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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?
Sight
Touch
Smell
Taste
Sound
Vocabulary- other stimuli
Heat
Light
Chemicals
Humidity
Vibration
Color
Gravity
Pressure
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 young
e.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 aggressors
e.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 Behavior
8. 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 from
Arctic
to Antarctic,
2x/year
Types of Behavior
9. Communication =
signaling between one animal & another
Greeting 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
Vocalizations
e.g. bark, growl, snort, howl, hoot,
chirp, whinny, alarm sound,
other language
Types of Behavior- Communication
Non-verbal signaling
e.g. body, head, ear, & / or tail position
showing 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 inaction
e.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 Selection
An 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 Behavior
Appear in fully functional form when first
performed
E.g. Startle behavior purpose =
self-preservation
E.g. web building, suckling, bird begging,
nest building, some bird song
Types of Behavior Development
3. Learning
development of behaviors through
experience
determines final shape of innate
behaviors
5 types of learning
Types of Learning
1. Imprinting (both innate & learned)
occurs only during a critical time frame
once learned, cant be changed
(see Conrad Lorenz with ducklings)
Imprinting
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Types of Learning
2. Habituation
Animal learns to ignore frequent,
harmless stimulus
E.g. scarecrow, habituation to observer
Types of Learning
3 Classical Conditioning
Animal learns to associate unrelated
response with a stimulus
E.g. Pavlovs experiments
bell ringing, food, salivation
bell ringing, salivation (even if no food is
given)
+ +
Classical Conditioning
E.g. 1. leash =going for a walk,
excitement
2. sight of leash =excitement
Types of Learning
4. Operant Conditioning
Animal learns to behave in a certain way
through repeated practice
Trial & error learning animal tests
conditions for desired response
e.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. Reasoning
Analyze problem & devise solution using
past experiences
Most Dogs?
E.g. No, cant 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. J apanese macaques float grain in water
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See Alex the Parrot
J ack Hana Video
African Gray Parrot