A squirrel is born and raised in captivity. Once released into the wild, it immediately begins to bury nuts. This is an example of:

A) direct fitness.
B) learning.
C) innate behavior.
D) learned behavior.
E) habituation.

Innate behavior refers to actions and responses that are hardwired into an organism's biology, not learned from experience or environmental interaction. The squirrel's instinctual act of burying nuts, despite being raised in captivity, demonstrates this type of behavior.