Animal behaviour | Definition, Types, & Facts

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border-right-sm border-left-sm open"> <div class="drawer d-flex flex-column open"> <div class="left-rail-section-content"> <div class="topic-left-rail-header text-truncate bg-gray-50 position-relative text-right d-flex align-items-center"> <div class="tlr-title px-20 py-15 text-left"> <em class="material-icons text-gray-400 d-lg-none" data-icon="toc"></em> <a class="font-serif font-weight-bold text-black link-blue" href="https://www.britannica.com/science/animal-behavior">animal behaviour</a> </div> <button aria-label="Close" class="js-sections-close-button btn-link btn-sm btn d-lg-none position-absolute top-0 p-10 right-0" > <em class="material-icons font-26" data-icon="close"></em> </button> </div> <div class="section-content pl-10 pr-20 pl-sm-50 pr-sm-60 pl-lg-5 pr-lg-10 pt-10 pt-lg-0 bg-gray-50 clear-catfish-ad"> <div class="toc mb-20"> <div class="font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mx-15 mb-15 mt-20"> Table of Contents </div> <ul class="list-unstyled my-0" data-level="h1"><li data-target="#ref1"><div class="pl-25"><a class="link-gray-900 w-100" href="/science/animal-behavior">Introduction</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref282488"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><button class="h1-link-drawer-button btn btn-xs btn-circle d-flex rounded" type="button" aria-label="Toggle Heading"><em class="material-icons font-18" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></em></button><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/History-and-basic-concepts">History and basic concepts</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref282489"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/History-and-basic-concepts#ref282489">Darwin’s influence</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref282490"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/History-and-basic-concepts#ref282490">Ecological and ethological approaches to the study of behaviour</a></li></ul></div></li><li data-target="#ref282491"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><button class="h1-link-drawer-button btn btn-xs btn-circle d-flex rounded" type="button" aria-label="Toggle Heading"><em class="material-icons font-18" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></em></button><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Causation">Causation</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref282492"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Causation#ref282492">Sensory-motor mechanisms</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref282493"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Cognitive-mechanisms">Cognitive mechanisms</a></li></ul></div></li><li data-target="#ref282494"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><button class="h1-link-drawer-button btn btn-xs btn-circle d-flex rounded" type="button" aria-label="Toggle Heading"><em class="material-icons font-18" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></em></button><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Ontogeny">Ontogeny</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref282495"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Ontogeny#ref282495">Behavioral genetics</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref282496"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Instinctive-learning">Instinctive learning</a></li></ul></div></li><li data-target="#ref282497"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><button class="h1-link-drawer-button btn btn-xs btn-circle d-flex rounded" type="button" aria-label="Toggle Heading"><em class="material-icons font-18" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></em></button><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Function">Function</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref282498"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Function#ref282498">Natural selection in action</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref282499"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Adaptive-design">Adaptive design</a></li></ul></div></li><li data-target="#ref282500"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><button class="h1-link-drawer-button btn btn-xs btn-circle d-flex rounded" type="button" aria-label="Toggle Heading"><em class="material-icons font-18" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></em></button><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Adaptive-design#ref282500">Evolutionary history of behaviour</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref282501"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Character-mapping">Character mapping</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref282502"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Character-mapping#ref282502">Phylogenetic grading</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref282503"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Artificial-selection">Artificial selection</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref282504"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/animal-behavior/Artificial-selection#ref282504">The comparative approach</a></li></ul></div></li></ul> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="https://www.britannica.com/science/animal-behavior/additional-info">References & Edit History</a> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="/facts/animal-behavior">Related Topics</a> </div> <div class="tlr-media-slider pb-10 mb-30"> <a class="section-header link-gray-900 font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mb-10 mx-10" href="https://www.britannica.com/science/animal-behavior/images-videos">Images, Videos & Interactives</a> <div class="slider js-slider position-relative d-inline-flex align-items-center mw-100 "> <div class="slider-container js-slider-container overflow-hidden d-flex overflow-hidden text-nowrap ml-15"> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/30/19630-120-CE960DDD/Charles-Darwin-photograph-Julia-Margaret-Cameron-1868.jpg" data-href="/media/1/25597/1314" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/30/19630-120-CE960DDD/Charles-Darwin-photograph-Julia-Margaret-Cameron-1868.jpg" alt="Charles