Department of Psychology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA.
J.P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA.
J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol. 2021 Nov;207(6):729-737. doi: 10.1007/s00359-021-01509-y. Epub 2021 Sep 30.
Amblypygids, or whip spiders, are nocturnally active arachnids which live in structurally complex environments. Whip spiders are excellent navigators that can re-locate a home refuge without relying on visual input. Therefore, an open question is whether visual input can control any aspect of whip spider spatial behavior. In the current study, Phrynus marginemaculatus were trained to locate an escape refuge by discriminating between differently oriented black and white stripes placed either on the walls of a testing arena (frontal discrimination) or on the ceiling of the same testing arena (overhead discrimination). Regardless of the placement of the visual stimuli, the whip spiders were successful in learning the location of the escape refuge. In a follow-up study of the overhead discrimination, occluding the median eyes was found to disrupt the ability of the whip spiders to locate the shelter. The data support the conclusion that whip spiders can rely on vision to learn and recognize an escape shelter. We suggest that visual inputs to the brain's mushroom bodies enable this ability.
盲蛛，或鞭蛛，是夜行性的蛛形纲动物，生活在结构复杂的环境中。鞭蛛是优秀的导航者，即使没有依赖视觉输入，它们也可以重新定位自己的家避难所。因此，一个悬而未决的问题是，视觉输入是否可以控制鞭蛛空间行为的任何方面。在本研究中，通过辨别放置在测试竞技场墙壁上（正面辨别）或同一测试竞技场天花板上（头顶辨别）的不同定向的黑白条纹，训练 Phrynus marginemaculatus 找到逃生避难所。无论视觉刺激物的放置位置如何，鞭蛛都成功地学习到了逃生避难所的位置。在头顶辨别研究的后续研究中，发现遮挡中央眼会破坏鞭蛛定位避难所的能力。这些数据支持了鞭蛛可以依靠视觉来学习和识别逃生避难所的结论。我们认为，视觉输入到大脑的蘑菇体使这种能力成为可能。
