Bio3520
Chapter 1
Principles of Animal Behavior
The scientific study of animal behavior is called
.
Ethology is based on three
foundations.
selection
favors individuals with behavioral traits that give them a
advantage.
The ability of animals to
new or modified
behaviors
based on individual experience.
transmission
of new behaviors over generations.
Work in a scientific discipline such as ethology can be done using three
approaches.
advances such as
selection
may combine ideas from different subdisciplines in a new way to reshape fundamental thinking.
models such as mathematical
theory
enable ethologists to produce predictions about animal behavior.
work includes observational and
studies
which test the concepts and theories of animal
behavior.