Early visual experience affects postnatal auditory responsiveness in bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus).
Results from 6 experiments suggest perinatal visual experience interferes with postnatal auditory responsiveness in bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus). Light- or dark-reared control chicks responded similarly to bobwhite maternal Calls A or B following hatching. Light-reared chicks that experienced 10 min/hr of Call A or B from hatching until testing preferred the familiar call at Days 2-4, but dark-reared chicks preferred the familiar call at all ages. Increased amounts of exposure to maternal calls during postnatal Days 1-2 led to auditory responsiveness deficits in light-reared chicks. Similarly, embryos exposed to 10 min/hr of prenatal visual cues required 48 hr of postnatal Call A or B exposure to demonstrate auditory discrimination. These findings highlight the linkages between developing auditory and visual systems during infancy.
Foushée
Rebecca D
RD
Department of Psychology, University of Alabama in Huntsville, 35899, USA. eatonr@email.uah.edu
Lickliter
Robert
R
D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001307:Auditory Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D003088:Colinus; D004192:Discrimination, Psychological; D013997:Time Factors; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D014828:Vocalization, Animal