Quote Originally Posted by JRedig View Post
Hi Audrey,

Do you really think the reason a bird discontinues bating is because of pressure and discomfort on their legs? I have a hard time connecting the dots on that one. A new bird that hasn't learned to regain the glove will hang, the last thing on their mind is the discomfort of pressure on their legs. Once they have learned to regain the glove, it becomes habit when they don't "Get away" to turn and return to the fist, depending on the reason for the bate that duration can vary.

How would that theory explain coops and such that will destroy their legs/scales to the point of blood and skin damage but continue bating? They are definitely not making that connection. I've seen pictures of birds in the middle east restrained by practically kite string that has worn through the skin and they are sitting looking like my gos with a foot tucked, no apparent recognition of the pain/damage.
Now this is a constructive question. There's a way of analyzing behavior called the Premack Principle that can start to explain elements of this question. In regards to reinforcement, the Premack Principle basically states that animals will perform less reinforcing (low probability) behaviors in order to gain access to more reinforcing (high probability) behaviors. In other words, high-probability behavior can be used to reinforce low-probability behavior. For instance, a hawk will fly to the falconer's glove (low probability behavior/ less desirable behavior) in order to gain access to the behavior of eating (high probability, more reinforcing behavior). It's also called "Grandma's Rule"-- the behavior of doing homework (low probability) can be rewarded with access to playing video games (high probability).

Now let's focus on Premack's Principle as it relates to punishment, which will help explain aspects of the cooper's hawk that bates constantly. In reference to punishment, Premack states that a low-probability behavior can be used to punish a high probability behavior. Imagine a hawk that is both hungry but afraid of the falconer. The presence of the falconer can punish the behavior of eating-- that is, the hawk is more likely to eat if the condition of the falconer didn't exist. Consider that reinforcement and punishment is subjective, and behavior does not exist in a vacuum-- animals are always learning, and reinforcers/ punishers are constantly fluctuating. So, if a hawk isn't hungry, the behavior of eating becomes low-probability. Likewise, if it is more punishing (low probability behavior, given a choice) for a cooper's hawk to be standing cooperatively on the falconer's glove than it is to attempt to escape (high probability behavior), then the the hawk is merely proving that it prefers the aversive of the jesses to the proximity of the falconer.

This stuff is an interrelated and complex web. In my bullet point list previously posted, I pointed out that animals tend to habituate to punishment, which is one of the many reasons bating continues to occur. Also, keep in mind that the definition for punishment is that it "decreases" behavior. Let's say a cooper's hawk is shown the hood, bates 10 times, then sits the glove and accepts the hood. What elements of behavior are at play? Tons. First, the behavior of sitting on the glove has temporarily become more reinforcing than hanging upside down, winded--Premack's principle. Second, you may have short-term habituation at play, and the hawk is temporarily habituated to being on the glove and the shown the hood. In the way that a person's startle response to a second popped balloon decreases, so does the response of the hawk when shown the hood again. Third, in this case, the hood has become a discriminative stimulus (cue) for something punishing-- the hawk has learned that when the hood is visible, it will be subjected to wearing it, and obviously would rather not. The hawk finally accepts the hood because the combination of negative reinforcement, positive punishment, habituation, and the beginning of learned helplessness. Bating has been punished (decreased), albeit temporarily. The act of sitting the glove has been negatively reinforced--again, temporarily-- by relieving the pressure and allowing the hawk to rest, so sitting the glove will increase or maintain. Finally, the reaction of bating due to the cue of the hood has temporarily stopped due to short-term habituation and the fact that the hawk has learned from past experiences that no matter how much it bates, it will still be hooded. The hawk has learned that whatever behavior it offers, it cannot affect the outcome. Hawks that hang upside down, refusing to be hooded upright, are telling the falconer that hanging by the jesses is preferable to being hooded.

I've got to go back to work, which is a shame, as there's so much more to this. More later.