Vox reader Stefanos Nasiopoulos asks: How do instincts work in animals? Do they use the same mechanism as memories? How are they different from learned behavior? For example, when the tailorbird is actually sewing leaves to form a nest, does it understand what it’s doing? Or does it just feel a compulsion to do it without knowing why?

In the forests of Asia lives a small bird with a very apt name — the common tailorbird. These animals, which are covered in a coat of green, gray, and chestnut feathers, are known for their ability to sew leaves together to create a nest.

The birds poke holes in leaves and then, using their beak as a needle, stitch them together with bits of spider web, plant fibers, or other string-like materials. It’s pretty incredible to watch.

A good question is, how the hell does a bird know how to sew? Was it taught by its elders? Or is it instinct?

The same question applies to a number of other animal behaviors: Beavers building dams, squirrels burying nuts, cats always falling on their feet.

Earlier this year, a Vox reader reached out looking for answers about how animal instincts work. I was curious too. Partly because I need to know what makes my dog (a shepherd-pit-bull mix) so fixated on squirrels.

So I called up Mark Blumberg, a neuroscientist at the University of Iowa who’s written books about animal instinct — a term he says is confusing and thoroughly unhelpful.

What follows is our conversation, which has been edited for length and clarity. And if you want more, listen to the episode of our science podcast, Unexplainable, called “Basic instinct,” in which Blumberg lays out his argument against the simple idea of instinct.

When I think of instinct, I think of my dog lunging at a squirrel — a seemingly thoughtless behavior. Is there a scientific definition of the word?

There are many, and that’s one of the problems — people use different definitions. So you could talk about it as something that is inborn, unlearned, genetically programmed, is typical of the species, emerges without prior experience, and so on.

I don’t use the word instinct. Because once you have that many definitions, the word no longer has a useful meaning. When people say, “It’s in our DNA,” that’s just a way of saying that it’s habit — that we do it reflexively or habitually or unthinkingly or unconsciously. You........

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