Wolfgang Wickler
Encyclopedia
Wolfgang Wickler is a German
zoologist, behavioral researcher and publicist
. As of 1974, he led the ethological
department of the Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Physiology
in Seewiesen near Starnberg
and he took over as director of the institute in 1975. Even after he was given emeritus status, he remained closely associated to the institute in Seewiesen and ensured its smooth transition under the newly created Max Planck Institute for Ornithology.
and then received a grant to go to the Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Physiology, where he was a student of Konrad Lorenz
and Erich von Holst
. After he completed his doctoral work on the behavior of fish, he was scientific assistant in Seewiesen as of 1960 and finally qualified to become a professor at the University of Munich in 1969. He was also appointed to be a professor in the faculty of natural sciences there in 1976. By 1970, he was a lecturer in the Catholic theological faculty for biological foundations of human moral concepts.
Wickler's area of specialisation was the reconstruction of racial history of animal communities and the analysis of communication of animals. Among other areas, he investigated the "dialects" of birds and he also wrote a book about mimicry in 1968 which was the only book on the subject in the German language until 2002. Other research fields of his department at the Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Physiology were studies about the social behavior of spider
s and grasshopper
s, about acquisition of food, reproduction and mating of prawn
s, as well as rather philosophical publications on "biological explanation" in connection with ethical questions (such as "Die Biologie der zehn Gebote", The Biology of the Ten Commandments, in 1971).
He received great attention in the broad public in 1981 with the sociobiologically
shaped book, "Das Prinzip Eigennutz" (The Principle of Self-Interest), which Wickler wrote with Ute Seibt, as well as the book, "Männlich – weiblich. Ein Naturgesetz und seine Folgen" (Male - Female, a Natural Law and its Consequences), also written with Ute Seibt in 1983. The focal point of both books was the evolution of behavior. The central question was formulated as, "How must the behavior of living things have been formed, if the theory of evolution
is correct?" (from the foreword to "Das Prinzip Eigennutz"). Although their books did not deny cultural influences on human behavior, they were reproached for taking these influences into consideration marginally, at most. It is extremely unusual that new editions several of his books continue to be published, decades after their first publications.
In November 1997, the council of the Max Planck Society
decided to close the Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Physiology, with the retirement of Prof. Wolfgang Wickler on November 30, 1999. Its ornithological research has been continued in the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology (in Erling-Andechs, Radolfzell and Seewiesen).
Along with the former Bonn behavioral biologist, Hanna-Maria Zippelius, Wolfgang Wickler is one of the most aggressive critics of the instinct theory
of his mentor, Konrad Lorenz
.
Wolfgang Wickler has been married to Agnes Oehm since 1956, has four grown children and is also active as an organist.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
zoologist, behavioral researcher and publicist
Publicist
A publicist is a person whose job is to generate and manage publicity for a public figure, especially a celebrity, a business, or for a work such as a book, film or album...
. As of 1974, he led the ethological
Ethology
Ethology is the scientific study of animal behavior, and a sub-topic of zoology....
department of the Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Physiology
Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Physiology
The former Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Physiology was located in Seewiesen, Bavaria, Germany. It was one of 80 institutes in the Max Planck Society ....
in Seewiesen near Starnberg
Starnberg
The city of Starnberg is in Bavaria, Germany, some 30 km south-west of Munich. It lies at the north end of Lake Starnberg, in the heart of the "Five Lakes Country", and serves as capital of the district of Starnberg...
and he took over as director of the institute in 1975. Even after he was given emeritus status, he remained closely associated to the institute in Seewiesen and ensured its smooth transition under the newly created Max Planck Institute for Ornithology.
Career
After finishing secondary school in 1951, he studied biologyBiology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
and then received a grant to go to the Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Physiology, where he was a student of Konrad Lorenz
Konrad Lorenz
Konrad Zacharias Lorenz was an Austrian zoologist, ethologist, and ornithologist. He shared the 1973 Nobel Prize with Nikolaas Tinbergen and Karl von Frisch...
and Erich von Holst
Erich von Holst
Erich von Holst , was a German behavioral physiologist who was a native of Riga, and was related to historian Hermann Eduard von Holst...
. After he completed his doctoral work on the behavior of fish, he was scientific assistant in Seewiesen as of 1960 and finally qualified to become a professor at the University of Munich in 1969. He was also appointed to be a professor in the faculty of natural sciences there in 1976. By 1970, he was a lecturer in the Catholic theological faculty for biological foundations of human moral concepts.
