Introduction to Animal Behaviour… 232
Introduction to Animal Behaviour:
Historical Perspective, Aims and Objectives
The old saying, ‘curiosity killed the cat’ is no longer considered as bad
or harmful. It is curiosity that prompted people to observe, analyze
and draw conclusions. Curiosity is what formed the basis of ethology
or behaviour biology. It is the same curiosity that makes us want to
know more about animals and people. How the animals react to their
own species, to other species and to us, is of interest. The way they
bond with their mates and offspring, their survival strategies,
territorial behaviour, aggression, instinctive behaviour and their
ability to learn makes interesting reading.
Behaviour biology or ethology has always occupied the interest of people for
centuries. People were interested in the behaviour of animals basically for selfish
reasons. The hunters had knowledge about the behaviour of their prey. They
knew when they could catch a particular type of bird, which was the best time of
the day when they could be easily trapped. They knew that rodents escaped
towards the dark and the birds always flew towards light. The fishermen knew
when they could get a good catch and that fishes like salmons did not respond to
baits during spawning.
When the hunters turned into farmers they had to learn a lot about the behaviour
of the animals they needed to rear. The behaviour of the birds during the
incubation period, their fierce maternal instincts and aggressive behaviour was
interesting. Man could train horses and donkeys to carry out different tasks, for
transportation, for riding, for hunting etc. Dogs were of immense help for
guarding and hunting, but they soon realized that cats were useless to them.
The study of animal behaviour or ethology is recognized as major branch of
biology. Ethology is an interesting subject as it involves observation and analysis
of any particular behaviour - normal or otherwise. Animal behaviour cannot be
studied without learning zoology, physiology and psychology. To justify the
statement here is a simple example,
Without knowing zoology we will be unable to classify the animals. We will not be
able to understand if the behaviour is typical of a species, or a class or even the
phylum.
The knowledge of physiology helps us to understand the biochemical mechanism
involved or the physiological process that causes this behaviour. For example,
the nesting instinct or migration is driven by hormones.
Psychology helps us to explain the motive of the behaviour. Animal physiology
helps us to analyze the behaviour and find out why it occurs and if there is any
benefit the animal can derive from it.
Introduction to Animal Behaviour:
Historical Perspective, Aims and Objectives
The old saying, ‘curiosity killed the cat’ is no longer considered as bad
or harmful. It is curiosity that prompted people to observe, analyze
and draw conclusions. Curiosity is what formed the basis of ethology
or behaviour biology. It is the same curiosity that makes us want to
know more about animals and people. How the animals react to their
own species, to other species and to us, is of interest. The way they
bond with their mates and offspring, their survival strategies,
territorial behaviour, aggression, instinctive behaviour and their
ability to learn makes interesting reading.
Behaviour biology or ethology has always occupied the interest of people for
centuries. People were interested in the behaviour of animals basically for selfish
reasons. The hunters had knowledge about the behaviour of their prey. They
knew when they could catch a particular type of bird, which was the best time of
the day when they could be easily trapped. They knew that rodents escaped
towards the dark and the birds always flew towards light. The fishermen knew
when they could get a good catch and that fishes like salmons did not respond to
baits during spawning.
When the hunters turned into farmers they had to learn a lot about the behaviour
of the animals they needed to rear. The behaviour of the birds during the
incubation period, their fierce maternal instincts and aggressive behaviour was
interesting. Man could train horses and donkeys to carry out different tasks, for
transportation, for riding, for hunting etc. Dogs were of immense help for
guarding and hunting, but they soon realized that cats were useless to them.
The study of animal behaviour or ethology is recognized as major branch of
biology. Ethology is an interesting subject as it involves observation and analysis
of any particular behaviour - normal or otherwise. Animal behaviour cannot be
studied without learning zoology, physiology and psychology. To justify the
statement here is a simple example,
Without knowing zoology we will be unable to classify the animals. We will not be
able to understand if the behaviour is typical of a species, or a class or even the
phylum.
The knowledge of physiology helps us to understand the biochemical mechanism
involved or the physiological process that causes this behaviour. For example,
the nesting instinct or migration is driven by hormones.
Psychology helps us to explain the motive of the behaviour. Animal physiology
helps us to analyze the behaviour and find out why it occurs and if there is any
benefit the animal can derive from it.
