Food-storing birds: adaptive specialization in brain and behaviour?
Among the passerine birds, species that store food have an enlarged hippocampal region (dorso-medial cortex), relative to brain and body size, when compared with the non-storers. The volume of one of the major afferent-efferent pathways (the septo-hippocampal pathway) is also greater in food storing species. This specialization of brain structure is discussed in relation to behavioural studies in which the spatial memory of storing and non-storing species has been compared.
Krebs
J R
JR
Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology, University of Oxford, U.K.
D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000818:Animals; D001717:Birds / Q000502:physiology*; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000502:physiology; D008568:Memory; D013045:Species Specificity