Concept G: Organisms adapt to their environment.

Terminal Objectives: 3255G2.00 To understand that behavior is the pattern of activities an organism develops in response to its environment
3255G3.00 To understand the difference between innate and learned behavior

Instructional Objectives: The learner will:

3.01 define behavior
3.02 define innate behavior.
3.03 define learned behavior.
3.04 explain what is meant by alternating periods of activity.
3.05 compare and contrast daily rhythms, seasonal rhythms, migration, lunar rhythms, annual rhythms, and migration.

Communicating orally and in writing, drawing conclusions, describing, interpreting data, inferring

Two classes of fifty-five (55) minutes each

I. Behavior
A. Innate (instinctive or unlearned)
1. Reflexes
2. Instincts
B. Learned
1. Conditioned response
2. Intelligent behavior
II. Alternating period of activity
A. Daily rhythms (circadian)
1. Nocturnal
2. Diurnal
B. Seasonal rhythms
1. Hibernation
2. Estimation
3. Migration
C. Annual rhythms
D. Tidal rhythms

Chalkboard, chalk, piece of rotten wood, terrarium, live animal

Anthropomorphism, annual rhythms, circadian rhythm, diurnal rhythm, estivation, hibernation, innate behavior, learned behavior, migration, nocturnal rhythms, rhythms, tidal rhythms.

This lesson addresses Instructional Objectives 3.01, 3.02, and 3.03

A baby bird opens its mouth for the big juicy worm from the mother bird. Who taught it to open wide? (response) Why did it open at all? (response) Today we will learn about the types of behavior for living organisms. These are innate and learned.

Behavior includes all the responses of an organism to its environment. This is one aspect of adaptation that improves an organism's chances to survive and reproduce.

Behavior is the way that an organism acts. There are two types of behavior: innate and learned.

Innate is described as the behavior present at birth; the instinctive, fixed, unchanging behavior that is inherited. It might involve reflexes and instinct. Can you name a reflex? Write these on your paper. (Eye blinks when touched, knee jerk) these are simple, automatic reactions to stimuli. A more complex innate behavior is instinct. Name examples of animal instincts. Write these on your paper. (Nest building, migratory fish, spiders spinning webs, self-preservation). Who teaches a bird to build a nest? (response) How does a spider learn to make intricate designs in a web? (response) How does a tiny kitten know to spit, claw, and bite to escape? (Instinct or self preservation) Think for just a moment. Choose the example of innate behavior that you think would be most important to the survival of the species. Write this down and tell why. (Probably species preservation)

All behavior is not innate. What will you do when the bell rings? (Leave) Why? (response) Is this instinctive behavior? (pause) What kind? (Learned) Learned behavior is not inherited but is flexible and can be changed. Name something that you can teach an animal. (Dog to roll over or beg, fish to swim to area to be fed) This learning is called a conditioned response. Animals respond to stimuli a certain way. If every time you raise your hand, I tell you "Oad, bad! Now you have to be punished!" What will you stop doing? (Raising your hand)

Another type of learned behavior is intelligent behavior. Can you think of anything you have done that requires intelligence today? List two things. (Problem solving, judgments like what to eat, decision making like what to wear) Animals must also use intelligence to find food, a safe habitat or a mate. Often they must communicate and use cognitive skills.

Sometimes we tend to give human qualities and traits to animals. This is called anthropomorphism. An example of this might be when a baby jackal is observed burying his dead mother. What is he probably doing instead of burying out of respect? (Preserving his food supply)

What have we learned today? (response) Once more, please write on your papers the two types of behavior.

Take out a piece of paper. Answer this question. "Name the type of behavior that plants use. Tell why in a short paragraph."

This lesson addresses Instructional Objectives 3.04, and 3.05.

A hawk and an owl live in the same area. They are both predators that might eat the same food. Their homes may be less than 100 feet apart. In today's lesson we will learn how these two dwell in harmony because they have alternating periods of activity. This is important for us to understand because humans also are involved in this behavior. Who sat in your chair last class period? (response) You do not really care because they are not using it

The habitat of an organism is the place where it lives. Many organisms may occupy the same habitat because of their lifestyle or rhythm variations. A rhythm is an alternating period of activity. I will write three types of rhythms on the board. (Circadian, seasonal, annual) What does circadian mean? (response) Your circadian rhythm involves three meals, school session, recreation, homework, and sleep. Now what is circadian? (A pattern of activity that occurs over twenty-four hours) Write as many examples as possible on your paper. (Mimosa closes each night and opens in the morning, people go to work each day or night, cows get milked twice a day) As you have listed examples, you may see that you have some nocturnal (active at night) and some diurnal (active during the day) animals and activities listed. Others may be active at dawn and dusk. These are called crepuscular. Name several nocturnal animals. (Some people, owls, bats, some insects, opossums, mink, cats) Name several diurnal animals. (Some people, hawks, eagles, dogs, monkeys)

Some rhythms are described as seasonal. This means that a pattern of activity occurs during a particular season. Name some examples and list them on your paper. (Hibernation, estivation, mating, migration, shedding leaves, flowers blooming, shedding antlers)

What is hibernation? (A period of deep sleep) Many warm-blooded and cold-blooded animals have this reaction to cold. Metabolism slows to a point near death, the heart beats slowly, body temperature drops, breathing is slow, neither urination or defecation occurs. Let's list some animals that hibernate. (Chipmunks, brown bats, arctic squirrels, ground squirrels, and woodchucks)

Some animals do not truly hibernate but are in a state of torpor. They may sleep most of the winter but awaken often. Name some animals that engage in this behavior. (bear, skunk, opossum, reptiles, amphibians)

