Kosˇtˇál Laboratory of Neurobiology and Physiology of Behaviour, Institute of Animal Biochemistry and Genetics, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Ivanka pri Dunaji, Slovakia E-mail address:
[email protected] Available online 15 March 2011