Change topic

1. Change topic • Enough on Proximate causes, interesting and a lot of work. • Basics: Stimulus: effector: in between: behavior • What we will look at now is the behaviors themselves! Will drift back to proximate causes but main focus will be behaviors • First distinguish between two major categories of behavior: Innate (instinctive) vs Learned

2. Innate behaviors • Used to make sharp distinction between innate and learned behaviors. • Innate: as instinctive indicates, behavior that is “born with you” and can manifest itself without learning it. • First proposed by Konrad Lorenz early 1900’s

3. Fixed action pattern • One of the standbys of innate behavior was the “fixed action pattern” • Defined as a behavior, once stimulated to start will continue to its end, even if the original stimulus (innate releasing mechanism)removed. • Greylag goose of Lorenz. Used to be the Classic example! • Now, hardly heard of!!

4. Innate behavior • Why?? • Lot of controversy over this concept and in fact can’t even be found in many new books! • Here we touch on it for both historical reasons and just in case it becomes in fashion again! • Fairly stereotypic behaviors within species and across species. • Would manifest itself in isolation, no outside environmental influence, or at least we think so!

5. Innate Learning • Many argued that can’t isolate from all possible environmental influence, so can never be sure…. • A lot of circular arguments made: graduate students trying to make a name for themselves! • U.S. vs Europe (reductionist vs holistic) • Yet we do recognize that behavior has a genetic basis!

6. Innate behaviors • And that where it stands to day, so far… most accept that behavior has genetic basis (or at least control!!), just arguments as to how much!! • What are you to do?

7. How to view innate vs learning • Best visual model is: all born with a framework (skeleton) of behaviors or behavioral capabilities: a lot due to anatomy and physiology: a dog may want to climb a tree but it will never learn how to do it! • This defines the range of possibilities. The actual behavioral repertoire (fleshing out of skeleton) individual develops depends on experiences (learning) it has.

8. Phenotypic plasticity • Some equate it to “phenotypic plasticity” • Ability to change phenotype under different environmental conditions. • Example Bryozoans (spines in presence of predators but not in absence) • Example Locust (solitary vs migratory types: different structure AND different behaviors!) • Maybe Lamarck was right!!!

9. Behavioral plasticity • Behaviors are more changeable than anatomy or physiology! • Although the behavior itself may not be genetically transmitted, the ability to do so is AND as we will see, can be transmitted socially. • Still all quite confusing!! Mental gymnastics!!

10. Blah Blah Blah…. • What we do know for sure is that behaviors CAN change with experience, animals can learn. • So now looking at those modification from experience: learned behaviors (Chap. 4)

11. Learned BehaviorsWhat is learning • First must address the question of what do we mean when we talk about learning? • Or definition of learning: • A relatively permanent change in behavior as a result of experience. • One could argue: where did that original behavior come from?? Innate, Genetic? • Lets not go down that road!!!!

12. Learned behaviors (chap 4) • Best to start with the behavior that enables many others: Learning behavior • Identified earlier as a source of gaining behaviors • Is a behavior in itself!

13. Individual learning • Make a distinction between how an individual learns from experience and social learning, learning from other individuals. • Here we deal with individual learning • Three interrelated question: • 1) How do animals learn • 2) Why do animals learn • 3) What do animals learn

14. How do animals learn?? • Psychologists: processes underlying learning. • Three types of experiences that lead to learning • 1) single stimulus • 2) Stimulus-stimulus • 3) response-reinforcer

15. Single Stimulus • Single stimulus given an animal: • E.g. blue stick to a rat in a cage. • Rats will notice because of novelty. • If consistently notice it: call sensitization to the stimulus • If eventually ignores it: called habituation. • Two possible learned responses to a stimuls

16. Single Stimulus • Sensitization is good If stimulus is important and may help animal associate this stimulus with other cues. • Habituation is good in that it helps reduce the background “noise” (bombarded with stimuli constantly) and enable response only to those of importance • Can be disadvantage if become habituated to a cue that later becomes important! Predation e.g.

17. Stimulus-stimulus • Here we see how an animal related TWO stimuli • Example: pair blue stick with odor of a cat. • Cat reacts to odor initially but… • Eventually will hide just when blue stick is spotted: associates blue stick with cat.. • Pavlovian or classical conditioning.

18. Terms…Terms..Terms! • Things getting complicated so need terms to keep it straight! • 1) First stimulus: Conditioned stimulus (in itself, does not elicit a response • 2) Second stimulus: Unconditioned stimulus (this is one that would normally elicit a response, even without training. • 3) Conditioned response: This is reaction of animal to conditioned stimulus AFTER it has associated it with unconditioned stimulus

19. Terms…terms…and more terms! • A few more terms associated with this. • 4) Appetitive stimulus: stimulus that is considered positive, pleasant, or rewarding, e.g. food, potential mate, safe haven, etc. • 5) Aversive stimulus: Opposite – unpleasant, e.g. shock, noxious odors, etc. • 6) Excitatory conditioning: positive relationship – first stimulus leads to or predicts the occurrence of the second

20. And more….. • Inhibitory conditioning: If first predicts second event will not occur: Huh? • E.g. if blue stick becomes associated with NOT getting food when rat would normally get it. • No blue stick, will get food. • Blue stick, no food. • Can add second and even 3rd and 4th conditioning stimuli!!!

21. What does this all mean!!??? • Basically it means that animal can associate one stimulus with others AND to predictable outcomes (presence of cat, getting food or not….) • Through this association it “learns” how to modify its behavior • So the ability to associate stimuli with outcomes is important part of learning behavior.

