Final answer:
Male and female cats have distinct biological roles, with the latter providing for offspring while the former primarily focuses on mating. Parental care amongst male mammals is generally rare, in contrast to birds, where males often share in duties such as incubation and territory defense. Kittens exhibit innate hunting behaviors without needing explicit teaching from their mothers.
Step-by-step explanation:
The behavior exhibited by male and female cats is rooted in their biological roles. While female cats hunt to provide for themselves and their young and protect them, male cats focus on mating and do not typically involve themselves in nurturing or parenting. This division of roles is seen in many mammals, where parental care among males is rare. In contrast, birds display a higher frequency of male involvement, with many species exhibiting shared duties like defending territory, incubation, and feeding chicks. Incubation, or brooding, is a period where both male and female birds may keep the eggs warm until they hatch, thereby demonstrating a committed form of parental care.
Incorporating these behaviors, we can understand that kittens, even when separated from their mothers at a young age, may instinctively develop hunting skills without explicit teaching. Their ability to attack a ball of yarn indicates the presence of innate behaviors that do not require learning. This is a fundamental aspect of the survival strategy encoded in their genes.