Deck 18: Evolutionary and Ecological Aspects of Behavior

Question 1

Instinct differs from learned behavior in that instinctive behavior

A) does not change; learned behavior does.
B) is acquired; learned behavior is genetic.
C) is adaptive; learned behavior is not.
D) All of these answers are true.

Answer 1

does not change; learned behavior does.

Question 2

Assuming that animals have the same feelings as we do is

A) ecology.
B) anthropomorphism.
C) psychology.
D) natural history.

Answer 2

anthropomorphism.

Question 3

The most complex type of learning that also uses previous experience to solve a problem is

A) imprinting.
B) conditioned response.
C) insight.
D) instinctive.

Answer 3

insight.

Question 4

Social behavior occurs in groups, but not all groups display social behavior. Groups that display social behavior often have

A) some individuals doing one job and others in the group doing different jobs.
B) long periods of contact between parents and offspring.
C) elaborate methods of communicating among individuals in the group.
D) All of these answers are true.

Question 5

Which of the following is used by some animals in finding their way (navigation)?

A) Sense of smell.
B) Position of the sun.
C) Detection of electromagnetism.
D) All of these answers are true, since each is used by some animal.

Question 6

A response an animal develops to a stimulus as a result of pleasant experiences occurring each time the stimulus is received is a kind of learning called

A) insight.
B) instrumental learning.
C) habituation.
D) classical conditioning.

Question 7

Dominance hierarchy is a form of

A) social behavior.
B) territorial behavior.
C) imprinting.
D) insight learning.

Question 8

Learning is most common in animals that

A) are large.
B) have large brains.
C) live in complicated environments.
D) must communicate in order to reproduce.

Question 9

The sounds produced by different species of frogs

A) are unique to each species.
B) are used to attract mates.
C) are instinctive.
D) All of these answers are true.

Question 10

If an animal ignores a stimulus that is continuously present, we say that the animal has

A) instinctively blocked out the stimulus.
B) imprinted on a different stimulus.
C) habituated to the stimulus.
D) None of these answers is true.

Question 11

When a caterpillar spins a cocoon, this is

A) learned behavior.
B) imprinting.
C) unlearned (instinctive) behavior.
D) a conditioned response.

Question 12

Which of the following statements would be consistent with the concept of sociobiology?

A) Only animals with highly developed brains can display social behavior.
B) Human social behavior is quite different from the social behavior of other kinds of animals.
C) There are fundamental similarities in the way all species of social animals interact.
D) A person who studies the social behavior of wolves would be completely baffled by the social behavior of beavers.

Question 13

A firefly is signaling by its tail light. He is saying,

A) "Don't follow so closely."
B) "I'm ready, willing, and able, sexually."
C) "Food-located one mile south."
D) None of these-the flashes are burning of waste and are not associated with communication.

Question 14

A method of ranking individuals from highest to lowest is

A) imprinting.
B) territorial behavior.
C) dominance hierarchy.
D) ethology.

Question 15

Which of the following is an example of stimulus/response?

A) Conditioning dogs to salivate when a bell rings
B) Imprinting ducks to follow a surrogate "mother"
C) Learning not to pick up burning charcoal with your fingers because it is hot
D) All of these are examples of responding to a stimulus

Question 16

The "wagging dance" of the honeybee is believed to tell the other bees in the hive the

A) amount of water in the area.
B) direction to a source of food.
C) presence of enemy bees or other invaders.
D) distance to another rival hive.

Question 17

Insight learning will help

A) a wolf learn imprinting.
B) protect an insect from being eaten by a bird.
C) teach a bird how to fly.
D) you select the correct answers on this exam.

Question 18

In order for learning to be a central part of the life of an animal, all of the following are true except which one?

A) It must have the capacity to remember.
B) It must be territorial.
C) It typically lives a long time.
D) It typically experiences unpleasant stimuli which it avoids.

Question 19

Territorial behavior always involves

A) communication between members of the same species.
B) huge investments in time and energy.
C) courtship behavior.
D) All of these answers are true.

