All flashcards
Flashcard 1: What term means an animal reacts to a change in its environment, such as light or sound?
Answer: Response. A response is the action taken after detecting a stimulus.
Flashcard 2: Which sense is strongest for many nocturnal animals and helps them respond in the dark?
Answer: Hearing. Enhanced hearing compensates for limited vision in darkness.
Flashcard 3: What is a common reason a predator and its prey respond differently to the same sound?
Answer: Predators hunt; prey avoid being eaten. Same stimulus triggers opposite survival behaviors.
Flashcard 4: What is an instinct?
Answer: A behavior an animal is born knowing how to do. No learning required; encoded in genes.
Flashcard 5: What is a learned behavior?
Answer: A behavior gained from experience or practice. Develops through repeated exposure and practice.
Flashcard 6: Which term describes a body part or behavior that helps an animal survive in its environment?
Answer: Adaptation. Evolved traits that increase survival chances.
Flashcard 7: What is camouflage used for, and how can it change how animals respond to danger?
Answer: Blending in; it may hide instead of running. Hiding is safer than fleeing when camouflaged.
Flashcard 8: What is mimicry, and how can it change another animal’s response to a signal?
Answer: Copying another organism; it can scare predators away. Harmless animals copy dangerous ones for protection.
Flashcard 9: What is the purpose of warning coloration in many animals?
Answer: To signal danger or bad taste to predators. Bright colors warn predators to stay away.
Flashcard 10: Which factor explains why the same temperature change affects a lizard and a dog differently?
Answer: They regulate body temperature differently. Lizards are cold-blooded; dogs maintain constant temperature.
Flashcard 11: Which statement best explains why animals with different habitats may react differently to the same smell?
Answer: The smell can mean different things in different habitats. Context determines if a smell signals food, danger, or mates.
Flashcard 12: Identify the sense a shark uses well to detect tiny electrical signals from prey.
Answer: Electroreception. Detects bioelectric fields from muscle movements.
Flashcard 13: Which sense helps many snakes detect warm-blooded animals even in low light?
Answer: Heat sensing (infrared detection). Pit organs detect body heat from warm prey.
Flashcard 14: Which animal is more likely to respond strongly to a high-pitched squeak: a bat or a turtle?
Answer: A bat. Bats use echolocation; turtles have poor high-frequency hearing.
Flashcard 15: Which animal is more likely to follow a scent trail to food: a dog or an eagle?
Answer: A dog. Dogs have millions more scent receptors than eagles.
Flashcard 16: Choose the best reason a moth flies toward a porch light while a mouse hides from it.
Answer: They interpret light differently because of different survival needs. Moths navigate by light; mice are prey animals that hide.
Flashcard 17: Identify the best explanation for why a deer runs from a loud crack but a woodpecker keeps pecking.
Answer: Different instincts and different meanings of the sound. Deer flee from predator sounds; woodpeckers make similar sounds.
Flashcard 18: What is an adaptation in animals?
Answer: A body or behavior trait that helps survival and reproduction. Physical or behavioral features evolved for specific environments.
Flashcard 19: What is the difference between instinct and learning in animal responses?
Answer: Instinct is inherited; learning comes from experience. Animals are born with instincts but must learn other behaviors.
Flashcard 20: Which option best explains why a moth flies toward a light while a cockroach hides from it?
Answer: They have different survival behaviors and light sensitivity. Moths navigate by light; cockroaches evolved to avoid it.
Flashcard 21: Identify the best reason a rabbit freezes at a loud sound while a skunk may stand its ground.
Answer: Different defense strategies based on survival needs. Prey animals freeze to avoid detection; skunks have chemical defense.
Flashcard 22: What is camouflage?
Answer: A trait that helps an animal blend into its surroundings. Matching colors/patterns helps animals hide from predators or prey.
Flashcard 23: Which sense is usually most important for eagles to find prey from far away?
Answer: Sight (vision). Eagles have exceptional distance vision for hunting.
Flashcard 24: Which sense is often most important for sharks to detect chemicals in water?
Answer: Smell (chemoreception). Sharks detect blood and chemicals from miles away.
Flashcard 25: Which option best explains why the same temperature change affects a lizard more than a bird?
Answer: Lizards rely on external heat more than birds do. Cold-blooded lizards can't regulate body temperature like warm-blooded birds.
Flashcard 26: Identify the best reason a herd animal runs at danger signals while a solitary predator may approach.
Answer: Different roles: prey avoids; predators may investigate. Herd animals flee together for safety; predators assess opportunities.
Flashcard 27: What is a stimulus in animal behavior?
Answer: A change in the environment that an animal can detect. Any environmental change that triggers an animal's senses.
Flashcard 28: What is a response in animal behavior?
Answer: An action or change in behavior caused by a stimulus. The behavior that follows detection of a stimulus.
Flashcard 29: Which term means an animal detects information using eyes, ears, nose, skin, or tongue?
Answer: Sensing (sensory perception). Animals use these organs to gather environmental information.
Flashcard 30: Choose the best reason two animals may respond differently to the same predator smell.
Answer: Different experiences, instincts, and predator risks. Past encounters and species-specific threats shape fear responses.