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.
How do bees make group decisions without a leader? Math experts have determined that the best strategy is for a few to assume the risk of foraging under all conditions while the majority stay safely back and forage only when ...
Ecology
Jul 10, 2026
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Rutgers Office for Research (OfR) leaders collaborated with researchers around the world to develop an artificial intelligence (AI) program that has the potential to revolutionize lab research.
Biotechnology
Jul 10, 2026
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Steep hillsides and mountainsides in many regions worldwide are often covered in characteristic step-like patterns, also known as terracettes. These repeating landforms have fascinated scientists for more than a century, ...
The summer heat can be unrelenting, sending pets who usually run straight to their owners after being outside in search of their water bowls instead. Rehydrating after playtime is important, so if a pet does not have proper ...
Veterinary medicine
Jul 9, 2026
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A recent study reveals geographic biases in how aquatic animals have been tracked and researched across the globe, with a preference toward politically stable, English-speaking countries with high conservation funding. Researchers ...
Ecology
Jul 9, 2026
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An international research team has for the first time investigated how an unfolding armed conflict influenced the behavior of wild animals. Using camera traps, the scientists documented how the Russian occupation of the Chornobyl ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 9, 2026
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The daily movements of brown howler monkeys (Alouatta guariba) in the forest are determined by an interplay of environmental, behavioral and social factors. This is one of the conclusions of a study conducted in Brazil and ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 8, 2026
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15
Scientists observed spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) playing in the wild and found that their precise, sophisticated communication is on par with that of many primate species. Hyenas play and romp with one another at all ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 8, 2026
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18
Two new studies examining gray wolves in California paint a complex picture of life on the state's ranching landscapes: Wolves eat cattle more than anything else, and the presence of the predators causes significant stress ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 8, 2026
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Long before the dawn of modern parenting, animals laid eggs and moved on, leaving their progeny to fend for themselves. Now, a study published in Nature uncovers one of the elegant ways evolution transformed neglect into ...
Evolution
Jul 8, 2026
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