22. Response-Reinforcer here • This associate ability becomes more evident in third type of experience. • Commonly called: Instrumental conditioning or Operant or Goal-directed learning. • Response of animal is reinforced by a reward or punishment

23. How different from Pavlovian? • Animal takes some action first, stimulus comes second. Associates outcome with stimulus rather than stimulus with outcome • Classic is rat pushing lever to get food. • Can get complicated! • Law of effect: If response in presence of stimulus = satisfying event: association between stimulus and response strengthened. And visa versa! • Skinner and “Skinner box” biggies in this area

24. Summary on how they learn • Why is this all important? • We know animals (us!) learn from experience. What we need to know is how is that accomplished? • This then helps us understand how, why, and when certain behaviors may occur

25. Summary • Results so far: A feedback system where, • 1) animal does something and gets a result and it remembers this • 2) something happens to animal and it remembers circumstances (stimuli) under which it happened • So two biggies: association AND Memory! • How memory works, is anyone’s guess!!

26. Memory • Without it learning is impossible • Still don’t know exactly how we physically store info, some three dimension electro-physical process!!??/ • What we do know is: • Memory is selective! (extinction curves) • Memory capabilities vary intra and inter-specifically: some better than others

27. Memory • Brain-memory-learning is the main genetic link between genes and behavior.

28. Why animals learn • Ok, some idea of learning process: carrot and stick! • Why do they learn? • Simple answer is that it has a “survival advantage” • But not as simple as that or is it??

29. Why learn • The fact that memory is selective can provide clues: • - Receive thousands/millions of stimuli • - Make thousands of associations • - Some we remember/others we forget • - Some we remember longer than others • Reflects importance of the associations with environment

30. Why animals learn? • Behavior is interface of animal with its environment: a changing environment! • With this interface, animal needs to capture energy and avoid loosing it! • In capturing energy (food), learning important way of increasing foraging efficiency – reduce foraging time

31. Why animals learn • In capturing “new energy” (reproduction), learning increases chance you will participate. (not just trees releasing pollen!). • In avoiding loosing energy, it is helpful to learn what are safe vs dangerous areas!

32. So why do they learn? • Helps maintain the energy capturing machine under environmental conditions. • Indeed if they do not learn, they are dead meat!!!

33. What do they learn? • Ok, out of those millions of stimuli and associations, which, if any, are important to learn about?? • Obviously rest of book is on the different behaviors that have developed based on stimuli received! • Here is a general treatment of the major categories, which we will then look in detail later.

34. What do they learn? • List of things important to their survival! • 1) learning where home is located! • What this involves is all the various behaviors we will cover in Chapter 13! • As mentioned, behaviors are interface of animal with its environment

35. Call Home!!! • Animals live in the environment and so it is important to learn about it. • Bird and other migrations: learning migratory routes • Habitat selection: learning what is the appropriate habitat to live in!! • Will see this is one of THE most important behaviors to learn for many species!

36. What else? • 2) Learning about your mate!!! • Obviously important for the capture of future energy for the species!! • Two chapters devoted to this!! (6 & 7) • Need I say more??

37. Next on the list… • 3) Learning about familiar relationships (Chap 8 & 9) • Related to the previous one. • Getting into social behaviors • Interfacing with others of the same species. • Recognition, cooperation, etc. • We have to “deal” with relations!!

38. Next? • 4) Foraging!! Looking for the energy that keeps us alive!! (chap 10). • 5) Closely related is anti-predatory and predatory behavior (Chap 11). Learning how to avoid being eaten can come in handy!

39. Still more • 6) Aggression: (Chap 14). Learning how to be and when to be aggressive has survival advantages! • 7) Fear! Not listed but is a very helpful behavior to learn, especially in anti-predator context! • 8) Play (chap 15) what is its role?

40. So there • As mentioned, these cover in a broad sense all that an animal learns and as we will see all play a role in aiding in the survival of the individual and the species. • Before we go to these behaviors, need to cover that other form of learning: Cultural transmission

41. Cultural transmission (chap 5) • Talked about how an individual learns from external stimuli • What good is learning something new if you can’t share it!! • Why share it? Can aid in survival of relatives!! So sharing info has a survival advantage for your genes!!

42. Cultural transmission • This sharing of information is cultural transmission. • Defined: Transfer of information from one individual to another via social learning or teaching (can be within or across generations) • As mentioned: this is a form of evolution without genes!

43. Cultural transmission • Form of learning: social learning • Obviously similar to individual learning in terms of pathways, etc. • But involves learning from others • Lots of non-human examples: • Japanese macaques most noted • First was when one female learned how to wash her potatoes to remove sand and dirt

44. Cultural transmission • Others followed suit and began to wash their potatoes. • Since then many more incidences noted.

45. Characteristics of cultural transmission: • 1) can spread quickly • 2) more likely to spread to younger ones • 3) seems to be some resistance to adapt in older individuals!! here

46. Importance of cultural transmission • How does it differ from individual learning? • Individual is often trial and error • In cultural transmission, emphasis is: individual to individual • Way of transmitting individual learned behaviors, even after initial learner has died • Way of building on experiences: one learns and transmits a behavior, others improve it

47. Social learning • As mentioned, basis of cultural transmission is social learning. • Various forms of social learning, two common ones are Imitation and copying

48. Imitation • Must involve new behavior learned from others and must involve new spatial manipulation: Macaque and potatoes. • The keys are a new behavior and then undertaken by learner elsewhere

49. Copying • One animal repeats what it sees the other do. • Differs from imitation in that need not be a new behavior. • Subtle difference but…

50. Teaching in animals • So far, talking about an animal being observed doing something and then it is imitated or copied by others • No intent on the first animal (the model) in transmitting this information, passive role • Evidence that many animals take active role in transmitting information: Teaching • Implies one acting as instructor and others acting as students.