Animal Behavior Flashcards
(10 cards)
What is a Fixed Action Pattern (FAP)?
A sequence of unlearned, innate behaviors that is unchangeable and carried to completion once triggered by a specific stimulus (e.g., a goose retrieving an egg).
What is animal communication?
The transmission and reception of signals between animals, such as visual, auditory, chemical, or tactile cues, used for mating, warning, or coordinating group behavior.
What are pheromones?
Chemical signals released by an animal that affect the behavior or physiology of others of the same species, often used in mating or alarm signaling.
What is imprinting in animals?
A form of learning occurring during a critical period early in life, where an animal forms strong associations (often with a parent or caregiver).
What is spatial learning?
The ability of an animal to recognize, remember, and use spatial information in its environment, like landmarks, to navigate.
What is associative learning?
Learning that involves making a connection between two stimuli or a behavior and its consequence (includes classical and operant conditioning).
What is cognitive learning?
The ability to use reasoning, problem-solving, and memory to make decisions, often seen in animals like primates, dolphins, and birds.
What is social learning?
Learning by observing and imitating the behavior of others, which can lead to the spread of behaviors through a group or population.
What does the Optimal Foraging Theory suggest?
Animals will maximize the energy gained from food relative to the energy and risk it takes to obtain it, optimizing survival and reproductive success.
What is altruism in animal behavior?
Behavior that reduces an individual’s fitness while increasing the fitness of another, often explained by kin selection or reciprocal altruism.
