38 Questions
What is the primary focus of ethology?
Studying animal behaviour under natural conditions
Who is regarded as one of the founders of modern ethology?
Konrad Lorenz
What is the process by which some nidifugous birds bond instinctively with the first moving object they see?
Imprinting
What is the title of Nikolaas Tinbergen's 1951 publication?
The Study of Instinct
What is the significance of the waggle dance in honey bees?
It indicates the direction of food sources
What is the primary focus of Karl von Frisch's research?
Sensory perceptions of honey bees
What is behaviour in animals, in its broadest sense?
Everything animals do, including movement and other activities
Why do different individuals or species react to the same stimulus in different ways?
Because of genetic differences
What is one of the importance of studying animal behaviour?
To design housing and husbandry systems for animals
Which system regulates metabolism, reproductive cycles, and broodiness in animals?
Endocrine system
What is the primary function of the pituitary gland in regulating animal behaviour?
Regulating reproductive cycles
What determines the behavioural responses of animals?
Both heredity and external factors
What is the role of the nervous system in regulating animal behaviour?
Transmitting information from receptors to the CNS
What is the result of the sum of all muscle contractions and hormonal secretions?
Behaviour
What is the importance of studying animal behaviour in terms of animal welfare?
It is an indicator of health and welfare
Which of the following is an example of an external factor that affects animal behaviour?
Hunger
What triggers the imprinting process in birds?
Vocalization from the mother
How long does the imprinting process typically take in birds?
Within 36 hours of hatching
What is cultural learning?
A process of learning through observation
What is an example of observational learning?
Watching a mother bird build a nest
What is teaching in the context of cultural learning?
A highly specialized aspect of learning
What occurs when individuals become interested in an object as a result of observing others interacting with it?
Stimulus and local enhancement
What is the primary requirement for an animal to show a certain behavioural response?
Appropriate neural mechanisms
What is the term used to describe the behaviours that are present at birth?
Instinct or reflexes
What is the characteristic of animals that are classified as precocious?
They have skills and abilities at birth
What is the type of learning that involves the permanent weakening of a response as a result of repeated stimulation unaccompanied by reinforcement?
Habituation
What is the term used to describe the process that produces adaptive changes in individual behaviour as a result of experience?
Learning
Which type of learning involves the improvement of a response through repeated attempts?
Insight learning
What is the characteristic of altricial animals?
They are helpless at birth
What is the result of repeated exposure to a stimulus in habituation?
The animal will respond less strongly to the stimulus
What is the main difference between classical conditioning and instrumental conditioning?
Classical conditioning involves learning through association, while instrumental conditioning involves learning through reinforcement
What is the term for the process by which a behavior that is learned through reinforcement becomes extinct when the reinforcement is withheld?
Extinction
What type of learning involves solving a problem through reasoning and insight?
Insight learning
What is the term for the process by which young animals follow the first moving object they encounter after hatching?
Imprinting
What is the result of severe malnutrition in early life on an animal's ability to solve complex problems?
Retarded ability to solve complex problems
What is the term for the unconditioned stimulus in classical conditioning?
Unconditioned stimulus
What is an example of avoidance behavior in instrumental conditioning?
An animal staying away from an electric fence after receiving a shock
What is the term for the type of learning that involves associating a behavior with a consequence, such as receiving food or avoiding shock?
Instrumental conditioning
Study Notes
Imprinting
- Imprinting occurs in birds within 36 hours of hatching, where they follow their mother based on her vocalization.
- If imprinting doesn't occur within a few days of hatching, it may never occur at all.
Cultural Learning
- Cultural learning is the process of passing on socially learned information.
- It is greatly influenced by adult socialization and their interaction with their young.
- Types of cultural learning:
- Observational learning: learning through observing others' behavior.
- Imitation: exactly replicating the behavior of another.
- Stimulus and local enhancement: becoming interested in an object due to others interacting with it.
- Teaching: adjusting behavior to increase the probability of achieving a desired outcome.
Ethology
- Ethology is the scientific and objective study of animal behavior under natural conditions.
- It is an evolutionarily adaptive trait.
Famous Ethologists
- Konrad Lorenz: investigated the principle of imprinting in geese and is a founder of modern ethology.
- Nikolaas Tinbergen: published "The Study of Instinct" in 1951, summarizing ideas on innate behavioral reactions and adaptiveness.
- Karl von Frisch: investigated sensory perceptions of honey bees, including the waggle dance.
Animal Behaviour
- Animal behavior refers to everything animals do, including movement, activities, and underlying mental processes.
- Importance of studying behavior:
- Indicates health and welfare.
- Enables design of housing and husbandry systems.
- Helps understand group size and reproductive success.
Physiological Concept of Behaviour
- Behaviour is regulated by the nervous system and endocrine system.
- Nervous system: transmits information from external and internal factors to the CNS, leading to expression of behavior.
- Endocrine system: regulates metabolism, reproductive cycles, and other functions.
Causes of Behaviour
- Behaviour is a result of muscle contractions and hormonal secretions.
- Genetically programmed behaviors can be stereotyped and cannot be changed.
Learning and Experience
- Heredity: affects growth and development of body parts, including sensory and motor organs.
- Instinct or reflexes: inherent behaviors present at birth, such as swimming without learning or maternal behavior.
- Altricial and precocious categories: divide animals based on their ability to exhibit skills and abilities at birth.
Types of Learning
- Habituation: permanent weakening of a response as a result of repeated stimulation without reinforcement.
- Conditioning:
- Classical conditioning: learning to respond to an artificial stimulus in the same way as a natural stimulus.
- Instrument or operant conditioning: associating behavior with a particular outcome in the environment.
- Insight learning: ability to respond correctly at the first time when encountering a new situation, prevalent in higher mammals.
This quiz covers animal behavior, specifically imprinting and cultural learning in birds, and how they adapt to their environment.
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