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Every behavior is due to some kind of external stimulus that triggers the behavior. This behavior emerges due to the fact that it has proven to increase fitness. The evolutionary cause behind the behavior, however, is called the ultimate cause. The proximate cause is what is immediately observed as causing the behavior. For example, birds will reproduce only at a certain time (behavior). This can be attributed to the declining sunlight received by the bird's photoreceptors (proximate cause). Or when movement is detected with the photoreceptors (proximate cause), and the reciprocated behavior in most animals is the flinch reaction (behavior).

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Proximate means close by (or in close proximity). Proximate factors are factors that are closest to the situation in question. They are not necessarily the most fundamental, but they are the closest.

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Q: What is a proximate cause or factor?
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