Animal Behavior Animal Behavior Vocabulary Behavior...1 Animal Behavior The things animals do…....
Transcript of Animal Behavior Animal Behavior Vocabulary Behavior...1 Animal Behavior The things animals do…....
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Animal Behavior
The things animals do….
Animal Behavior Vocabulary
Ethology = study of animal behavior
Behavior = action performed in response to stimulus
Whale tail
Vocabulary
Stimulus = something that elicits a response
Examples of stimuli?SightTouchSmellTasteSound
Vocabulary- other stimuli
HeatLightChemicalsHumidityVibrationColorGravityPressure★Presence of another animal
Others?
Stimuli
External Stimulus =
something outside the animal
e.g. sound, sight, smell, etc, presence of another animal
Stimuli
Internal Stimulus =
something inside the animal
e.g. hunger, fatigue, feeling cold, hormones
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Vocabulary
Anthropomorphism = attributing human emotions to animals
★We need to be careful about ascribing human emotions to animals
E.g. the animal is happy
Types of Behavior
1. Foraging = feeding
e.g. locate, obtain & consume food
Types of Behavior
2. Parental Care = ensuring survival of younge.g. carrying, nursing,
cuddling, holding young
Types of Behavior
3. Courtship = attracting a mate
e.g. courtship displays, bright feathers, songs, other vocalizations, head butting, fighting
Courtship Types of Behavior
4. Reproductive =e.g. mating, giving birth
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Types of Behavior
5. Offensive/Defensive = aggression, submissive behavior,
defense from aggressorse.g. hiding, fighting, escape, threatening
Types of Behavior
6. Territorial = protect a resource for exclusive use
e.g. scenting / marking, birdsong, protection of mate / offspring, space, food or water source
Types of Behavior
7. Social = work to create alliances, help the group e.g. grooming, babysitting, defense of musk ox young, play, play fight
Types of Behavior8. Migratory = movement to a more
suitable environment as seasons change
e.g. dry vs. rainy seasons, winter vs. summer range for browsers & birds
e.g. salmon upriver to spawn, artic tern –1800 m fromArctic to Antarctic, 2x/year
Types of Behavior
9. Communication = signaling between one animal & anotherGreeting e.g. sniff, hug, kiss “bite”Aggression e. g. charge, bite, hit, fight, etc.Non-aggression e.g. patting, head butting, stroking
Types of Behavior- Communication
Grooming (bonding, alliances, keeping clean)Group hunt ( e.g. hyenas, lions)
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Types of Behavior- Communication
Vocalizationse.g. bark, growl, snort, howl, hoot,
chirp, whinny, alarm sound,other language
Types of Behavior- CommunicationNon-verbal signaling
e.g. body, head, ear, & / or tail positionshowing teeth, smiling, looking away,
looking directly at, gesturing, thumping, beating chest, raising hackles or hood,
drumming, tail slap, snort, scenting, pheromones, sign language
Why Communicate?
Defense (warn away)Alliance (get helper or mate)
Elicit play
Types of Behavior
10. Curiosity = investigating new stimulus in environment
e.g. approach, sniff, chew, bite, mount
Types of Behavior
11. Elimination = defecation, urination
Types of Behavior
12. Resting = apparent inactione.g. lying down, sitting, basking,
sleeping, loafing
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Types of Behavior
13. Play Purpose = training for life
(defense, hunting,etc)
Types of Behavior Development
1. Natural SelectionAn animal that successfully completes a helpful behavior survives to pass on the behavior to offspring.Those whose genes fit the conditions survive.
Types of Behavior Development
2. Innate BehaviorAppear in fully functional form when first performedE.g. Startle behavior – purpose =
self-preservationE.g. web building, suckling, bird begging, nest building, some bird song
Types of Behavior Development
3. Learningdevelopment of behaviors through experiencedetermines final shape of innate behaviors 5 types of learning
Types of Learning
1. Imprinting (both innate & learned) occurs only during a critical time frameonce learned, can’t be changed
(see Conrad Lorenz with ducklings)
Imprinting
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Types of Learning
2. HabituationAnimal learns to ignore frequent, harmless stimulusE.g. scarecrow, habituation to observer
Types of Learning
3 Classical ConditioningAnimal learns to associate unrelated response with a stimulus
E.g. Pavlov’s experimentsbell ringing, food, salivationbell ringing, salivation (even if no food is given)
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Classical Conditioning
E.g. 1. leash = going for a walk, excitement
2. sight of leash = excitement
Types of Learning
4. Operant ConditioningAnimal learns to behave in a certain way
through repeated practiceTrial & error learning – animal tests conditions for desired responsee.g. Skinner box
Animal learns that a behavior gets a certain response
e.g. rat presses lever, gets food
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Types of Learning
5. ReasoningAnalyze problem & devise solution using past experiences
Most Dogs? E.g. No, can’t unwind leash from tree
Most Horses? No
Can primates reason?
Primates? yes
e.g. chimp, bananas, boxes
Can primates reason?
Can primates reason? Can primates reason?
e.g. Japanese macaques float grain in water
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★See Alex the Parrot
Jack Hana Video
African Gray Parrot