Discrete sensory inputs can
stimulate both simple and
complex behaviors
CHAPTER 51, SECTION 1
8/28/2015
Overview
The Dutch scientist Niko Tinbergen suggested that
understanding any behavior requires answering four
questions:
1.
What stimulus elicits the behavior, and what
physiological mechanisms mediate the response?
2.
How does the animal’s experience during growth and
development influence the response?
3.
How doe the behavior aid survival and reproduction?
4.
What is the behavior’s evolutionary history?
Behavioral ecology: the study of the ecological and
evolutionary basis for animal behavior.
Fixed Action Patterns

Definition: a sequence of
unlearned acts directly linked to a
simple stimulus.

The trigger for the behavior is an
external cue called a sign stimulus.

Example: Three-spined
sticklebacks

Example: Greylag Goose
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUNZ
v-ByPkU
Migration

Definition: a regular, long-distance
change in location.

In the course of migration, many
animals pass through environments
they have not previously
encountered. How do they find
their way?

Solar or celestial cues

Earth’s magnetic field
Behavioral Rhythms
Circadian Rhythm
Circannual Rhythm
Circalunar
Definition: a physiological cycle
of about 24 hours that persists
even in the absence of external
cues.
Definition: behavioral rhythms
linked to the yearly cycle of
the seasons.
Definitions: behavioral rhythm
linked to the cycles of the
moon rather than the amount
of light.
Example: release of hormones
Examples: migration,
hibernation
Example: reproductive system
of marine organisms
Forms of Animal Communication

A stimulus transmitted from one animal to another is called a
signal.

Signal transmission and reception constitute animal
communication, an essential element of interaction between
individuals.

Four common modes of animal communication: visual,
chemical, tactile, and auditory.

Example: Male fruit flies exhibit all four types of
communication when attempting to attract a female.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-iK2D1mC10
https://www.youtube.co
m/watch?v=1lhVBNQ-Ik8
Pheromones
Definition: a small molecules released into
the environment that functions in
communication between members of the
same species.
 Pheromones are not limited to short
distance signaling  silkworm moths
 Pheromones may serve as an alarm signal.


2 hypotheses

Fathead minnow
Honeybees produce pheromones to
maintain order.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IC4yuC
0Ld8k
