REMEMBER

Question 1. How do organisms respond to changes in the environment?

Animals, like plants, prepare for winter from the end of summer or from the beginning of autumn: they migrate to places rich in food, fly, eat heavily and accumulate fat, store food. With the onset of winter, many animals become inactive and fall into a stupor, hibernation, winter sleep.

Question 2. What is the behavior?

The ability of organisms to perform certain actions and respond to internal and external factors is called behavior. It is aimed at preserving organisms under changing conditions. environment, promotes survival and leaving offspring. Elements of behavior that appear in motor activity are known in plants.

Question 1. What is behavior?

Behavior is a certain established image of the interaction of a living being with the environment. Behavior is determined by the ability of humans and animals to change their actions under the influence of internal and external factors.

Question 2. What is the significance of behavior in the life of organisms?

Behavior is of great adaptive value, allowing animals to avoid negative factors environment. Behavior occurs at a high level of matter organization, when its living structural formations acquire the ability to perceive, store and transform information, using it for the purpose of self-preservation and adaptation to the conditions of existence.

Question 3. Give examples different types behavior in pets.

The cat marks its territory with odorous substances. She rubs her body against trees, furniture in the house and other objects, leaving a smell on their surface. The area marked with odorous substances belongs only to this cat. This is how cats show territorial behavior.

During a quarrel, for example over food, territory or a partner, cats exhibit aggressive behavior. They take threatening postures, make peculiar sounds, warning the enemy of their intentions and intimidating him. As a result, the weak animal is inferior to the stronger one.

By watching a cat hunt, you can get an idea of ​​its feeding behavior. The cat usually lies in wait for prey. Looking out for the victim, she slightly rises and, hunched over, slowly creeps up to her. At the same time, the movements of the cat are completely silent. Having tracked down the prey, it stands with its head down for some time, then suddenly rises on its hind legs, rapidly jumps and unexpectedly attacks the victim. Therefore, the cat is called a crouching hunter.

THINK

Why in animal life great importance have acquired, learning-related behaviors?

Acquired behavior refers to all forms of behavior that are formed as a result of the individual experience of a living organism. At the heart of the acquired forms of behavior is learning.

Learning is the ability to acquire one's own life experience, leading to adaptive changes in the animal's behavior. The ability to learn is usually associated with the behavior of vertebrates, and primarily mammals, but it is found in all animals, with the exception of protozoa, coelenterates and echinoderms, in which the nervous system is absent or its organization is very primitive.

The survival of organisms is largely determined by their ability to interact with the environment. This is achieved to the greatest extent through the implementation of a number of behavioral responses.

Behavior is the totality of all actions of an organism.

Behavioral responses are all the more obvious, the more noticeable the change in the strength of environmental factors. At the same time, either only some function or organ, or the whole organism can be involved in the behavioral reaction. For example, when a predator meets a prey, the prey is frightened and often forced to flee. At the same time, most organ systems take part in the response of the victim: nervous, respiratory, musculoskeletal, circulatory, digestive. This, in fact, is the total answer to external influence, which is called behavior.

It is known that certain behavioral reactions are caused not only by external, but also by internal influences. So, with a long absence of food in the blood of a predator, the amount of nutrients (glucose, amino acids) decreases. This deficiency is perceived by chemoreceptors and further through nerve impulses goes to the hunger center of the brain. Thus, the predator develops a feeling of hunger, which pushes him to search for prey.

Depending on the evolutionary position of the organism, behavioral reactions and means of achieving certain needs are different. At the same time, it is common for all organisms that the need that has arisen induces action aimed at satisfying it. This call to action is called motivation. For example, with a decrease in the amount of food in the habitat, both unicellular protists and carnivorous mammals are able to exhibit similar actions. They change the search area, move to new areas. Thus, similar behavioral acts are performed, although their mechanisms are different.

