Animal behavior is the scientific study of the observable actions, interactions, and behavioral patterns of animals, typically investigated within ethology, behavioral ecology, and comparative psychology. It encompasses mechanisms (proximate causes such as neural, hormonal, and genetic control), development (ontogeny and learning), function (adaptive value in survival and reproductive success), and evolution (phylogenetic history and divergence among taxa). Research on animal behavior quantifies activities such as foraging, mating systems, parental care, communication, social organization, and antipredator strategies, often integrating experimental, observational, and modeling approaches to understand how behavior emerges from organism–environment interactions and contributes to fitness and ecological dynamics.
When you walk into a bakery and smell fresh cookies, the enticing smell draws you in. After you eat a handful of cookies, though, the same smell likely doesn't send you back for more. Researchers in the McKelvey School of ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 5, 2026
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When mothers do not have the necessary resources to raise their children, this adversity causes substantial stress that can hinder caregiving and lead to postpartum depression. In a new study in JNeurosci, Millie Rincón-Cortés ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 5, 2026
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One of the hardest challenges in wildlife conservation arises when the habitat of a species in need of protection overlaps with land used by humans. Wolves and bears can kill livestock, elephants can damage homes and other ...
Ecology
Oct 5, 2026
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15
If you've ever felt overwhelmed by menu options at a restaurant, cereal varieties at the grocery store or potential partners while scrolling through dating apps, you've experienced choice overload.
Plants & Animals
Oct 4, 2026
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26
It's spring, and Australian birds are building their nests. But with what? Alongside grass and twigs, birds are collecting our trash. In 2023, a global study found litter in the nests of 176 different bird species, with common ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 2, 2026
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It's a sight to behold.
Ecology
Oct 2, 2026
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14
In the first year of her doctoral research, Abigail Grassick collected hours of underwater video as she studied fish communities living on bommies—individual clumps of coral—on the seafloor off the coast of Curaçao.
Plants & Animals
Oct 1, 2026
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6
In recent years, scientists have shown that chimpanzees favor certain peers by picking whom they prefer to groom and selectively sharing food. The behavior offers a glimpse into humanity's prosocial evolutionary past. But ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 1, 2026
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16
A bird attacking a butterfly will often find its beak snapping at thin air. According to new research, that split-second miss isn't just bad luck. It's caused by a visual illusion from the butterfly's wings.
Plants & Animals
Sep 30, 2026
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30
A study published in the journal Royal Society Open Science by researchers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) shows that when food becomes scarce, male pigeons spend more time incubating eggs, allowing females additional ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 30, 2026
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