B2 Behaviour And Evolution Flashcards
What is behaviour
An organisms response to changes in its environment
What is innate behaviour
These are behaviours you are born or instincts. ReFlex actions such as sneezing or blinking they protect us from things.
What is habituation
It is learned behaviour,
Describe the process of habituation
If you give an animal a stimulus that is neither beneficial or harmful it will learn not to respond to it. By ignoring non threatening stimuli animals can spend there time more efficiently
What is imprinting
When an animal learns to recognise its parents and instinctively follows them. It is a combination of learned and innate behaviour
Why can imprinting be described as learned
It occurs straight after the animals is born they follow the first thing they see usually a parent. The animal has no innate instinct of what a parent looks like it has to learn this
What is conditioning
It is another form of learned behaviour
What is classical conditioning
When an animal learns passively to associate a stimulus with and important effect. I.e a dog associates a dinner bell with the arrival of food. This response is automatic and reinforced by repitition
What is operant conditioning
It is trial and error learning. An animal learns actively to associate an Acton with a reward or punishment . I.e rewarding an animal for doing something. It will continue to do this
When is classical conditioning and operant conditioning used in conjunction
A dolphin can always been rewarded with fish when it does a jump for instance if it’s in a show, instead the trainer gets the dolphin to associate a whistle with getting fish then whistles when the animals does the jump
Why do animals need to communicate
It can keep the group together
It can warn animals of predators
Avoid fighting
Baby animals can communicate their needs
How can animals communicate
Sound
Chemicals
Visual signs
How are chemicals used to communicate
Pheromones can be released to show where an animal has been this can be used to mark territory. Chemicals are also used to attract mates
How are visual signs used to communicate
Honey bees wiggle dance to show when they’ve found food
Communicate intentions through body posture for example to intimidate, some gestures admit defeat such as a dog rolling on its back
What do Ethologists study
Animal behaviour
What did Nicolas Tinbergan study
Innate behaviour in gulls. He wondered if the red spot on the adult gulls beak told the gull chicks where to peck to get food. He showed newly hatched chicks cardboard gull heads with different colour spots. The chicks pecked at the beaks with red spots most often
What is Lorenz study
Imprinting in geese , he made himself the first thing geese saw and those geese in group 2 treated him the same as group 1 did to their mother
What did Fossey and Goodall study
Social behaviour in apes. They discovered they worked together to find food , they protected each other from attacks, the males had a social rank system to prevent inner fighting. The apes groomed each other which reinforced a social bond.
