title: Operant discrimination learning in detelencephalated pigeons (Columba livia).
abstract: Operant discrimination learning was analyzed in pigeons after massive telencephalic lesions. Twenty-one pigeons were divided into three groups: non-lesioned (N = 6), sham-lesioned (N = 5) and telencephalon lesioned (N = 10). Lesion surgeries were carried out before any experimental training. Learning procedures were run in the same sequence for all groups and under a food deprivation of 80% of the ad libitum weight. Successive discrimination was programmed by the alteration of red and yellow lights in the right key of a standard operant chamber: the red key was correlated with variable-ratio reinforcement; the yellow key was correlated with extinction. Session were run until steady-state key peck rates were obtained. The following results demonstrate discrimination learning by detelencephalated birds. Response shaping and steady-state rates required a larger number of sessions for lesioned pigeons (P < 0.05). They showed increased response rates in red (26.43 +/- 2.59) and yellow (11.17 +/- 2.86) components as compared to the non-lesioned (red: 16.51 +/- 2.0; yellow: 2.02 +/- 0.64) and sham-lesioned (red: 22.84 +/- 1.77; yellow: 4.72 +/- 1.99) groups (P < 0.05). These data show that telencephalic systems are not essential for operant discrimination learning but play a role in the modulation of discriminative behavior. Subtelencephalic systems appear to be functionally important for the organization and storage of learning.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Fisiologia e Biofísica, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, SP, Brasil.
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Cerutti
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Ferrari
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D010856:Columbidae / Q000502:physiology*; D003216:Conditioning, Operant; D003655:Decerebrate State; D004193:Discrimination Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D013687:Telencephalon / Q000502:physiology*