Ethology

Ethology is the scientific study of animal behavior in natural or semi-natural conditions, emphasizing behavior as an evolved trait shaped by natural selection. It seeks to describe, understand, predict and explain behavior patterns across species, considering ecological context and adaptive significance, rather than attributing behavior solely to internal states or learning processes.

The modern field emerged in the early 20th century with naturalists and then the collaborative work of Konrad Lorenz, Niko Tinbergen and Karl von Frisch, who focused on innate behavior, imprinting, and communication. They championed observation in the wild and introduced the four questions of ethology: mechanisms (how a behavior works), development (how it changes with age), function (what it achieves for survival or reproduction), and evolution (how it originated and changed across generations).

Key concepts include instinct and fixed action patterns, impulse-driven but triggered by sign stimuli, and imprinting, a rapid, irreversible learning process during critical periods. Ethograms are catalogues of behavior used to quantify and compare patterns.

The field often contrasts with laboratory-based comparative psychology, though both contribute to understanding learning, cognition, and social behavior. Methods combine naturalistic observation with experimental approaches, careful measurement, and statistical analysis.

Ethology has informed studies of communication, mating systems, parental care, territoriality, migration, and social structure, and has influenced welfare, conservation, and animal rehabilitation by emphasizing naturalistic needs and contexts.