Darwin" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/93/9693-004-78E28DB4/Ivan-Petrovich-Pavlov.jpg" data-href="/media/1/25597/13398" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/93/9693-004-78E28DB4/Ivan-Petrovich-Pavlov.jpg" alt="Ivan Pavlov" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/65/10965-120-A27B3EF7/Honeybee.jpg" data-href="/media/1/25597/5952" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/65/10965-120-A27B3EF7/Honeybee.jpg" alt="honeybee" height="50" /> </a> <a href="" data-href="/media/1/25597/314109" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/20/261620-049-463E0729/monarch-butterfly-migration-map.jpg" alt="Interactive thumbnail shows an animated map of monarch butterfly seasonal migration." height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/16/117216-050-3AD1A2A6/trespassing-males-stickleback-fish-defense-behaviour-mates.jpg" data-href="/media/1/25597/113142" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/16/117216-004-399FE4F8/trespassing-males-stickleback-fish-defense-behaviour-mates.jpg" alt="stickleback" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/04/114704-050-E0F148BD/inheritance-eyes-Drosophila-flies.jpg" data-href="/media/1/25597/112184" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/04/114704-004-8F8024ED/inheritance-eyes-Drosophila-flies.jpg" alt="sex-linked inheritance" height="50" /> </a> <a href="/video/anoles-colour-dewlap-throat-fan-territory-females/16375" data-href="/media/1/25597/16375" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <div class="position-relative --aspect-ratio: 16/9"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/58/22058-138-96016FEA/anoles-colour-dewlap-throat-fan-territory-females.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop" alt="Observe an anole change its skin colour for camouflage and fan its dewlap to mark possession or attract a mate" class="col-100" /> <div class="btn btn-sm btn-white btn-circle position-absolute shadow" style="top: 50%; left:50%; transform: translate(-50%, -50%)"> <em class="material-icons font-14" data-icon="play_arrow" > </em> </div> </div> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/92/52992-050-9E7C7901/phenotypes-natural-selection-each-types-distribution-effects.jpg" data-href="/media/1/25597/45468" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/92/52992-004-CAA1DFB4/phenotypes-natural-selection-each-types-distribution-effects.jpg" alt="types of natural selection" height="50" /> </a> <a href="/video/bats-echolocation-colony-roost-twilight-insects-cave/115578" data-href="/media/1/25597/115578" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <div class="position-relative --aspect-ratio: 16/9"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/12/22212-138-E0F6A5B1/bats-echolocation-colony-roost-twilight-insects-cave.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop" 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Floats on back. 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Seeley</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 clamp-description text-black">Professor of Neurobiology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor text-decoration-underline"> Thomas D. Seeley</span>, <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 qa-editor-popup gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor" href="/contributor/Paul-W-Sherman/5373" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">Paul W. Sherman</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 clamp-description text-black">Professor of Neurobiology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor text-decoration-underline"> Paul W. Sherman</span><span class="text-gray-700 mx-5">•</span><a class="see-all border-gray-700 gtm-byline" rel="nofollow" href="https://www.britannica.com/science/animal-behavior/additional-info#contributors">All</a> </div> <div class="font-serif font-12 text-gray-700"> <span class="qa-fact-checked-by">Fact-checked by</span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 qa-editor-popup font-12" href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 text-black">Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link font-12 "> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div> <div class="last-updated font-12 font-serif"> <span class="text-gray-700"> Last Updated: <time datetime="2024-12-24T00:00:00CST" >Dec 24, 2024</time> •</span> <a class="byline-edit-history" href="https://www.britannica.com/science/animal-behavior/additional-info#history" rel="nofollow">Article History</a> </div></div> </div> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button d-none d-sm-block js-sections-inline-button module-spacing btn d-lg-none"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <div class="d-flex d-sm-none flex-row"> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button js-sections-inline-button module-spacing"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <button class="ai-ask-button btn btn-sm border-2 btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 module-spacing js-inline-ai-ask-button p-10 ml-5"> Ask the Chatbot </button> </div> <div class="js-qf-module qf-module px-40 px-sm-20 py-15 mx-auto module-spacing font-14 bg-gray-50 rounded"> <div class="facts-list mt-10"> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Key People: </dt> <dd><a href="/biography/Konrad-Lorenz" topicid="348157">Konrad Lorenz</a></dd> <dd><a href="/biography/Temple-Grandin" topicid="241613">Temple Grandin</a></dd> <dd><a href="/biography/Karl-von-Frisch" topicid="220441">Karl von Frisch</a></dd> <dd><a href="/biography/C-Lloyd-Morgan" topicid="392192">C. Lloyd Morgan</a></dd> <dd><a href="/biography/Theodore-Christian-Schneirla" topicid="527867">Theodore Christian Schneirla</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Related Topics: </dt> <dd><a href="/science/animal-learning" topicid="1349539">animal learning</a></dd> <dd><a href="/topic/animal-social-behaviour" topicid="550897">animal social behaviour</a></dd> <dd><a href="/science/reproductive-behaviour-zoology" topicid="498588">reproductive behaviour</a></dd> <dd><a href="/topic/locomotion" topicid="345861">locomotion</a></dd> <dd><a href="/science/playing-dead" topicid="1271275">playing dead</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> <div class="text-center"> <a class="btn btn-sm btn-link p-0" href="/facts/animal-behavior"> See all related content </a> </div> </div> </div> </div><span class="marker before-article"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref1"><span