The neural circuit that allows a male stickleback fish to orient and behave aggressively towards an inanimate object with a red stripe is an example of a(n)

Question

A.  sign stimulus.
B.  fixed action pattern.
C.  innate releasing mechanism.
D.  supernormal stimulus.
E.  stimulus-response chain.


Clarify question:
What is the key concept addressed by the question?
 
What type of thinking is required?


Gather Content:
What do you already know about behavior in stickleback fish? What other information is related to the question? 


Choose Answer:
Given what you now know, what information is most likely to produce the correct answer?


Reflection on Process:
Did your problem-solving process lead you to the correct answer? If not, where did the process break down or lead you astray? How can you revise your approach to produce a more desirable result?


Answer 1

C.  innate releasing mechanism.


Clarify question:
What is the key concept addressed by the question?
The question is about identifying the type of behavior exhibited by male stickleback fish.  
 
What type of thinking is required?
This is an apply level question. You are being presented with a situation. Using what you know about the different behavioral terminology, you can explain what is happening in this situation.


Gather Content:
What do you already know about behavior in stickleback fish? What other information is related to the question? 
This question comes from the section of the textbook that covers the basics of animal behaviors. A stimulus is recognized by an individual, a neural mechanism in the individual produces a specific behavior (the fixed action pattern). What is the linkage between the stimulus (red stripes) and the response (aggressive behavior towards the object)?


Choose Answer:
Given what you now know, what information is most likely to produce the correct answer?
The innate releasing mechanism is the internal neural circuit that links the stimulus to the behavior.


Reflection on Process:
Did your problem-solving process lead you to the correct answer? If not, where did the process break down or lead you astray? How can you revise your approach to produce a more desirable result?
Did you pick the correct choice? You need to take what you know about animal behavior and apply it to this situation to come up with the answer. You needed to breakdown the series of behaviors and look at each part.