Page 3 - Zoology Laboratory Project, Group 3
P. 3
ETHOGRAM
An animal’s behavior consists of a stream
of movements and events. Before we can
measure these movements, an animal’s
behaviors must be organized into specific
categories. Animal researchers organize these
behavioral categories into what is known as
an ethogram. An ethogram is a table of all
behaviors of interest observed in the study
species. Each of these behaviors must be
distinct and independent from one another in
order collect data accurately.
In observational studies, preliminary
observations must be conducted in order to
clearly define the typical behaviors observed
in a species. A guide is necessary during an
experiment in order to make sure observers do
not drift away from the definition of a
behavior, and mistake one behavior for
another.
This compilation of observation from
different species does not define their
complete behavior, but this is just a
preliminary observation to identify and
observe what are the different behaviors of
chosen domesticated animals.
