Rucete ✏ Biology In a Nutshell
1. Instinct
- Innate or inherited behavior that occurs without prior experience or learning.
2. Fixed Action Patterns (FAP)
- A preprogrammed, innate response to a specific stimulus.
- Once started, the behavior runs to completion (e.g., goose rolling an egg back into the nest).
3. Imprinting
- A form of innate learning that occurs during a critical period early in life.
- Example: baby ducks imprinting on their mother.
4. Associative Learning
- An animal associates one stimulus with another. Includes:
a) Classical Conditioning
- An animal responds to a substitute stimulus as if it were the original one.
- Example: Dogs salivate at the sound of a bell after associating it with food.
b) Operant Conditioning (Trial-and-Error Learning)
- An animal associates a behavior with a reward or punishment.
- Basis for most animal training.
- Extinction: The loss of a learned behavior when reinforcement stops.
5. Spatial Learning
- Animal associates a location with a reward.
- Helps in navigation and food gathering.
6. Habituation
- A decrease in response to a repeated or insignificant stimulus.
- Allows animals to ignore irrelevant stimuli.
7. Observational Learning
- Learning by watching another animal perform the behavior first.
- Example: young chimpanzees learning tool use by watching adults.
8. Insight
- The ability to solve a new problem through reasoning, without prior experience.
- Example: a chimp using boxes to reach a banana for the first time.
9. Foraging Behavior
- Feeding behavior that involves searching and recognizing food.
- Often includes a search image, a mental picture that helps locate preferred food efficiently.
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Biology in a nutshell