Some ants circle around their nest, the bees follow the queen bee and send signals to each other by dancing. Elephants mourn and hold funeral rites. Some dogs are aggressive, while crows are very intelligent. Have you ever thought about the abilities of animals and how they communicate with each other?
Today we leave the science among humans and move towards another science, leaving the laboratory and visiting the natural world. What is ethology, which has become a branch of zoology under the biology department, and what does it deal with?
What is ethology?
Ethology is the scientific study of animal behavior, mostly in its natural conditions, including animal communication, predation, defense, aggression, mating, fixed action patterns, and migration. An important aspect of ethology is that it works against learning by instinct.
Ethology is generally considered part of biology, with ethologists (title given to people interested in ethology) focusing on the evolution of behavior. Ethology is usually conducted in the field, but can also be conducted in the laboratory or through a combination of both. It is thanks to ethology that we have the ‘ethogram’, or description of behaviors often used in animal behavior studies.
So what do ethologists do, what does ethology deal with?
- Pet education
- Animal welfare and protection
- Human safety against animals
- Home, nature or studying animals in laboratory settings
- Collecting and analyzing data on observations and findings
- Publishing the results of their research and presenting at conferences
- Educating the public about animals and animals and promoting animal welfare and conservation
Because ethology is such a broad field of study, ethologists can specialize in any number of fields, including university research, agricultural animal husbandry, animal education, and animal care. The purpose of ethology is not to study a particular group of animals, but rather their behavior, and often studies how a single behavior pattern, for example aggression, manifests in different animals.
History of ethology:
Since ethology is a branch of biology, ethologists were particularly interested in the evolution of behavior and how it could be explained in terms of natural selection. In some ways, Charles Darwin was the first modern ethologist to influence countless ethologists with his 1872 book The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals. He continued his interest in behavior by encouraging George Romanes, who studied learning and intelligence in animals using an anthropomorphic method called anecdotal cognitionism, which is not scientifically supported.
The growth of the field of ethology II. It is based on its development on the European continent in the years leading up to World War II, thanks to the efforts of Niko Tinbergen and Konrad Lorenz. After the war, Tinbergen moved to Oxford University and ethology gained prominence in the United Kingdom thanks to the work of Robert Hinde, William Thorpe and Patrick Bateson in the Animal Behavior Sub-Department of Cambridge University. At the same time, ethology began to develop in North America during this period.
In 1972, British ethologist John H. Crook separated comparative ethology from social ethology, arguing that all previous ethology was comparative ethology (the study of animals as individuals); the behavior of the social groups of animals in later years and the social structure beneath them. Since the publication of EO Wilson’s book Sociobiology: The New Synthesis in 1975, behavioral research has focused much more on social factors. It has also been fueled by Wilson’s, Robert Trivers, and WD Hamilton’s stronger but much more nuanced understanding of Darwinism. In summary, ethology has been transformed as a result of the associated development of behavioral ecology.
Conclusion: Why is ethology important?
Anyone with a new puppy or kitten knows that training can be difficult. By understanding the natural behavior of animals of certain species and breeds, you can better understand how to encourage desirable behaviors and deter unwanted ones. Whether you’re teaching your puppy how to sit or toilet training, a basic knowledge of animal behavior will take you far.
Ethology is a vital field for anyone trying to protect vulnerable species. If you understand the natural behaviors of an animal species, you also understand how to keep them safe. For example, the California Vulture became almost extinct because hunters did not know enough about its scavenging habits, and vultures ate the carcasses of animals killed by poisoned lead bullets. Understanding the behavior of wild species can help you protect vulnerable animal populations, from honeybees to seagulls.
Imagine you are at the cottage. Have you ever seen a dangerous wild animal while walking peacefully? Do you know how to react to stay safe and keep the animal calm? Having a basic knowledge of ethology can help you stay safe when encountering animals in any situation. Whether you’re seeing a bear, a rattlesnake, or a venomous spider, ethology can save your life at any given moment.
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