ZoologyLesson 4 of 4 in the course Population and Community Ecology

Animal Behavior: Innate Responses, Learning, Communication, and Evolution

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

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Summary

Behavior is an organism’s change in activity in response to a stimulus. This lesson introduces behavioral biology and examines innate behaviors, especially reflexes, movement patterns, migration, and foraging.

Behavioral biology studies the biological and evolutionary bases of behavior. Scientists approach behavior through related fields: ethology focuses on animal behavior, comparative psychology compares behavior across species, and neurobiology studies the nervous system and its role in behavior. Ethology and comparative psychology have been especially influential in behavioral biology.

All flashcards

What is innate behavior?
Behavior with a strong genetic basis that is largely independent of individual experience.
What is a fixed action pattern?
A sequence of movements triggered by a stimulus that tends to continue to completion.
What is optimal foraging?
Food-searching behavior that tends to maximize energy gained while minimizing energy spent.
What is inclusive fitness?
An individual's reproductive success combined with the reproductive success it helps relatives achieve.
What is polygyny?
A mating system in which one male mates with multiple females.

Quiz questions

  1. What distinguishes kinesis from taxis?Answer: Kinesis is undirected movement; taxis is directed movement toward or away from a stimulus.
  2. Which mating system involves one female mating with multiple males?Answer: Polyandry.
  3. In classical conditioning, what does a previously neutral cue become after being paired with an unconditioned stimulus?Answer: A conditioned stimulus.
  4. What is reciprocal altruism?Answer: Helping another individual with the possibility of receiving help in return later.
  5. What is a cognitive map?Answer: A mental representation of an environment that can guide navigation.

Based on Biology 2e by Mary Ann Clark, Matthew Douglas, Jung Choi (OpenStax), licensed CC BY 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

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