How Do Animals Know What to Do?

Imagine a spider that has never seen another spider build a web. It doesn't need a parent to show it where to put every strand. Its nervous system and genes provide much of the information needed to perform this complicated behavior.

Behaviors that animals are born prepared to perform are often called instincts. They are not usually something an animal has to figure out from scratch.

A newly hatched sea turtle, for example, does not need a lesson in how to crawl toward the ocean. Certain patterns of light and the shape of the horizon help guide it toward the sea. Many animals also have built-in behaviors that help them find food, avoid danger, communicate, or care for their young.

These behaviors have developed over many generations. If a behavior helps animals survive and reproduce, the inherited traits that support it can be passed on to their offspring.

Scientists study the genetic basis of animal behavior to understand how inherited traits can influence what animals do. Researchers at the Smithsonian's National Zoo, for example, use genetic information together with observations of animals in the wild to investigate behaviors such as migration, mating, and social relationships. Smithsonian National Zoo

A young animal may have some instincts, but that doesn't mean it already knows everything it will need to survive.

A young lion has natural behaviors that make it interested in moving objects and chasing things, but learning how to hunt successfully takes practice. Young animals often watch adults, play with other young animals, explore their surroundings, and gradually become better at the things they will need later in life.

This is especially easy to notice in animals that live in groups. Young animals can learn from watching older ones and from trying things themselves.

At the Smithsonian's National Zoo, keepers have observed animals learning by watching other animals. One gorilla, for example, began copying a behavior after watching another gorilla perform it and receive a reward. The Smithsonian describes how observation helped the gorilla learn a new behavior.

Learning gives animals something that instinct alone cannot provide: the ability to respond to the particular world they grow up in.

Suppose a young bird tries to eat a brightly colored insect and discovers that it tastes terrible. It may learn to avoid insects with similar colors in the future.

An animal can also learn that a certain sound means danger, that a particular place contains food, or that a certain route leads to water.

This kind of learning allows animals to use their own experiences to make better decisions.

Animals can even learn behaviors that humans teach them. At zoos, keepers sometimes train animals to voluntarily take part in their own care. A zebra might learn to step onto a platform to be weighed, for example, while a crocodile can learn to move toward a particular target. These behaviors are learned through repeated experiences in which the animal discovers that a particular action leads to something it wants, such as food. Smithsonian National Zoo

So when you see an animal doing something clever, it is worth asking whether the behavior is something it was born ready to do, something it learned through experience, or a mixture of both.

An animal is constantly receiving information through its senses.

A bird hears another bird calling. A deer notices movement in the grass. A dog follows a smell. A bee detects the scent and color of flowers. A bat can use echoes to learn about objects around it.

The animal's brain uses this information to decide what to do next.

This is why the same animal might behave differently in different situations. A squirrel that normally runs around a park may freeze when it hears a sudden noise. A bird searching for food may fly away when it notices a predator. A mother animal may become much more protective when her young are nearby.

The animal isn't following one simple set of instructions. It is responding to what is happening around it.

Sometimes an animal's behavior makes more sense when you realize that another animal is sending it information.

Birds use songs and calls. Wolves use sounds, body movements, and scents. Honeybees can communicate information about food sources through movements known as dances. Many animals use signals to warn others about danger, attract mates, defend territory, or keep a group together.

Communication can be surprisingly complicated. A signal can change depending on the situation, and animals need to interpret what they see, hear, or smell before responding.

This gives us another reason why animal behavior isn't simply a list of automatic instructions. Animals are constantly interacting with one another and responding to information.

Play can look like pure fun, but for many young animals it is also a way to practice.

Young mammals may chase each other, wrestle, pounce, climb, or carry objects around. These activities can help them develop physical skills and learn how to interact with others.

A young predator that practices chasing another animal during play is not necessarily trying to catch food. It may be developing coordination, strength, timing, and the ability to respond to another animal's movements.

Scientists can learn a lot by watching this kind of behavior. The Smithsonian's National Zoo even has activities that encourage children to observe animals closely and record what they do over time, using repeated observations to look for patterns. Smithsonian's animal behavior activity

That is essentially what scientists do: instead of deciding what an animal is doing after watching it for a few seconds, they collect observations and look for patterns.

Some animals clearly solve problems, remember experiences, change their behavior, and learn from what happens around them. Scientists have found impressive examples of learning and problem-solving in many different species.

But that doesn't mean animals think exactly as humans do.

A crow, an octopus, a dog, and a chimpanzee have very different brains and very different ways of experiencing the world. Their abilities have developed in response to the lives they lead.

It is better to ask what a particular animal can learn, remember, communicate, and understand than to assume that all animals think in the same way.

And that makes animal behavior even more interesting. The more we study animals, the more we discover that there are many different ways of being intelligent and responding to the world.

The next time your child watches an animal, try not to explain its behavior immediately.

Instead, spend a few minutes simply watching.

What does the animal do first? What happens next? Does it repeat the same behavior? Does something in its surroundings make it change what it is doing?

If you watch a bird in a garden, for example, you might notice it searching the ground, stopping suddenly, looking around, and then moving somewhere else. Instead of saying, "The bird is looking for food," ask your child what evidence they see.

You are turning an ordinary observation into a small scientific investigation.

Questions your child might ask next

Why do some animals migrate? Some animals move between different places during the year because food, temperature, or conditions for raising young change with the seasons.

Why do some animals hibernate? Some animals become much less active during difficult periods, using less energy when food is scarce or conditions are unfavorable.

Why do animals live in different places? Different habitats provide different combinations of food, water, shelter, temperature, and space, and animals have adaptations that help them live in particular environments.

Why do animals have different bodies? Animals have evolved different body features because they face different challenges and live in different ways.

Explore it together

Choose an animal you can watch safely, either outside or through a zoo's live camera. For five or ten minutes, write down what it does without trying to explain why.

Does it move, stop, eat, look around, make sounds, interact with another animal, or repeat a behavior?

Then look at your notes and ask what patterns you noticed. What might be instinctive? What might be learned? What information might the animal be getting from its surroundings?

You don't need to know the answer immediately. Sometimes the most interesting part of observing nature is realizing that you have another question to investigate.

How Sapienta can help

A question about animal behavior can quickly lead somewhere deeper. Why does a bird migrate? How does it know where to go? How does it communicate with other birds? What happens to animals when their environment changes?

Sapienta helps parents follow those connections. It considers a child's age, interests, and what they have already explored, making it easier to keep a conversation going without having to plan the entire learning journey yourself.

Start with the animal your child is watching today. The next question may be more interesting than the first.

Raise curious, knowledgeable kids.