Behavior plays very important role in the survival of organisms. Undoubtedly, behavioral reactions are the fastest and characterize the physiological state of the organism. For example, from direct sun rays it is easier for a person to hide in the shade than to wait until the skin tans and becomes less sensitive.

Levels of Behavior and Evolution

There are five levels (forms) of behavior characteristic of animals. They can be grouped into two groups: congenital and acquired. TO congenital include constant (stereotypical) forms of behavior - taxis, reflexes And instincts. They practically do not change during life and are most often hereditary. Acquired forms of behavior are those that develop during the life of the individual - learning And rational activity. As the organization becomes more complex, innate forms of behavior gradually give way to acquired ones. For example, taxis appear more often in protists, to a lesser extent in worms, and disappear in primitive mammals. In bees, instinctive behavior prevails, while in dogs it is replaced by learning abilities. Highest level- rational activity begins to form in lower mammals, intensifies in higher primates, and is maximal in humans.

Innate forms of behavior (taxis, reflexes, instincts)

Innate forms of behavior (taxis, reflexes, instincts) are useful reactions of the body. They were formed and fixed in the genotype as a result of natural selection. These forms of behavior are very diverse and constant for species, as well as for larger taxonomic units (genera, families, orders). Therefore, innate forms of behavior can be used as a systematic feature in the classification of animals. For example, representatives of the wolf family hunting use a long chase based on the endurance and exhaustion of the victim. Representatives of the cats prefer the expectant method of hunting. They pounce on the victim, lying in wait for her in the shelter.

Taxis are the simplest innate behavior.

Taxis- a form of spatial orientation of organisms in relation to the source of irritation. If the movement is carried out towards the source of irritation - these are positive taxis, if in opposite side- negative. Depending on the nature of the stimulus, photo-, thermo-, chemotaxis, etc. are distinguished. An example of a positive thermotaxis is the accumulation of aquatic invertebrates in the upper, most heated parts of a reservoir. Positive chemotaxis is the recognition by insects of sexual partners, as well as their habitats, even at a considerable distance from them. A negative taxis would be, for example, the movement anaerobic bacteria away from the increased oxygen concentration.

reflexes are stereotyped reactions of the body to certain influences that occur with the participation of nervous system. They can be aimed at meeting the body's needs for food, water, safety, etc. Unconditional reflexes are the same in all animals of the same species, and it is on them that all forms of innate behavior are based. Conditional reflexes discovered by I. P. Pavlov underlie learning - an acquired form of behavior. Their formation can be considered as a link between innate and acquired forms of behavior. An example of a reflex form of behavior is the passive-defensive reflex in animals. In this case, the animal freezes at the appearance of a predator or an unfamiliar sound.

An interesting form of stereotypical behavior is instincts- complex chains unconditioned reflexes. Instincts arose in the process of evolution as adaptations to the typical conditions of existence of the species. Due to hereditary fixedness, instincts manifest themselves at any moment of the organism's life and do not require special training. Instinctive behavior is aimed at increasing the survival of organisms. An example of instincts is the activity of insects, birds and other animals to obtain food, build nests, and breed. When building a nest, the song thrush, for example, lubricates the tray with clay, but the white-browed thrush does not. The Remez tit builds a complex nest from vegetable fluff in the form of a bag suspended from the branches of a tree. In mammals, newly born cubs immediately begin to suck mother's milk. The chicks of swans and ducks, only after hatching, already know how to swim.

Individually acquired forms of behavior (learning, rational activity)

The listed innate forms of behavior ensure the adaptability of the organism to meet the basic needs of life under constant environmental conditions. To survive in dynamically changing conditions, organisms need to change their behavioral responses. Birds and mammals possess this ability in the form of acquired conditioned reflexes to the greatest extent. In this case, the animal learns to respond to a new stimulus that is indifferent under the old conditions.

Learning is an adaptive change in behavior as a result of previous experience, due to which the individual adaptation of living organisms to the environment is achieved.

