← Responses of plants and animals to their external environment
7 Innate vs learned behaviour
Innate (instinctive) behaviour
- Inherited, present without learning, same across the species: reliable in a predictable environment.
- Reflex (rapid, automatic), fixed action pattern (a complete stereotyped sequence triggered by a sign stimulus).
- Survival value: works first time (no need to learn): vital for short-lived animals or one-shot situations.
Learned behaviour
- Habituation: stop responding to a harmless repeated stimulus → save energy.
- Imprinting: rapid learning during a critical period (e.g. ducklings follow the first moving object) → stay with parent.
- Classical conditioning: associate two stimuli (Pavlov’s dogs).
- Operant conditioning: learn from consequences (reward/punishment) → adapt to a changing environment.