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Welcome to Mr. Taylor's 6th Grade Science Class! This page was created to keep both students and parents connected to the classroom. Science is now everywhere.

Monday, January 17, 2011

Chapter 3-Lesson 5 Notes

How Can Behavior Help an Organism Survive?

Behavioral Adaptations

The way in which an organism acts in response to stimulus is called a behavior.

A behavioral adaptation is an action that aids survival.
Examples:
  • Escaping danger
  • Building protective shelters
  • Gathering or capturing food
  • Finding a mate
  • Reproducing
  • Caring for young
Inherited Behavior

Any behavior that an organism is born with, and does not have to learn, is an inherited behavior.
Reflex

An instinct is a type of inherited behavior that helps an organism act in a way that aids in its survival.

A reflex is the simplest type of inherited behavior.  It is a quick, automatic response to a stimulus.

Learned Behavior

Learned behavior is a reaction to stimulus that an organism is not born with.  The organism must learn or be trained to carry out a learned behavior.

Examples:
  • A jaguar cub learning to hunt
  • A dog that has learned to obey commands
  • A Seeing Eye dog that is trained to guide the blind
 Ducklings hatched in an incubator mistakenly follow a human around since they instinctively follow the first moving object they see.  Under normal conditions, imprinting guarantees that ducklings will follow their mother and subsequently learn necessary survival skills.

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