The simplest way of individual learning in nature is trial and error method. For example, a young chick that has flown off the nest will try to catch a wasp until it is convinced that this brightly colored insect is inedible. In the same way, frogs refuse to eat insects with a warning color if they have already met them before.

Warm-blooded animals are characterized interesting shape learning - imprinting (imprinting). The imprint is the following of the cubs for the object of their constant attention, for example, for the mother. However, if a newly hatched duckling is presented with another moving object, the duckling will follow it. If later on the chick is presented with its own mother, it will still follow the originally imprinted object. The impression is formed exclusively at an early age. If it does not occur immediately, this type of learning may not develop at all.

A simple form of learning is addictive. It develops with prolonged repetition of unreinforced stimuli. For example, birds gathering food in the field eventually stop responding to working agricultural machinery. This type of learning allows animals with early age distinguish between neutral environmental factors and not react to them.

Birds and mammals have developed imitation, which is also an adaptive behavioral response. For example, young tigers, when hunting, imitate adults when tracking and sneaking up on prey. Imitation plays an important role in human behavior. So, young children unconsciously imitate older brothers and sisters, teenagers - teachers or idols.

The highest adaptive form of behavior, the most developed in humans, is rational activity.

Reasoning activity is the ability to perform an adaptive behavioral act in the current situation.

Reasoning is based on thinking. Thinking is a kind of mental activity, which consists in knowing the essence of objects and phenomena and establishing regular connections and relationships between them. Apart from humans, only higher primates were able to solve mental problems with a minimum number of repetitions.

For example, a chimpanzee, trying to reach a banana hanging from the ceiling of a cage, uses a wooden box as a support. Trying to bring the box as close as possible to the target, the monkey puts it on its edge. In this case, the distance to the banana, of course, is reduced. Tasks for elementary rational activity based on mental processes are also solved by some breeds of dogs. So, shepherd dogs can independently gather a herd, divide it into certain groups, find and return stragglers, etc.

Thinking allows a person to adapt to changing environmental conditions without trial and error. It allows you to establish logical connections between the studied objects and phenomena. Thanks to thinking, a person is able to continuously replenish the stock of concepts and ideas about the world around him. Only man is able to formulate new judgments and conclusions. Thanks to thinking, a person from an early age can perceive information in the form of symbols (letters and words). The ability to think is one of the most important human behavioral adaptations. No wonder the ancient sages said: "I think - it means I exist."

Behavior is the totality of all actions of an organism. Forms of behavior are congenital and acquired. Innate include permanent (stereotypical) forms of behavior - taxis, reflexes and instincts. They do not change throughout life and are hereditary. Acquired forms of behavior are those that develop during the life of the individual - learning and rational activity.

The ability to respond to stimuli emanating from the environment - irritability - is the main property of any, even the most elementary

unicellular organism. The already naked protoplasmic mass of the amoeba reacts to mechanical, thermal, optical, chemical, electrical

stimuli (i.e., all stimuli to which higher animals respond). In this case, the reactions cannot be directly reduced to a physical action.

stimuli that cause them.

External physico-chemical stimuli do not directly determine the reactions of the organism; the relationship between them is ambiguous: the same

external irritation, depending on various circumstances, can cause different and even opposite reactions: as positive - according to

direction to the source of irritation, and negative - away from it. Consequently, external stimuli do not directly cause a reaction, but only

condition it through the internal changes they cause.

Already here there is a certain isolation from the medium, some selectivity and activity. Because of this, even the most elementary behavior of the lower

organism cannot be reduced to the physical and chemical laws of inorganic nature. It is regulated by biological laws,

according to which the reactions of the organism are carried out in the sense of adaptation - the main type of biological correlation of any animal organism

with the environment.

At all stages of development, behavior is conditioned by both external and internal factors, but at various stages of development, the relationship between external,

in particular, physicochemical, stimuli and internal processes that mediate their influence on behavior are different.

