End of Week 4: Finding Sources

The sources I found for my research on sharks and their social behavior and my process of finding these sources!

Source #1:

Jacoby, D. M. P., et al. “Social Behaviour in Sharks and Rays: Analysis, Patterns and Implications for Conservation.” Fish and Fisheries, vol. 13, no. 4, 2012, pp. 399–417. EBSCOhost, https://doi.org/https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1467-2979.

In this research study researcher David Jacoby studied the social behavior of sharks and rays. Jacoby did this by analyzing the social network of these sharks and by using tracking and telemetry. He was able to track the movements of the sharks in a specific area and analyze the data as well as look into the social networks of sharks and see their behaviors in these social networks. From this research, research Jacoby was able to conclude how sharks interact with one another and why they turn to groups. He was also able to make conclusions about sharks fulfilling the elevated predatory functions in the food web and how they associate together in the wild. This study helps us better understand the behaviors of sharks and why they act the way they do. Many people see sharks as scary predators, but this study reveals their social behaviors and the way they interact with one another and why they interact in that way.

Source #2:

Finger, J. S., et al. “Are Some Sharks More Social than Others? Short- and Long-Term Consistencies in the Social Behavior of Juvenile Lemon Sharks - Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology.” SpringerLink, Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 29 Dec. 2017, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00265-017-2431-0.

In this research study, researcher J.S. Finger analyzes the behavior of Lemon Sharks and how there are many consistencies in their social behavior. In order to do so, Finger studied sharks in the Bahamas. He did so by placing some Lemon Sharks in a pen, allowing them to acclimate to their new surroundings, and feeding them a specific diet. Finger was then able to observe the social interactions the sharks. He did both short-term and long-term tests on these sharks with changes to the test periods and group compositions. Finger concluded that the shark behaviors differed from one another even though the sharks were under the same testing conditions. The study also helped conclude that there was repeatability in the social behaviors that were observed by the sharks. This study better helps us understand the behaviors of sharks and how each shark has variations in their behavior, even if they are living under the same conditions.

This activity as well as searching the library databases for my sources taught me a lot. I learned the importance of using specific keywords when searching for the topic of your choice. When I initially started searching for sources on sharks and social behavior I only used "sharks" as the keyword thinking that there wouldn't be many sources and that I could look through the sources I was given and see which one addresses the social behavior of sharks. This did not help me find any helpful sources because there are a countless number of shark sources.

Just imagine having to look through 290,000 results!

Aside from learning the importance of keywords, I learned how to quickly assess a source and figure out if it is a source that would be helpful for me. Rather than reading all the words on the page, I used the techniques I learned from the analyzing sources practice on Connect. I looked at the authors of the sources and their credibility, read the introduction and conclusion, read all the heading and sub-heading, and skimmed through the rest of the content. This helped me eliminate any sources that did not have what I was looking for.

I hope you were able to check out the sources I found for my research projects, learn about the process I went through, and what I learned through these processes!

All the best,

Pallavi Rajeev