A newborn chick can accurately peck at food without other chicks around to serve as models. Newborn geese considered Konrad Lorenz to be their mother because he was the first creature they saw and heard after they hatched. Are these the same "type" of inherited behavior? Compare and contrast these two behaviors.
What will be an ideal response?
The pecking of the newborn chick appears to be a FAP (fixed action pattern). A FAP always occurs in the same manner in response to a sign stimulus and is considered to be instinctual. However, scientific studies have shown that the initial behavior, or FAP, may change when exposed repeatedly to certain experiences. The conclusion is that some behaviors are a combination of instinct and learning.
The newborn geese believed Konrad Lorenz to be their mother because he was the first moving object they saw and heard after they hatched. This response is known as imprinting and is considered a form of learning. Exposure to the object must occur during a "sensitive period," as this behavior only develops during this specific timeframe. After the sensitive period, the opportunity for this type of learning, imprinting, no longer exists.
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