Centre for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, Rovereto, Italy.
PLoS One. 2011;6(7):e22657. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0022657. Epub 2011 Jul 27.
Following spatial disorientation, animals can reorient themselves by relying on geometric cues (metric and sense) specified both by the macroscopic surface layout of an enclosed space and prominent visual landmarks in arrays. Whether spatial reorientation in arrays of landmarks is based on explicit representation of the geometric cues is a matter of debate. Here we trained homing pigeons (Columba livia) to locate a food-reward in a rectangular array of four identical or differently coloured pipes provided with four openings, only one of which allowed the birds to have access to the reward. Pigeons were trained either with a stable or a variable position of the opening on pipes, so that they could view the array either from the same or a variable perspective. Explicit mapping of configural geometry would predict successful reorientation irrespective of access condition. In contrast, we found that a stable view of the array facilitated spatial learning in homing pigeons, likely through the formation of snapshot-like memories.
在出现空间迷失后，动物可以通过依赖几何线索（度量和感知）来重新定位自己，这些线索由封闭空间的宏观表面布局和阵列中的突出视觉地标指定。在地标阵列中进行空间重新定位是否基于对几何线索的明确表示是一个有争议的问题。在这里，我们训练家鸽（Columba livia）在一个由四个相同或不同颜色的管道组成的矩形阵列中找到一个食物奖励，这些管道都有四个开口，只有一个开口允许鸟类获得奖励。鸽子要么在管道上以稳定的位置接受训练，要么在可变的位置接受训练，这样它们可以从相同或不同的视角观看阵列。明确的配置几何映射将预测无论访问条件如何都能成功重新定位。相比之下，我们发现，对数组的稳定视图有助于家鸽的空间学习，这可能是通过形成类似快照的记忆来实现的。
