Question

Emplain the interaction between
internal and external stimuli in
FAP in animals?​

Answer 1

Fixed action patterns (FAPs) are relatively stereotyped behaviours (i.e. they seem to run like clockwork) exhibited by all members of a species under appropriate conditions.

FAPs are normally seen when an animal in an appropriate motivational state is exposed to the appropriate external stimulus - this stimulus was called a releaser or sign stimulus by ethologists.

In this model male fish exhibit three different FAPs. This collection of FAPs is called an ethogram.

One of your tasks will be to identify the three FAPs which make up the ethogram of male behaviour in the simulation.

However this task is not straightforward because the actual FAP exhibited by the male depends upon:

• The readiness of the male to mate (his internal motivation)

• the attractiveness of the female (her releaser value)

In the simulation the colour of the male's body reflects his internal motivation.

Later on you can explore the simulation to determine which male body colour denotes:

• high motivation

• medium motivation

• low motivation

In the simulation, the behaviour and size of the female represents her releaser value:

The simulation allows you to determine which female behaviour acts as a :

• weak releaser

• medium releaser

• strong releaser

for male courtship behaviour