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.
Homosexual behavior in primates has a deep evolutionary basis and is more likely to occur in species that live in harsh environments, are hunted by predators or live in more complex societies, scientists said Monday.
Plants & Animals
Jan 12, 2026
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416
"Honey, will you take Luna to the P-A-R-K?" Both parents and dog owners know that some words should not be spoken, but only spelled, to prevent small ears from eavesdropping on the conversation. At the age of 1.5 years, toddlers ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 8, 2026
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73
Three species of the melodic African warbler bird refuse to get up early and sing their customary daybreak songs when the weather is cold. This new discovery was made recently by a team of soundscape ecologists in South Africa's ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 2, 2026
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A new computational model of the brain based closely on its biology and physiology has not only learned a simple visual category learning task exactly as well as lab animals, but even enabled the discovery of counterintuitive ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Dec 29, 2025
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135
During mating season, when male white-tailed deer want to get noticed by the opposite sex and warn off rivals, they rub their antlers against trees and scrape the forest floor. Then they pee on these patches. But there is ...
Is complex social behavior genetically determined? Yes, as a team of biologists from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) together with colleagues from Bochum and Paris discovered while studying bees.
Evolution
Dec 22, 2025
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68
Every animal with a brain needs sleep—and even a few without a brain do, too. Humans sleep, birds sleep, whales sleep and even jellyfish sleep.
Plants & Animals
Dec 19, 2025
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30
A research team led by Professor Li Sheng from the School of Life Sciences at Peking University published a study that reveals the crucial role of protected areas in mitigating human-induced behavioral disturbances to mammals.
Plants & Animals
Dec 18, 2025
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Penguins in the coastal steppes of Argentina have a new enemy to worry about: the increasing numbers of pumas in Monte León National Park (MLNP). These powerful mountain cats were once on the brink of disappearing from this ...
Just as humans have historically gathered during winter, many animals do the same. Animals may not be exchanging presents or decorating their nests and dens but a lot of species become more social in winter—even ones that ...
Plants & Animals
Dec 16, 2025
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