Mouse Ethogram: Unknown Behaviors

Description

Unknown behaviors are simply those behaviors which the researcher cannot distinguish for whatever reason. Behaviors which are indecipherable and cannot be accurately classified are lumped together under the ‘unknown behaviors’ category for the sake of completeness.

Reasons for Unknown Behaviors

To handle such uncertainties, it is best to be aware of the factors and situations which are associated with high levels of recorded unknown behaviors and plan accordingly in advance. Some situations or factors to look out for include:

1. Poor equipment: During video analysis, if the video has low resolution or is bad in quality, then more ‘unknown behaviors’ are likely to be recorded.
2. Bad camera angles: If the camera is placed improperly, not capturing the whole cage environment, then instances of ‘unknown behaviors’ during the classification part of the analysis are bound to be high.
3. Obstructed view: Sometimes, a mouse simply is not visible.

Although it is unavoidable to have unknown behaviors, high instances of this are unwanted because they do not reveal a lot of information or contribute as well to the research question as observable, recordable behavior does.