(8) Animal behaviour - Animals exhibit different behaviours (reproduction and rearing)

(a) Producing the next generation of an animal

Sexual reproduction requires the finding and selection of a suitable mate, and can involve courtship behaviours that advertise an individual’s quality.

Animals have different mating strategies, including:

A mate for life - monogamy (sharing is caring!)

A high percentage of birds mate for life, but only a few % of mammals do.

Examples are wolves, beavers, gibbons, black vultures.

By having one female one female partner, males of many species, especially primates, can increase their chances of siring many offspring who survive long enough to reproduce and counter the forces of natural selection.

The relationship is also likely to be more stable and food gathering and general caring is more likely to be shared for more successful rearing.

However, monogamy does reduce the potential for genetic variation among a female's offspring, meaning if conditions change, there is less chance the species can prosper as successfully as before the change.

 

Several mates over a life time

Since monogamy reduces genetic variation potential, a female mating with more than one male over the course of her lifetime means a female produces offspring with a higher genetic variation and decreases the chances of inbreeding and increases genetic variation.

 

A single mate for just a breeding season

Although this has the disadvantage of reducing genetic variation, this is often the case of seasonal breeders that successfully mate only during certain times of the year e.g. to optimise  survival of young due to factors such as ambient temperature, food and water availability and predation by other animals.

 

Several mates over one breeding season

This increases the chances of producing offspring as males may differ in fertility and decreases the chances of inbreeding and increases genetic variation.

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(b) The rearing of the young of the next generation

Patterns of parental care are widespread and highly diverse across the animal kingdom.

Some animals have developed special behaviours for rearing their young.

Parental care can be a successful evolutionary strategy e.g. with ...

ways to increase the chance of offspring surviving,

and increasing the chance of parental genes being passed on by the offspring.

Parental care is any behaviour that contributes to offspring survival, such as building a nest, provisioning offspring with food, or defending offspring from predators.

Reptiles can produce self-sufficient young needing no parental care

Most egg hatched young birds may be helpless at birth, relying on their parents for survival in terms of food provision and protection from predators.

However, you should also be able to know and explain that in the animal kingdom, parental care may come with risks to the parents.

Animals may have to fight off predators to protect their offspring or their food gathering territory.

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(c) The different behaviours displayed by animals include:

Innate behaviour - inherited behaviour - instinctive behaviour

Innate animal behaviour comes from an animal's heredity - its genetic inheritance.

An animal's instincts are examples of its innate behaviour e.g. Migrating birds use innate behaviour to know (i) where and when to breed and raise their young, (ii) when begin their migration and the (iii) know instinctively the migration route that they should follow.

Web making by spiders, they just know how to mage the complex design of their predation trap.

In north America, each spring and autumn, monarch butterflies travel across Oklahoma. Many monarch butterflies spend the winter in mountain forests near Mexico City. Each spring these butterflies catch a breeze and fly north, returning to the United States. Soon another generation of butterflies continues the journey across the Great Plains of America. Through instinct, or innate behaviour, this new generation of butterflies often returns to the same fields and meadows where their parent butterflies lived the previous summer.

Don't confuse innate behaviour with learned behaviour, which comes from watching other animals and from life experiences.

 

Imprinting - imprinted behaviour

Imprinting effects can be explained due to how the animal interacts with the environment, partly due to heredity in some sensitive phase of life. The imprinting input is a stimuli, while the imprinted output is the response of that animal to that specific stimulus and usually occurs in critical period of life e.g. soon after birth.

Examples

After birth or hatching, a newborn offspring follows another animal that it recognizes or assumes as its mother.

You will see a clutch of newly born chicks following their mother e.g. ducklings following their mother on land or water.

 

Habituation behaviour modification

Habituation happens when animals are exposed to the same stimuli repeatedly, and eventually stop responding to that stimulus e.g. on the assumption the stimulus is not harmful.

Examples

A turtle will draw its head back into its shell when its shell is touched. If it is repeatedly touches, with no ill effect,  the turtle realises it's not in danger and no longer hides its head in its shell if touched again.

 

Classic conditioning and learned behaviour  (often copying observed behaviour)

An animal can compare a new stimulus with a familiar one, and can be conditioned to respond to the new stimulus from then on. The conditioned response is typically a reflex i.e a behavioural response that requires no thought, but many behaviours are learned from examples demonstrated in an animal community and its environment.

Examples

A particular movement of a person or a sound can trigger a pet animal to respond e.g. a cat requesting food or a dog hoping for a walk.

Initially from their mother, baby ducks learn to recognise dangers and what to eat.

Young prairie dogs observe the behaviour of adult prairie dogs and young prairie dogs quickly learn to always be watchful for predators. They learn to recognize the warning call of adult prairie dogs and to dive into the safety of their burrow when danger is near.

