Behavioral Development of Terrestrial Carnivores

Abstract

The importance of fully understanding behavioral development cannot be emphasized too strongly. Without detailed knowledge of how the behavior of individuals unfolds throughout life, and not only during infancy, we can only guess at the supposed adaptive significance of various ontogenetic patterns and how they may be related to (1) the immediate situation in which a young animal finds itself and (2) its later reproductive activities and fitness (Tinbergen 1951, 1963; Bekoff 1977d, 1981a, 1981b; Gould 1977; Galef 1981; Wiley 1981; Mayr 1983; Calow 1984; Lee 1984; Bekoff and Byers 1985; Gray 1985a, 1985b; Maynard Smith et al. 1985; Brooks and Wiley 1986; Jamieson 1986; Buss 1987; Clark and Ehlinger 1987; Łomnicki 1988). Therefore, studies of adult behavior conducted in the absence of developmental data may make unwarranted assumptions.