The higher the level of development, the greater the role played by internal conditions. In a person, sometimes an external stimulus turns out to be only an accidental reason for

action, which is essentially an expression of a complex internal process: the role of external stimuli in this case affects only very

indirectly. On the contrary, at the lowest stages of organic development the role of external stimuli is great, so that under certain reaction conditions

practically more or less unambiguously determined by external physicochemical stimuli.

The forced reactions of the organism determined by such physicochemical stimuli are the so-called tropisms.

general theory tropisms were developed by J. Loeb, based on the research of J. von Sachs on plant tropism. Tropism is due to symmetrical

the structure of the organism forced reaction - installation or movement - of the body under the influence of external physical and chemical stimuli. Otherwise

In other words, tropism is the forced orientation of an organism in relation to lines of force.

But even the tropisms of lower organisms are in fact determined not only by external, but also by internal factors. However, the role of these internal

factors in most cases is so negligible that under certain conditions it can be practically neglected. This does not, however, give a theoretical basis

to reject the significance of these internal factors or not to take them into account in a theoretical concept.

An essential prerequisite for the development of forms of behavior in which mental components play an increasingly important role is the

complication and change in the conditions and lifestyle of animals, the development of the nervous system and then its progressive centralization, as well as the development

sense organs and then the release of distant receptors.

DEVELOPMENT OF ANIMAL BEHAVIOR AND PSYCHE

The ability to respond to stimuli emanating from the environment - irritability - is the basic property of any, even the most elementary unicellular organism. Already the bare protoplasmic mass of the amoeba reacts to mechanical, thermal, optical, chemical, electrical stimuli (that is, all stimuli to which higher animals respond). At the same time, reactions cannot be directly reduced to the physical action of the stimuli that cause them. External physico-chemical stimuli do not directly determine the reactions of the organism; the relationship between them is ambiguous: same external irritation, depending on various circumstances, can cause different and even opposite reactions: both positive - towards the source of irritation, and negative - from it. Consequently, external stimuli do not directly cause a reaction, but only condition it through the mediation of those internal changes that they cause. Already here there is a certain isolation from the medium, some selectivity and activity. Because of this, even the most elementary behavior of a lower organism cannot be reduced to physical and chemical laws of inorganic nature. It is regulated biological regularities according to which the reactions of the body are carried out in the sense fixtures - the main type of biological relationship of any animal organism with the environment.

At all stages of development, behavior is conditioned by both external and internal factors, but at different stages of development, the relationship between external, in particular physicochemical, stimuli and internal processes that mediate their influence on behavior is different.

The higher the level of development, the greater the role played by internal conditions. In humans, sometimes an external stimulus turns out to be only an accidental reason for an action, which is essentially an expression of a complex internal process: the role of external stimuli in this case affects only very indirectly. On the contrary, at the lowest stages of organic development the role of external stimuli is great, so that under certain reaction conditions practically more or less unambiguously determined by external physicochemical stimuli.

Determined by such physico-chemical irritations forced body reactions - This so called tropisms.

The general theory of tropisms was developed by J. Loeb, based on the research of J. von Sachs on plant tropism. Tropism - This due to the symmetrical structure of the body, a forced reaction - installation or movement - of the body under the influence of external physical and chemical stimuli. In other words, tropism is a forced orientation of the organism in relation to the lines of force.<...>

But even the tropisms of lower organisms are in fact determined not only by external, but also by internal factors. However, the role of these internal factors in most cases is so negligible that under certain conditions it can be practically neglected. This does not give, however, a theoretical basis for rejecting the significance of these internal factors or not taking them into account in a theoretical concept.<...>

An essential prerequisite for the development of forms of behavior in which mental components play an ever more significant role is the development of the nervous system and then its progressive centralization, as well as the development of the sense organs and then the release of distant receptors, associated with the complication and changes in the conditions and lifestyle of animals.