Chapter 31, Problem 16A

Summary Introduction

To write: The conclusion about the influence of genetics on behavior brought from the results of the given experiment.

Introduction: Learned behavior is a behavior of the new ones of the animal learning to adjust and adapt to the environment and its complications that develop with experience.

Explanation of Solution

There are two types of behavior innate or learned.

Innate behavior is genetic behavior that doesn’t necessarily come from past experiences.

Learned behavior comes from the interaction between innate behaviors and past experiences within a particular environment. Few examples of learned behavior are:

1. Habituation
2. Conditioning
3. Imprinting
4. Cognitive behavior

Animal behaviorists observed that one species of lovebird carries nest-building materials in its beak. Another species of lovebird carries the material under its feathers. Hybrid offspring are produced by breeding these two species. The hybrids repeatedly shift the material between their beaks and their feathers while carrying it. This flow of behavior from parent to offspring is an example of learned behavior that came to the offspring because of the exercise of that behavior by parents.

Conclusion

The behavior of both the parent bird is different but the hybrid offspring that is produced by breeding of the two-parent species behaves with the adopted characters of both the parents. So the conclusion drawn from this is that the offspring get some learned behavior because of the practicing of past experiences of both the parents.