1. Behavioral Ecology Behavior-what an animal does and how it does it
Behavioral ecology-is a scientific field of study that looks at how behavior is controlled and how it contributes to survival and reproductive success

2. Proximate causes of behavior focus on
Behavioral ecologists distinguish between proximate and ultimate causes of behavior
Proximate causes of behavior focus on
Environmental stimuli that trigger a behavior
Genetic and sensory motor mechanisms underlying a behavior
Ultimate causes of behavior focus on
The evolutionary significance of a behavior

3. Ethology-study of animal behavior, particularly in their natural environments

4. Types of Behavior Innate behaviors Learned behaviors
Automatic, developmentally fixed
Learned behaviors
Modified by experience

5. Innate Behavior Fixed action patterns (FAP)
Sequence of innate behaviors that is essentially unchangeable & usually carried to completion once it is initiated/triggered by a stimulus
Example: in male stickleback fish, the stimulus for attach behavior is the red underside of an intruder

6. Without a red underside, no aggressive response
With a red underside, strong response is produced

8. Imprinting
Type of behavior that includes both learning and innate components
Generally irreversible
Distinguished from other types of learning by a sensitive period
Limited phase in an animal’s development that is the only time when certain behaviors can be learned
Example: young geese

11. Konrad Lorenz showed that when baby geese spent the first few hours of their life with him, they imprinted on him as their parent

12. Conservationists have taken advantage of imprinting in programs to save the whooping crane from extinction.

13. Many behaviors have a strong genetic component
Many animal movements are under substantial genetic influences
These types of movements are called directed movements

14. Directed Movements Kinesis Taxis
A simple change in activity or turning rate in response to a stimulus
Example: Sow bugs
Taxis
More or less automatic, oriented movement toward or away from a stimulus
Example: many stream fish

15. -become more active in dry areas and less active in humid areas
-automatically swim in an upstream direction

16. Animal Signals and Communication
A signal is a behavior that causes a change in another animal’s behavior
Many animals communicate through odors by emitting chemical signals called pheromones
pheromone perfume

17. Environment Influences the Development of Behaviors
Learning-is the modification of behavior based on specific experiences
Habituation-is a loss of responsiveness to stimuli
“cry-wolf” effect

18. Environmental Influences continued…
Associative learning-learning to associate one feature of the environment with another feature
Classical conditioning-learning to associate certain stimuli with reward or punishment
Operant conditioning-occurs as an animal learns to associate one of its behaviors with a reward or punishment

19. Operant learning-associate behavior with a reward or punishment

20. Behavioral Influences continued…
Cognition-the ability of an animal’s nervous system to perceive, store, process, and use information from sensory receptors

21. Natural selection favors behaviors that increase survival and reproductive success
Foraging behavior-includes not only eating, but also mechanisms used in searching for, recognizing, and capturing food. It represents a compromise between the benefits of nutrition and the cost of obtaining food.
Mating behavior and mate choice- include the seeking or attracting of mates, selecting a mate, and competing for a mate

22. Agonistic behaviors-are often ritualized contests that determine which competitor gains access to a resource, such as food or mates.

23. Social Behaviors
Altruism–occurs when animals behave in ways that reduce their individual fitness but increase the fitness of other individuals in the population
Inclusive fitness-the total effect an individual has on proliferating its genes by producing its own offspring
The natural selection that favors altruistic behavior by enhancing reproductive success of relative is called- kin selection

24. Social learning-learning through observing others