Ethology and Neurobiology: The ideas and models of classical ethology as seen in light of recent advances in neurophysiology and related fields

Abstract

Ethology is generally known as the study of animal behavior in natural environments. This is a narrow definition, although many ethologists are using naturalistic methods. The rapid development and general enthusiasm ethology enjoyed especially in the last two decades are due not only to the naturalistic approach which brought fresh air to laboratory experimentalists but also to the theoretical framework formulated by the founders of ethology. The early ethologists offered a new style in the study of animal behavior, which is characterized by the kind of question asked, the method of tackling problems and the way of drawing conclusions.