Question 20

A chemical that enables some animals to communicate over long distance is called a

A) hormone.
B) pheromone.
C) ketone.
D) All of these answers are true.

Question 21

Animals can navigate by using

A) sound.
B) landmarks.
C) sun.
D) All of these answers are true.

Question 22

Animals learn about their surroundings

A) instinctively.
B) by actively exploring their surroundings.
C) from communication with other animals.
D) None of these answers is correct.

Question 23

A learned behavior is

A) speaking English.
B) driving.
C) singing.
D) All of these answers are true.

Question 24

Female gypsy moths communicate their presence to male moths over great distances by

A) the sound of their castanets.
B) chemicals.
C) a seductive dance in their pattern of flight.
D) tiny flashing lights.

Question 25

Using past knowledge to solve a problem is an example of

A) conditioning.
B) instrumental learning.
C) positive tropism.
D) insight learning.

Question 26

Which of the following regularly use sound for a navigational aid?

A) bats
B) moths
C) rattlesnakes
D) All of these answers are true.

Question 27

Which of the following behaviors would be determined by genes?

A) Behavior changed as a result of habituation
B) Behavior modified as a result of experience
C) A conditioned response
D) An instinctive behavior

Question 28

Which of the following could be examples of communication by chemicals?

A) A dog urinating on trees, light posts, fire hydrants, and other objects.
B) A rattlesnake injecting poison as it bites its prey.
C) A male prairie chicken stamping its feet in a mating dance.
D) None of these answers is true.

Question 29

An animal performs a behavior exactly like all other members of the species.

A) This is probably the result of habituation.
B) This is probably due to a conditioned response.
C) This is probably due to observational learning.
D) None of these answers is correct.

Question 30

Behavior in which an individual animal gives up an advantage or puts itself in danger to aid others is called

A) habituation.
B) altruistic behavior.
C) observational learning.
D) dedication.

Question 31

Which one of the following is NOT an example of behavior?

A) A plant bending toward a light
B) A student sleeping in class
C) The wind rustling fallen autumn leaves
D) A cat purring

Question 32

Learning a specific behavior that occurs in animals that are genetically primed to learn a specific behavior in a very short period is termed

A) insight learning.
B) imprinting.
C) stimulus.
D) conditional response.

Question 33

The Peter Rabbit stories are an example of

A) ethology.
B) instinct.
C) anthropomorphism.
D) sociobiology.

Question 34

An animal ignores a stimulus to which it is continually subjected. This is a behavior known as

A) thinking.
B) ignorance.
C) instinct.
D) habituation.

Question 35

At night when you shine a bright light on an earthworm, it goes into its hole. This is an example of

A) instinctive behavior.
B) learned behavior.
C) conditioning.
D) imprinting.

Question 36

The food for your dog is kept in the refrigerator, and any time you open the door, the dog comes. This is an example of

A) association.
B) learned behavior.
C) conditioning.
D) All of these answers are true.

Question 37

Just before a duckling was about to hatch, a dog came along and chased the female duck off of the nest. When the duckling hatched it saw the dog. When the dog moved away from the nest, the duckling followed the dog. This is an example of

A) ethology.
B) anthropomorphism.
C) imprinting.
D) a dumb duck.

Question 38

Pheromones are

A) chemicals.
B) used to communicate.
C) specific to each species.
D) All of these answers are true.

Question 39

Many kinds of birds can be found picking insects off the bumpers of automobiles in parking lots. When a car drives into a parking lot they immediately approach it.

A) This is instinctive behavior.
B) This must be learned behavior.
C) It is impossible to tell if this behavior is instinctive or learned.
D) This is definitely the result of imprinting.

Question 40

Among domesticated birds and mammals it is common that when strangers are placed together there will be intense fighting. After a short period of time the fighting stops because they

A) are tired.
B) have learned to avoid aggressive behavior.
C) have established a dominance hierarchy.
D) have established a territory.

