IMPRINTING

• LOREZNZ - SCIENTIST WHO SUGGESTED THAT NEWLY BORN SPECIES HAD A NEED TO RECOGNISE AND FOLLOW ITS CAREGIVER TO SURVIVE
• INVESTIGATED HOW ANIMALS DID THIS AND WHAT IT MEANT
• HE CALLED THE WAY ANIMALS FORMED THESE BASIC ATTACHMENTS FOR SURVIVAL "IMPRINTING"
• IMPRINTING - THE INNATE ABILITY TO RECOGNISE ONE'S CAREGIVER IN ANIMALS
• ENABLED ANIMALS TO LEARN SPECIES SPECIFIC BEHAVIOURS TO SOCIALISE, MATE & SURVIVE

• ANIMALS WOULD BEGIN TO IMPRINT ON THE FIRST LARGE MOVING OBJECT THEY COULD FOLLOW FOR MORE THAN 10 MINUTES
• IMPRINTING COULD ONLY OCCUR WITHIN A SPECIFIED TIME FRAME - CRITICAL PERIOD = 36 HOURS

• LORENZ CONDUCTED A STUDY TO SEE HOW GOSLINGS IMPRINT & HOW IT WOULD WORK
• THREE GROUPS OF GOSLINGS WHICH HE IMPRINTED UPON IN AN INCUBATOR

1) ONES WHICH IMPRINTED ON THEIR BIOLOGICAL MOTHER GOOSE

2) ONES WHICH IMPRINTED ON HIMSELF

3) ONES WHICH DIDNT IMPRINT ON ANY SPECIES

• GOSLINGS WERE STORED IN ENCLOSURE
• WHEN RELEASED, THEY WOULD FOLLOW THEIR "PARENT" EXCEPT FOR THE NON-IMPRINTED ONES

• HUMANS ARE MORE COMPLEX THAN ANIMALS AND HIS FINDINGS DO NOT APPLY TO US
• SLUCKIN SHOWED THAT YOUGH BIRDS RAISED IN CAPTIVITY COULD IMPRINT OUTSIDE OF 36 HOURS, HENCE HAVING A LONGER CRITICAL PERIOD
• KENDRICK ET AL SHOWED THAT IMPRINTING IS NOT A PERMANENT PROCESS. GOATS THAT IMPRINTED ON SHEEP WERE RETURNED TO THEIR HERD OF GOATS 3 YEARS LATER. THEY FEMALES WERE ABLE TO SOCIALISE AND MIX WITH THE GOATS AGAIN.