Animal Behavior Biology 155 A. Russo-Neustadt

I. Definition: Behavior is the observable response that an animal makes to a stimulus. Responses can have –  A genetic (innate = instinctive) component  An environmental (learned) component  Usually both (especially for human behaviors)

II. Instinctive Behaviors (Innate): Entirely genetically programmed Behavior is performed in its entirety the first and all subsequent times that it is performed Requirements:  Animal must be at the correct developmental age ex. Reproductive behaviors  Animal must encounter the appropriate environmental stimulus  Animal must be in the correct motivational state ex. feeding

II. Types of Instinctive Behaviors: Kinesis = change in rate of random movement in response to a stimulus  ex. Pill (Sow) bugs in dry versus moist conditions

II. Types of Instinctive Behaviors: Taxis = directed movement toward or away from a stimulus  ex. Female mosquitoes movement toward moisture, warmth, etc.  ex. Male gypsy moth’s movement toward chemical produced by female  Trout

II. Types of Instinctive Behaviors - continued Reflex = stereotyped movement of a body part or the whole body  ex. Autonomic and somatic reflexes studied in lab

II. Types of Instinctive Behaviors - continued Fixed Action Pattern = a complex behavior triggered by a simple stimulus (sign stimulus = releaser)  ex. Grey lagged goose nesting behavior

II. Types of Instinctive Behaviors - continued Fixed Action Pattern (continued)  ex. Aggressive and courtship behaviors in the Bettas studied in the lab

III. Learned Behaviors: Behaviors change based on experience = environment Requires a complex nervous system

Learned Behaviors Imprinting Habituation Conditioning Trial and Error Insight (Reasoning)

III. Types of Learned Behaviors: Imprinting is a genetically programmed form of learning in which an animal makes a strong association during a particular developmental stage called the sensitive period

–ex. Konrad Lorenz’s goslings

III. Types of Learned Behaviors Habituation is a decline in a response to a repeated harmless stimulus  ex. Aplysia – Sea Slug

III. Types of Learned Behaviors Conditioning (associative) is a type of learning usually seen in the laboratory in which an animal –  Learns to respond to a new stimulus = classical conditioning ex. Pavlov’s dogs

III. Types of Learned Behaviors - continued Conditioning – continued  A type of learning in which an animal learns to perform a behavior to receive a reward or avoid a punishment = operant conditioning ex. Skinner’s rats and bar pressing for food

III. Types of Learned Behaviors - continued Trial and Error is a type of learning seen in nature in which an animal is faced with naturally occurring rewards and punishments that lead to modifications in behavior  ex. Dog reaching a food item  Potential Porcupine Predators

III. Types of Learned Behaviors - continued Insight or reasoning is a type of behavior in which concepts are manipulated in the mind to arrive at a behavior, does not require previous experience  ex. Monkey stacking boxes to reach bananas

Trial and error learning versus Reasoning or insight

Next time…. Feeding and Digestion