Wickler's area of specialisation was the reconstruction of racial history of animal communities and the analysis of communication of animals. Among other areas, he investigated the "dialects" of birds and he also wrote a book about mimicry in 1968 which was the only book on the subject in the German language until 2002. Other research fields of his department at the Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Physiology were studies about the social behavior of spider
Spider
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
s and grasshopper
Grasshopper
The grasshopper is an insect of the suborder Caelifera in the order Orthoptera. To distinguish it from bush crickets or katydids, it is sometimes referred to as the short-horned grasshopper...
s, about acquisition of food, reproduction and mating of prawn
Prawn
Prawns are decapod crustaceans of the sub-order Dendrobranchiata. There are 540 extant species, in seven families, and a fossil record extending back to the Devonian...
s, as well as rather philosophical publications on "biological explanation" in connection with ethical questions (such as "Die Biologie der zehn Gebote", The Biology of the Ten Commandments, in 1971).
He received great attention in the broad public in 1981 with the sociobiologically
Sociobiology
Sociobiology is a field of scientific study which is based on the assumption that social behavior has resulted from evolution and attempts to explain and examine social behavior within that context. Often considered a branch of biology and sociology, it also draws from ethology, anthropology,...
shaped book, "Das Prinzip Eigennutz" (The Principle of Self-Interest), which Wickler wrote with Ute Seibt, as well as the book, "Männlich – weiblich. Ein Naturgesetz und seine Folgen" (Male - Female, a Natural Law and its Consequences), also written with Ute Seibt in 1983. The focal point of both books was the evolution of behavior. The central question was formulated as, "How must the behavior of living things have been formed, if the theory of evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
is correct?" (from the foreword to "Das Prinzip Eigennutz"). Although their books did not deny cultural influences on human behavior, they were reproached for taking these influences into consideration marginally, at most. It is extremely unusual that new editions several of his books continue to be published, decades after their first publications.
In November 1997, the council of the Max Planck Society
Max Planck Society
The Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science is a formally independent non-governmental and non-profit association of German research institutes publicly funded by the federal and the 16 state governments of Germany....
decided to close the Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Physiology, with the retirement of Prof. Wolfgang Wickler on November 30, 1999. Its ornithological research has been continued in the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology (in Erling-Andechs, Radolfzell and Seewiesen).
Along with the former Bonn behavioral biologist, Hanna-Maria Zippelius, Wolfgang Wickler is one of the most aggressive critics of the instinct theory
Instinct
Instinct or innate behavior is the inherent inclination of a living organism toward a particular behavior.The simplest example of an instinctive behavior is a fixed action pattern, in which a very short to medium length sequence of actions, without variation, are carried out in response to a...
of his mentor, Konrad Lorenz
Konrad Lorenz
Konrad Zacharias Lorenz was an Austrian zoologist, ethologist, and ornithologist. He shared the 1973 Nobel Prize with Nikolaas Tinbergen and Karl von Frisch...
.
Wolfgang Wickler has been married to Agnes Oehm since 1956, has four grown children and is also active as an organist.
Selected publications
- Wickler, W.: Mimikry. Nachahmung und Täuschung in der Natur. Munich: 1968. in German
- Wickler, W.: Sind wir Sünder?: Naturgesetze d. Ehe. With intro. by Konrad Lorenz. Munich: 1969. in German
- Wickler, W.: Antworten der Verhaltensforschung. Munich: 1970. in German
- Wickler, W.: Verhalten und Umwelt. Hoffmann und Campe Verlag, Hamburg: 1972. in German
- Wickler, W. and Seibt, U. (publ.): Vergleichende Verhaltensforschung (Reader). Hamburg: 1973. in German
- Wickler, W.: Stammesgeschichte und Ritualisierung. Zur Entstehung tierischer und menschlicher Verhaltensmuster. Munich: 1975. in German
- Wickler, W.: Die Biologie der Zehn Gebote. Warum die Natur für uns kein Vorbild ist. Munich: 1991 (new edition). in German
- Wickler, W. and Seibt, U.: Das Prinzip Eigennutz. Zur Evolution sozialen Verhaltens. Munich / Zurich: 1991 (new edition). in German
- Wickler, W. and Seibt, U.: Männlich Weiblich. Ein Naturgesetz und seine Folgen. Heidelberg / Berlin: 1998 (new edition). in German
- Wickler, W. and Seibt, U.: Kalenderwurm und Perlenpost. Biologen entschlüsseln ungeschriebene Botschaften. Heidelberg / Berlin 1998. in German
Further reading
- Wickler, W. (1968) Mimicry in Plants and Animals (Translated by R. D. Martin) McGraw-Hill, New York. ISBN 0070701008.
- Wickler, W. (1972) The Biology of the Ten Commandments (Translated by David Smith) New York, McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0070737584.