Behaviours For Survival
Case Study: Black-Tailed Jackrabbit - Lepus Californicus
Animal Behaviours
Activities performed in response to stimulus
Innate Behaviours
Innate behaviours are behaviours that do not need to be learnt or taught, they are performed correctly by the animal the first time it is exposed to the correct stimulus.
Rhythmic Behaviours
Regularly repeated behaviours performed at similar measurable intervals.
Jackrabbit Examples - Mainly nocturnal, rests during day out of sun, evening feeding period.
Communication Behaviours
Behaviours used by the animal to communicate with both members from its own species and other species.
Jackrabbit Examples - Communicates with other members of species by drumming hind feet.
Reproductive behaviours
Behaviours relating to reproductive activities.
Jackrabbit Examples - Sexual behaviours include: hunting for a mate, approaching, chasing and the act of reproducing, using scent products in sexual communication.
Competitive behaviours
Behaviours relating to competition between members of the species.
Jackrabbit Examples - Rarely aggression between species members, fighting between males over a female may occur during breeding season.
Dominance hierarchies
Structures of dominance within groups of animals.
Jackrabbit Examples - Jackrabbits show no form of social structure, this is in part due to their solitary nature.
Learned Behaviours
Behaviours that have been taught to animals or learnt from experience. There are three forms of learned behaviour: Imprinting, habituation and conditioning.
Conditioning
A process where a previously neutral stimulus that an animal has been exposed to multiple times initiates a response from the animal that would not have occurred if the conditioning had not taken place.
Jackrabbit Examples - New form of food, other species that somehow affects jackrabbit, conditioning will be different in each member of the species as each member is exposed to different stimuli throughout their lives.
Operant Conditioning
Operant conditioning occurs when a behaviour is controlled by its consequences.
Jackrabbit Examples - Chewing through a cactus' outer husk to get to the flesh beneath, lying in shade to cool itself.
Habituation
A form of behaviour where an animal learns to stop responding to a stimulus after it has encountered the stimuli multiple times with a neutral outcome where the stimuli offers neither positive or negative effects.
Jackrabbit Examples - Ignoring presence of inedible plants.
Observational
Behaviours that are learnt by observing another animal, typically an older member of the same species.
Jackrabbit Examples - Learning how to avoid predators, learning how to find food more effectively.
Imprinting
When an animal encounters a stimulus at a young age and its behaviour is altered by that stimulus (e.g a human being the first thing a young duckling sees and therefore thinking they are its mother).
Jackrabbit Examples - No significant examples of imprinting in jackrabbits as this is rarely an adaptation which is beneficial in any way.
Studying Behaviour
Known as Ethology, the study of animal behaviour provides a wide range of information across a number of topics. Through the study of animal behaviour information can be gained about the animals themselves, how they interact within their own species, with other species, and their relationship with the environment. Studying behaviour is also important in understanding how mankind can effect the animal. This applies to the black-tailed jackrabbit as well, studying the species' behaviour gives us knowledge about the animal but also the Chapparal biome as a whole.