Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Optimal Foraging00:48

Optimal Foraging

11.8K
How animals obtain and eat their food is called foraging behavior. Foraging can include searching for plants and hunting for prey and depends on the species and environment.
11.8K
Types of Selection01:46

Types of Selection

37.5K
Natural selection influences the frequencies of particular alleles and phenotypes within populations in several different ways. Primarily, natural selection can be directional, stabilizing, or disruptive. Directional selection favors one extreme trait and shifts the population towards that phenotype while selecting against individuals displaying alternate traits. Stabilizing selection favors an intermediate trait with a narrow range of variation. Deviation from the optimal phenotype towards an...
37.5K
Instinctive Drift01:05

Instinctive Drift

1.5K
Instinctive drift refers to the tendency of animals to revert to their innate behaviors despite repeated reinforcement. Breland and Breland demonstrated this concept in an experiment with a raccoon. The raccoon was trained to pick up two coins and place them in a container in exchange for food. Initially, the raccoon learned to associate the coins with food, making them a conditioned stimulus or a substitute for food. However, over time, the raccoon became less willing to put the coins into the...
1.5K
Predator-Prey Interactions02:39

Predator-Prey Interactions

17.1K
Predators consume prey for energy. Predators that acquire prey and prey that avoid predation both increase their chances of survival and reproduction (i.e., fitness). Routine predator-prey interactions elicit mutual adaptations that improve predator offenses, such as claws, teeth, and speed, as well as prey defenses, including crypsis, aposematism, and mimicry. Thus, predator-prey interactions resemble an evolutionary arms race.
17.1K
Frequency-dependent Selection01:21

Frequency-dependent Selection

20.1K
When the fitness of a trait is influenced by how common it is (i.e., its frequency) relative to different traits within a population, this is referred to as frequency-dependent selection. Frequency-dependent selection may occur between species or within a single species. This type of selection can either be positive—with more common phenotypes having higher fitness—or negative, with rarer phenotypes conferring increased fitness.
20.1K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Airway management in thoracic surgery in a patient with right tracheal supernumerary bronchus.

Revista espanola de anestesiologia y reanimacion·2025
Same author

Social Deprivation among Children with Inherited Metabolic Disorders.

Irish medical journal·2025
Same author

Correction: Improving time-resolution and sensitivity of <i>in situ</i> X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy of a powder catalyst by modulated excitation.

Chemical science·2023
Same author

Improving time-resolution and sensitivity of <i>in situ</i> X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy of a powder catalyst by modulated excitation.

Chemical science·2023
Same author

Development of a model of medication review for use in clinical practice: Bristol medication review model.

BMC medicine·2021
Same author

Evaluating the effectiveness of a single-day simulation-based program in psychiatry for medical students: a controlled study.

BMC medical education·2021

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 28, 2026

Protocol for Assessing the Relative Effects of Environment and Genetics on Antler and Body Growth for a Long-lived Cervid
09:09

Protocol for Assessing the Relative Effects of Environment and Genetics on Antler and Body Growth for a Long-lived Cervid

Published on: August 8, 2017

6.8K

Development of feeding selectivity in roe deer.

H Tixier1, C Maizeret2, P Duncan1

  • 1CNRS UPR 4701, Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, F-79360 Beauvoir sur Niort, France.

Behavioural Processes
|June 5, 2014
PubMed
Summary

Roe deer fawns quickly develop selective feeding habits, learning to identify and avoid toxic plants using taste and smell. This learning process mirrors adult deer behavior by 1 month of age.

More Related Videos

Assessment of Social Transmission of Food Preferences Behaviors
04:56

Assessment of Social Transmission of Food Preferences Behaviors

Published on: January 25, 2018

7.7K
A Treatment Package without Escape Extinction to Address Food Selectivity
04:23

A Treatment Package without Escape Extinction to Address Food Selectivity

Published on: August 21, 2015

11.4K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Apr 28, 2026

Protocol for Assessing the Relative Effects of Environment and Genetics on Antler and Body Growth for a Long-lived Cervid
09:09

Protocol for Assessing the Relative Effects of Environment and Genetics on Antler and Body Growth for a Long-lived Cervid

Published on: August 8, 2017

6.8K
Assessment of Social Transmission of Food Preferences Behaviors
04:56

Assessment of Social Transmission of Food Preferences Behaviors

Published on: January 25, 2018

7.7K
A Treatment Package without Escape Extinction to Address Food Selectivity
04:23

A Treatment Package without Escape Extinction to Address Food Selectivity

Published on: August 21, 2015

11.4K

Area of Science:

  • Ethology
  • Animal Behavior
  • Ecology

Background:

  • Understanding the development of feeding behavior in herbivores is crucial for conservation and ecosystem management.
  • European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) exhibit complex feeding strategies, but the ontogeny of these behaviors is not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the developmental trajectory of feeding selectivity in European roe deer fawns.
  • To identify the sensory cues and learning mechanisms involved in the acquisition of feeding preferences and aversions.

Main Methods:

  • Observational study of nine roe deer fawns from birth to 1.5 months.
  • Individual presentation of seven plant species in a randomized order.
  • Comparison of fawn feeding behavior with that of eight adult roe deer.

Main Results:

  • Fawns demonstrated plant selectivity from initial exposure, responding primarily to gustatory stimuli.
  • Consumption of preferred plant species increased over time, while avoided species intake remained low.
  • Learning, involving olfactory and potentially visual cues for highly avoided plants and taste-consequence associations for others, enabled discrimination similar to adults by one month of age.

Conclusions:

  • Learning plays a critical role in shaping the selective and flexible feeding behavior of roe deer.
  • Both immediate sensory cues and post-ingestive feedback contribute to the development of feeding strategies.
  • Fawns rapidly acquire sophisticated foraging skills, distinguishing palatable from toxic plants through associative learning.