Some animals go through a period of inactivity during extreme heat called estivation. Can you think of any advantages of estivation? (response) Name some animals that estivate. (Frogs stay in cool mud, box turtles say in cool mud or leaves) How long would estivation last? (As long as hot period - several day up to several weeks)

Migration is a seasonal movement of organisms from one environment to another. Why do some animals migrate? (Find food, climate, breeding grounds) Name some examples of animals that migrate. (Bighorn sheep in the Rockies, fur seal, monarch butterflies, many birds) How would migration affect the gene pool? (Enlarge the pool for a given population)

Annual rhythms include those cycles which take place on a yearly basis. Can you think of any of these cycles? (Bears giving birth during winter, birds nest and lay eggs in the spring, wild flowers bloom and produce seeds once a year)

The last type of rhythm is tidal. Many marine organisms along the coastline are affected by the rhythmic rise and fall of tidal water. Grunions that lay eggs at night tide are one example of an animal affected by the tide. Can you name others? (Crustaceans, sea birds, many small fish)

What have we learned today? (pause) Name one type of rhythm and tell your neighbor. (Ask several students what they were told.)

(The following activities can be used with each lesson in Terminal Objective 3.00.)

1. "Migration Headache." Project Wild, (Aquatic). pp. 86-91.
(The students will role play migrating water birds traveling between nesting habitats and wintering grounds. the birds are subject to hazards at either end of the migration path as well as along the way.)
2. Choose whether the behavior is learned or inherited.
___1. A cat getting excited at hearing a can opener
___2. A human jumping at a noise
___3. A salamander courting a female
___4. A horse stopping on command
___5. A bird building a nest
___6. A child getting his homework
___7. A baby crying when hungry
3. (The teacher will bring in a terrarium set up with a habitat and a live animal camouflaged within the habitat. Discuss the animal's camouflage techniques and how successful they are.) (From Project Wild, . p. 101)
4. Organisms within a species vary with their traits. As the environment changes, these variations aid in survival of individuals. Because of his survival, these traits are able to be passed on to offspring. Organisms are now adapted to the new environment.

Below are several adaptations. Tell how each might help the specie survive.
Eyesight of a eagle
Hearing of a bat
The speed of cheetah
Chlorophyll in a plant
Thorns in a rose bush
Gills in a fish
Spines on a cactus
Large number of eggs laid by insects.
Pouch of marsupials
Strong sense of smell for wolf.
Crying for a baby
(Teacher needs to make mimeograph copies.) Write the letter of the rhythm that matches the activity.


1. frog staying in the mud to stay cool 2. tulips blooming 3. owl hunting for mouse at night 4. eagles leaving Reelfoot Lake to nest elsewhere 5. a day lily bloom (lasts one day) 6. sand crab burying in sand 7 Robins returning in the spring 8. a bird plucking a worm in the warm sunshine 9. a woodchuck sleeping for the whole long winter

A. Circadian B. Nocturnal C. Diurnal D. Seasonal E. Hibernation F. Estivation G. Migration H. Annual I. Tidal


6. Why can a large number of different species of organisms live in a rotten log? (Show a piece of rotten wood.)
7. Why is there a continual, gradual change in the kinds of organisms in a rotting log?

anthropomorphism - the tendency to interpret behavior of organisms other than humans is a way that suggests, without evidence, human-like motives
annual rhythms - an alternating period of activity occurring yearly
circadian rhythm - alternating period of activity occurring daily
diurnal rhythm - an organism that is active in the daylight
estivation - A period of dormancy brought on by high temperatures
hibernation - a special inactive state entered into by some animals in the winter
innate behavior - behavior that is present from birth, not learned
learned behavior - behavior patterns that are not inherited but learned, enabling an animal to alter behavior to cope with changes
migration - seasonal movements of organisms from one environment to another
nocturnal rhythms - an organism that is active during the night
rhythms - Alternating periods of behavior
tidal rhythms - alternating periods of behavior depending on the tides coming in and going out

BOOKS:
Biological Sciences Curriculum Study. Biological Science: A Molecular Approach. Boulder Colorado: D C Heath and Company.
Otto, James H. and Albert Towle. Modern Biology. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1985.
Turk, Jonathan and Amos Turk. Environmental Science. Philadelphia: Saunders College Publishing, 1988.
Western Regional Environmental Educational Council. "Migration Headache." Project Wild, (Aquatic). Boulder, Colorado: Project Wild, 1987, pp. 86-91.
Western Regional Environmental Educational Council. "Surprise Terrarium." Project Wild, (Elementary). Boulder, Colorado: Project Wild, 1986, p 101.

ARTICLES:
"I Saw It!" International Wildlife. March-April 1987. pp. 22-23. (about the revival of the ivory billed Woodpecker in Cuba)
"Nothing Humdrum About Hummingbirds." Audubon Adventures. Vol. 3, No. 6. June-July 1987. pp. 1-8.

FILMS/VIDEO TAPES:
"Wildlife for Tomorrow---The Story of Our Unendangered Species. U (19 min.). Free to schools - write: The Council For Wildlife Conservation and Education, 555 Danbury Road, Wilton, CT 06897
"What They Say About Hunting---An In Depth Look At the Hunting Controversy." (22 min.). (Get free from same source as listed above.)
"A Second Chance---Protecting Endangered Species." (27 min.). (Shows wildlife including some endangered species). by Edison Electric Institute. Free if borrowed from Modern Talking Picture Service.
"Social Behavior In Children." by Biological Sciences Curriculum Study
"Grouse - A Species Problem." (Shows two closely related species and how you can tell they are separate) by Biological Sciences Curriculum Study.
"Wonders In A Country Stream." (12 min.). Free from Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA).
"The Eastern Cottontail." (11 min.) Free from TWRA. (Shows behavior and habits)
"Small Predatory Mammals." (2 1/2 min.) Free from TWRA.