The effects of lithium chloride on spontaneous alternation behaviour in the goldfish (Carassius auratus).

Spontaneous alternation behaviour of goldfish was observed in a two-unit T maze. Whilst significant degrees of alternation occurred under both lithium and sodium treatment, alternation under lithium was significantly lower than under sodium. In a second experiment it was shown that lithium increased the amount of random or erratic behaviour demonstrated by fish. The effects of lithium on spontaneous alternation were fully explained by a lithium-induced increase in randomness of activity, without recourse to any assumption that lithium affected memory traces.