class="marker PREMOD1 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><strong><span id="ref497841"></span>animal behaviour</strong>, the concept, broadly considered, referring to everything <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/animal" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">animals</a> do, including <span id="ref497911"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/movement-behavior" class="md-crosslink ">movement</a> and other activities and underlying mental processes. Human fascination with animal behaviour probably extends back millions of years, perhaps even to times before the ancestors of the species became human in the modern sense. Initially, animals were probably observed for practical reasons because early human survival depended on knowledge of animal behaviour. Whether hunting wild game, keeping domesticated animals, or escaping an attacking <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/carnivore-consumer" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">predator</a>, success required <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="intimate" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intimate" data-type="MW">intimate</a> knowledge of an <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/animal" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">animal’s</a> habits. Even today, information about animal behaviour is of considerable importance. For example, in Britain, studies on the social organization and the ranging patterns of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/badger" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">badgers</a> (<em>Meles meles</em>) have helped reduce the spread of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/tuberculosis" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">tuberculosis</a> among cattle, and studies of sociality in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/fox-mammal" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">foxes</a> (<em>Vulpes vulpes</em>) assist in the development of models that predict how quickly rabies would spread should it ever cross the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/English-Channel" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">English Channel</a>. Likewise in Sweden, where collisions involving <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/moose-mammal" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">moose</a> (<em>Alces alces</em>) are among the most common traffic accidents in rural areas, research on moose behaviour has <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="yielded" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/yielded" data-type="EB">yielded</a> ways of keeping them off roads and verges. In addition, investigations of the foraging of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/insect" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">insect</a> pollinators, such as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/honeybee" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">honeybees</a>, have led to impressive increases in agricultural crop yields throughout the world.</p><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD2 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Even if there were no practical benefits to be gained from <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/learning" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">learning</a> about animal behaviour, the subject would still merit exploration. <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/human-being" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Humans</a> (<em>Homo sapiens</em>) are animals themselves, and most humans are deeply interested in the lives and minds of their fellow humans, their <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/pet" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">pets</a>, and other creatures. British ethologist <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jane-Goodall" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Jane Goodall</a> and American field biologist George Schaller, as well as British broadcaster <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/David-Attenborough" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">David Attenborough</a> and Australian wildlife conservationist <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Steve-Irwin" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Steve Irwin</a>, have brought the wonders of animal behaviour to the attention and appreciation of the general public. Books, television programs, and movies on the subject of animal behaviour abound.</p><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="marker end-of-content"></span><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <div id="chatbot-simplify-root"></div> <div id="chatbot-root"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ai-dialog-placeholder"></div> </div> </div> <aside class="col-md-da-320"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article> </div> </div> </div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript> <script type="text/javascript" id="_informizely_script_tag"> var IzWidget = IzWidget || {}; (function (d) { var scriptElement = d.createElement('script'); scriptElement.type = 'text/javascript'; scriptElement.async = true; scriptElement.src = "https://insitez.blob.core.windows.net/site/f780f33e-a610-4ac2-af81-3eb184037547.js"; var node = d.getElementById('_informizely_script_tag'); node.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, node); } )(document); </script>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Topic","templateName":"DESKTOP","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":10,"pageId":25597,"pageLength":335,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-133/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.133.36"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-133/dist/topic-page.js?v=3.133.36' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"A","adLeg":"A","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Topic","pageSubtype":null,"articleTemplateType":"PAGINATED","gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":true} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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Animal behaviour | Definition, Types, & Facts | Britannica