As Lorenz’s goslings spent the rst few hours of their lives with him rather than their mother, they imprinted on Lorenz (his boots, actually) and followed him around because they were mistaking him for their mother. When they grew up, they preferred the company of humans to that of other birds of their species. This shows how important those rst few hours of their lives were.

Does this occur in human infants? Do you know anything about birth practices in your culture?

Usually the rst person an infant sees is the mother, but there are variations. In some cultures it is customary for the extended family to gather together and pass the baby around from hands to hands for several hours immediately after the birth. What signicance do you think this might have?