Instincts and Learned Behaviors Instincts and Learned Behaviors
Instincts and Learned Behaviors
Instincts and Learned Behaviors ○ ○ Some animal behavior is inherited and some is learned. Instinct: a behavior that an organism inherits ○ ○ Shared by an entire population (or some only for males and some only for females) Examples include building shelters and finding mates ○ Squirrels instinctively bury acorns and Canadian geese fly south for the winter
○ Learned Behaviors: behaviors animals learn from their parents, not inherit from them. ○ ○ ○ Young lions must learn hunting skills from adult lions in order to survive Birds learn what kind of nests to build from adult birds Brain Pop – Behavior
Inherited Traits ○ ○ ○ A trait is a quality or characteristics of a living thing. A behavior is a way in which a living thing acts or responds to its surroundings. You inherit the color of your eyes and hair and the shape of your nose. If you can roll your tongue you were born with this trait. These traits are passed from parents to offspring. Plants inherit ways of responding to their surrounding such as roots grow down and toward water. Stems grow up toward the sun.
Acquired Traits ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ Not all traits are inherited. An acquired trait is a characteristic that a living thing gets during its lifetime. Acquire=to get A scar is a physical trait that is acquired. Many acquired traits are learned behaviors. Example: young chimpanzees learn to use sticks as tools to get food. You were not born knowing how to speak or read a book. Brain Pop – Heredity Study Jams - Heredity
Inherited Traits and Acquired Traits Inherited Traits Acquired Traits A girl has brown eyes. A girl can speak Spanish. A boy has long fingers. A boy knows how to play the piano. A plant has red flowers. A plant’s leaves have spots from a disease. A bird knows how to build a nest. A bird knows where to find a feeder. A tree has large, round leaves. A tree’s trunk is bent by the wind. A dog has curly fur. A dog knows how to fetch on command.
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