Animal Behavior

Question 1

Behavior

Answer 1

The way an organism responds to changes in its internal/external environment
Innate or learned

Question 2

Ethology

Answer 2

Study of behavior & its relationship to its evolutionary origins

Question 3

Fixed Action Pattern

Answer 3

Innate, highly stereotypical behavior that, once begun, is continued to completion no matter if it’s useless/silly looking
Stickleback Fish

Question 4

Sign Stimuli

Answer 4

Initiate a fixed action pattern

Question 5

Releasers

Answer 5

Sign stimuli exchanged between members of the same species

Red belly on stickleback fish

Question 6

Learning

Answer 6

Process in which the responses of the organisms are modified as a result of experience
3 types

Question 7

Habituation

Answer 7

Simplest form of learning

Animals comes to ignore stimuli

Question 8

Associative Learning

Answer 8

1 stimulus becomes linked to another through experience

Question 9

Operant Conditioning

Answer 9

Associative Learning
Trial & Error Learning - animal associates its own behavior through reward/punishment
Rat in cage with lever

Question 10

Classical Conditioning

Answer 10

Associative Learning

Ivan Pavlov, dog salivate when hearing bell - automatic response

Question 11

Imprinting

Answer 11

Learning that occurs early in life, irreversible during that time
Mother-offspring bonding, if it fails parent will not care for offspring & offspring will die

Question 12

Social Behavior

Answer 12

Any kind of interaction between 2/more animals, usually same species

Question 13

Cooperation

Answer 13

Social Behavior

Enables individuals to carry out a behavior, like hunting, as a group = more successful

Question 14

Agonistic Behavior

Answer 14

Social Behavior

Aggressive Behavior - Involves threats/actual combats of both real, ritualistic & symbolic aggressive behavior

Question 15

Dominance Hierarchies

Answer 15

Social Behavior
Pecking order behaviors that dictate the social position of animal in a culture
Ex: Hens, alpha controls all, beta all but alpha, & so on

Question 16

Territoriality

Answer 16

Social Behavior

Territory = area an organism defends & from which other members of community are excluded

Question 17

Altruism

Answer 17

Social Behavior

Behavior that reduces an individual’s reproductive fitness (may die) while increasing fitness of group or family

Question 18

Kin Selection

Answer 18

Altruism, Social Behavior
When an individual sacrifices itself for the family, it is sacrificing itself for relatives (kin), which share similar genes
Kin selected (saved) can pass on their genes

Question 19

Innate Behavior

Answer 19

Inborn

Running for shelter upon hearing loud noise

Question 20

Learned Behavior

Answer 20

Child sharing toys with other

Question 21

Stimulus

Answer 21

Change in environment

Hunger