Question 41

Applying human feelings and emotions to animals is

A) anthropomorphism.
B) ethology.
C) sociobiology.
D) redirected aggression.

Question 42

Which of the following statements is an example of anthropomorphism?

A) My dog prefers brand x dog food.
B) My dog knows when I open a can of dog food.
C) My dog is sad when I leave home.
D) My dog displays protective behaviors.

Question 43

Problem-solving is a form of

A) imprinting.
B) insight learning.
C) conditioning.
D) instinctive behavior.

Question 44

Which animal from the list below relies the most on instinctive behavior?

A) jellyfish
B) trout
C) bear
D) robin

Question 45

During a baseball game a batter ducks to avoid a wild pitch. In this situation, the ____ is the stimulus and ____ is the response.

A) pitcher; the batter
B) pitcher; wild pitch
C) ducking; wild pitch
D) wild pitch; ducking

Question 46

You feed your cat canned cat food, but whenever you open a can, whether it is soup, tomato paste, or fruit, your cat runs to her food bowl. Your cat is exhibiting

A) instinctive behavior.
B) insight learning.
C) imprinting.
D) conditioning.

Question 47

Female silk moths secrete a chemical called bombykol to attract male silk moths. Bombykol is a

A) stimulus.
B) pheromone.
C) method of communication.
D) All of these answers are true.

Question 48

Territorial behavior

A) allocates scarce resources with little physical conflict.
B) results in dominance hierarchies.
C) increases the number of offspring produced in an area.
D) All of these answers are true.

Question 49

A goose that was hatched by a swan grows up to unsuccessfully court swans. This is an example of

A) anthropomorphism.
B) classical conditioning.
C) imprinting.
D) insight learning.

Question 50

Resources can be allocated by

A) territoriality and dominance hierarchy.
B) conditioning and imprinting.
C) territoriality and imprinting.
D) conditioning and dominance hierarchy.

Question 51

Which of the following is an example of imprinting?

A) Thumb-sucking in humans
B) Salmon always returning to the stream in which they were raised
C) Ducks learning to quack
D) Defending a territory

Question 52

Communication between animals is

A) usually primarily instinctive.
B) common between different species.
C) primarily a learned activity.
D) rare.

Question 53

A dog jumps through a hoop. He is rewarded with a dog biscuit. Thereafter he readily jumps through the hoop as long as he is rewarded. This is an example of

A) learning.
B) imprinting.
C) instinct.
D) insight.

Question 54

Which of the following is true for both instinct and learning?

A) They generate the correct response in all cases.
B) They can be altered by an animal during its lifetime.
C) They allow an organism to respond to changes in its environment in an appropriate manner.
D) Both are inherited behaviors.

Question 55

In ___________ the animal modifies its behavior by linking an involuntary response to a specific natural stimulus to a new stimulus.

A) classical conditioning
B) instinctive behavior
C) learned instinct
D) adaptation

Question 56

All of the following are examples of learning except

A) a wolf pack establishing a territory.
B) a spider building a new web after the original was destroyed.
C) ducklings following their mother.
D) animals in zoos begging for food.

Question 57

The kind of learning that occurs when a reward or punishment is received after an animal has engaged in a behavior is termed

A) operant conditioning.
B) instinctive behavior.
C) adaptive behavior.
D) inoperant conditioning.

Question 58

___________ or imitation is a form of associative learning that involves a complex set of associations involved in watching another animal being rewarded for performing a particular behavior and then performing that same behavior oneself.

A) Observational learning
B) Conditioned reflex learning
C) Imprinting
D) Insight

Question 59

Which of the following human behaviors is most likely to involve imprinting?

A) Learning to ride a bicycle
B) Learning to write with a pencil
C) Learning to talk
D) None of these answers is correct

Question 60

Which of the following best describes the mental processes that involve memory and an ability to reorganize information?

A) instinctive behavior
B) thinking
C) imprinting
D) conditioned response