Young coyotes learn the skills of a predator by hunting with adult coyotes and also learn how to become a useful member of a hunting pack.

 

Operant conditioning

Operant conditioning is a type of learning when an animal learns (or, is conditioned) from its own behaviour as it interacts with the environment. In operant animal conditioning, the likelihood of a particular behaviour is increased or decreased by the consequences that follow its actions.

Animal behaviours that are rewarded are more likely to be strengthened and repeated.

Training dogs is a good example.

For more on operant conditioning see (d) animal conditioning below

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(d) Animal conditioning

Humans can make use of conditioning when training captive animals for specific purposes, including:

Examples - often examples of operant conditioning

Sniffer dogs are trained to search for people, drugs or other materials by exposure to some appropriate (similar) material and rewarded for successful finding.

Police horses are trained not to respond to physical stimuli such as movement or sounds, unless the rider commands the horse to do something specific.

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(e) Communication between animals

There are several methods of communication within the animal kingdom and animals use a variety of types of signals to communicate e.g.

(i) Sound communication

Animals call to each other for a variety of reasons e.g. mating calls, warning calls, or in our case, complex conversations.

(ii) Chemical communication

Animals leave scent marks on their territory to ward off other animals of the same species.

Pheromones are chemical substances (molecules) which are secreted to the outside by an individual animal and detected by a second individual of the same species. They are often associated with mating behaviour.

(iii) Visual communication

The ability to see objects, usually by visible light e.g. one animal indicating something to another e.g. a negative warning sign of danger or keep away from 'me', or a positive 'ready to mate' mating signal.

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Key points - Summary of ideas

Based on the syllabus-specifications for students taking the AQA, Edexcel and OCR GCSE level biology examinations (~US grades 9-10).

Key concepts related to animal adaptations for reproduction and rearing, as well as innate behaviour, imprinting, and conditioning for students studying biology.

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Evolutionary Adaptations for Reproduction and Rearing in Animals

Evolution has shaped animals to have specific adaptations that increase their chances of survival and reproduction. These adaptations ensure that offspring have the best possible start in life.

Reproductive Strategies

Animals have different reproductive strategies, which can be classified into r-strategists and K-strategists:

• r-strategists:

  • Produce many offspring, often in a short period.

  • Provide little or no parental care.

  • Example: Insects, fish, frogs.

• K-strategists:

  • Produce fewer offspring but invest heavily in parental care.

  • Example: Humans, elephants, birds.

Courtship Behaviours

To ensure reproductive success, animals exhibit courtship behaviours, which help attract mates:

• Visual displays (e.g., peacocks spreading their feathers).

• Vocal calls (e.g., songbirds singing complex songs).

• Chemical signals (pheromones) to attract mates.

Parental Care Adaptations

Parental care increases the survival rate of offspring:

• Nest building (birds construct nests to protect eggs).

• Milk production (mammals provide nutrient-rich milk to their young).

• Protection (wolves guard and feed their pups until they can hunt).

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Innate Behaviour

Innate behaviours are genetically programmed and do not require learning. They are automatic responses to specific stimuli.

Examples of Innate Behaviour:

• Reflex actions: Simple automatic responses (e.g., babies grasping objects instinctively).

• Fixed action patterns: Complex sequences of instinctive behaviours triggered by stimuli.

  • Example: Spiders spinning webs, birds building nests.

Advantages of Innate Behaviour

• Happens immediately, no learning required.

• Ensures survival (e.g., baby animals knowing how to suckle).

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Imprinting

Imprinting is a form of learning where an animal forms an attachment to another organism early in life.

Key Features of Imprinting

• Occurs in a critical period soon after birth.

• Irreversible (once imprinted, the behaviour cannot be changed).

• Example: Ducklings following their mother.

Importance of Imprinting

• Helps young animals recognize parents and stay safe.

• Assists in learning essential survival behaviours.

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Conditioning

Conditioning is a form of learned behaviour where animals associate stimuli with actions.

Types of Conditioning

1. Classical Conditioning (Pavlov’s Dogs):

   • Learning through association.

   • Example: Dogs learning to associate a bell with food.

2. Operant Conditioning (Reward & Punishment):

   • Learning through consequences.

   • Example: Dogs learning tricks by being rewarded with food.

Why Conditioning is Important?

• Helps animals adapt to their environment.

• Enables them to learn survival behaviours.

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These concepts are essential for understanding animal behaviour and adaptations in biology.

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Selected examples of more detailed notes on specific individuals or groups of particular animal or plant species adaptations (in alphabetical order) arctic fox * camel * fishes-general * hydrothermal vent organisms * lemurs * meerkats * mole * owls-general * penguins * polar bear * wasps * whales

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