Instincts in Animals/ Animals and How They Communicate/ Animal Camouflage (3 films)

Year Published: 196419661977

Creator: Journal Films Coronet Allied Film Artists/BFA

Complete Record: 1. Distinguishes between instinctual and learned behavior. Shows easily recognized examples of instinctual behavior in killdeer, honeybees, and hamsters and examples of learned behavior in porpoises. 2. Shows how animals communicate by sound, sight, and movement in order to care for their young, secure food, and survive in times of danger. Illustrates how animals communicate fear, presence, interest, alarm, and other aspects of their behavior. Shows how different kinds of animals use varying means of communication. 3. Illustrates how camouflage helps to insure the survival of manu animal species. Discusses three forms of camouflage; protective coloring, protective resemblance, and mimicry. The spots of the leopard allow it to hide in the patterns of light and shadow of the woodlands and grasses. The changing coat of the ptarmigan provides protection in summer and winter. The praying mantis takes on the conformation of twigs and branches. Some butterflies and moths seem to resemble dead leaves. By mimicking less appetizing or more dangerous neighbors, some animals discourage predators. For many animals, the interaction with their environment has resulted in colors and patterns that allow the animals protection from their enemies and disguise from their prey. In this film, camouflage is seen to take three forms: protective coloration as in the ptasmigan and leopard, protective resemblance as seen in the praying mantis and some butterflies, and mimicry as seen in a butterfly and a spider.