The fine-grained spatial abilities of three seed-caching corvids.
We used a psychophysical method to examine the ability of three corvid species to discern fine-grained spatial information. Nutcrackers, pinyon jays, and scrub-jays were required to discriminate the distance between two landmarks on a computer screen in an operant chamber. All three species were able to discriminate between arrays that differed by 20 mm; the discrimination gradients for scrub-jays and pinyon jays were sharper than those for nutcrackers, however. The results suggest that differences in spatial memory among these species are not related to differences in fine-grained perception.
Gibson
Brett M
BM
University of New Hampshire, Psychology Department, Conant Hall, Durham, NH 0382 , USA. bgibson@cisunix.unh.edu
Kamil
Alan C
AC
D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D001717:Birds; D004193:Discrimination Learning; D011601:Psychophysics / Q000379:methods*; D013028:Space Perception / Q000502:physiology*