FIGURE 29–6 Imprinting in Captivity Recently hatched cranes raised in captivity imprint on a hand puppet (top left). Later, that puppet is used to help introduce these birds to the wild by guiding them along a migration route that they would normally learn by following their parents (top center and top right).
Once imprinting has occurred, the behavior becomes fixed. Sometimes, the fixed object of imprinting shows up later in life. When baby geese mature, for example, they search for mates who resemble the individual on whom they imprinted as goslings. In nature, this is almost always their mother, and therefore a member of their own species. When humans get involved, odd things are possible. One researcher arranged for baby geese to imprint on him. It was amusing to watch these birds following him around. Amusing, that is, until the birds matured—and began to court the researcher! Sometimes experiments have even caused birds to imprint on objects such as the hand puppet shown in Figure 29–6.
Imprinting doesn't have to involve vision. Animals can imprint on sounds, odors, or any other sensory cues. Newly hatched salmon, for example, imprint on the odor of the stream in which they hatch. Young salmon then head out to seYears later, when they mature, the salmon remember the odor of their home stream and return there to spawn.
29.1 Assessment
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Review What is behavior?
Apply Concepts How does natural selection affect animal behavior?
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Review How does a newborn animal know exactly “what to do” the moment it is born?
Predict What would happen if a newborn kitten did not have the suckling instinct?
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Review What are the four types of learning?
Apply Concepts Give an example of how humans learn through classical conditioning.
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Review Which aspect of imprinting is innate? Which aspect is learned?
Infer How might isolating a newborn animal from members of its own species affect it?
Apply the Big idea
Use what you learned in this lesson to explain why behavioral responses are important to the survival of a species.
Table of Contents
- Formulas and Equations
- Applying Formulas and Equations
- Mean, Median, and Mode
- Estimation
- Using Measurements in Calculations
- Effects of Measurement Errors
- Accuracy
- Precision
- Comparing Accuracy and Precision
- Significant Figures
- Calculating With Significant Figures
- Scientific Notation
- Calculating With Scientific Notation
- Dimensional Analysis
- Applying Dimensional Analysis