1
|
Brebner JS, Loconsole M, Hanley D, Vasas V. Through an animal's eye: the implications of diverse sensory systems in scientific experimentation. Proc Biol Sci 2024; 291:20240022. [PMID: 39016597 PMCID: PMC11253838 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2024.0022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2023] [Revised: 03/01/2024] [Accepted: 06/19/2024] [Indexed: 07/18/2024] Open
Abstract
'Accounting for the sensory abilities of animals is critical in experimental design.' No researcher would disagree with this statement, yet it is often the case that we inadvertently fall for anthropocentric biases and use ourselves as the reference point. This paper discusses the risks of adopting an anthropocentric view when working with non-human animals, and the unintended consequences this has on our experimental designs and results. To this aim, we provide general examples of anthropocentric bias from different fields of animal research, with a particular focus on animal cognition and behaviour, and lay out the potential consequences of adopting a human-based perspective. Knowledge of the sensory abilities, both in terms of similarities to humans and peculiarities of the investigated species, is crucial to ensure solid conclusions. A more careful consideration of the diverse sensory systems of animals would improve many scientific fields and enhance animal welfare in the laboratory.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Joanna S. Brebner
- Research Centre on Animal Cognition (CRCA), Centre for Integrative Biology (CBI); CNRS, University Paul Sabatier – Toulouse III, Toulouse, France
| | - Maria Loconsole
- School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Daniel Hanley
- Department of Biology, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA
| | - Vera Vasas
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, BrightonBN1 9RH, UK
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Coppola VJ, Caram HE, Robeson C, Beeler SM, Hebets EA, Wiegmann DD, Bingman VP. Investigating boundary-geometry use by whip spiders (Phrynus marginemaculatus) during goal-directed navigation. Learn Behav 2024; 52:170-178. [PMID: 37620643 DOI: 10.3758/s13420-023-00600-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/08/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023]
Abstract
Previous studies have shown that whip spiders (Amblypygi) can use a variety of cues to navigate to and recognize a home refuge. The current study aimed to determine whether whip spiders were capable of using the boundary geometry of an experimental space (geometric information) to guide goal-directed navigation and to investigate any preferential use of geometric or feature (visual) information. Animals were first trained to find a goal location situated in one corner of a rectangular arena (geometric information) fronting a dark-green-colored wall, which created a brightness contrast with the other three white walls (feature information). Various probe trials were then implemented to determine cue use. It was found that animals were capable of directing their choice behavior towards geometrically correct corners at a rate significantly higher than chance, even when the feature cue was removed. By contrast, choice behavior dropped to random chance when geometric information was removed (test in a square arena) and only feature information remained. Choice behavior was also reduced to chance when geometric and feature information were set in conflict (by moving the feature cue to one of the longer walls in the rectangular arena). The data thus suggest that whip spiders are capable of using geometric information to guide goal-directed navigation and that geometric information is preferred over feature guidance, although a feature cue may set the context for activating geometry-guided navigation. Experimental design limitations and future directions are discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vincent J Coppola
- Department of Behavioral Sciences, University of Findlay, Findlay, OH, USA.
| | - Hannah E Caram
- Department of Behavioral Sciences, University of Findlay, Findlay, OH, USA
| | - Cecilia Robeson
- Department of Behavioral Sciences, University of Findlay, Findlay, OH, USA
| | - Sophia M Beeler
- Department of Behavioral Sciences, University of Findlay, Findlay, OH, USA
| | - Eileen A Hebets
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE, USA
| | - Daniel D Wiegmann
- Department of Biological Sciences, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA
- J.P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA
| | - Verner P Bingman
- J.P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA
- Department of Psychology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Grob R, Müller VL, Grübel K, Rössler W, Fleischmann PN. Importance of magnetic information for neuronal plasticity in desert ants. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2320764121. [PMID: 38346192 PMCID: PMC10895258 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2320764121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/28/2023] [Indexed: 02/15/2024] Open
Abstract
Many animal species rely on the Earth's magnetic field during navigation, but where in the brain magnetic information is processed is still unknown. To unravel this, we manipulated the natural magnetic field at the nest entrance of Cataglyphis desert ants and investigated how this affects relevant brain regions during early compass calibration. We found that manipulating the Earth's magnetic field has profound effects on neuronal plasticity in two sensory integration centers. Magnetic field manipulations interfere with a typical look-back behavior during learning walks of naive ants. Most importantly, structural analyses in the ants' neuronal compass (central complex) and memory centers (mushroom bodies) demonstrate that magnetic information affects neuronal plasticity during early visual learning. This suggests that magnetic information does not only serve as a compass cue for navigation but also as a global reference system crucial for spatial memory formation. We propose a neural circuit for integration of magnetic information into visual guidance networks in the ant brain. Taken together, our results provide an insight into the neural substrate for magnetic navigation in insects.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Robin Grob
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, 7034Trondheim, Norway
- Division of Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocenter, University of Würzburg, 97074Würzburg, Germany
| | - Valentin L. Müller
- Division of Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocenter, University of Würzburg, 97074Würzburg, Germany
| | - Kornelia Grübel
- Division of Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocenter, University of Würzburg, 97074Würzburg, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Rössler
- Division of Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocenter, University of Würzburg, 97074Würzburg, Germany
| | - Pauline N. Fleischmann
- Division of Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocenter, University of Würzburg, 97074Würzburg, Germany
- Department V - School of Mathematics and Science, Institute of Biology and Environmental Sciences, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, 26129Oldenburg, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Rössler W, Grob R, Fleischmann PN. The role of learning-walk related multisensory experience in rewiring visual circuits in the desert ant brain. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2022:10.1007/s00359-022-01600-y. [DOI: 10.1007/s00359-022-01600-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2022] [Revised: 11/21/2022] [Accepted: 12/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
AbstractEfficient spatial orientation in the natural environment is crucial for the survival of most animal species. Cataglyphis desert ants possess excellent navigational skills. After far-ranging foraging excursions, the ants return to their inconspicuous nest entrance using celestial and panoramic cues. This review focuses on the question about how naïve ants acquire the necessary spatial information and adjust their visual compass systems. Naïve ants perform structured learning walks during their transition from the dark nest interior to foraging under bright sunlight. During initial learning walks, the ants perform rotational movements with nest-directed views using the earth’s magnetic field as an earthbound compass reference. Experimental manipulations demonstrate that specific sky compass cues trigger structural neuronal plasticity in visual circuits to integration centers in the central complex and mushroom bodies. During learning walks, rotation of the sky-polarization pattern is required for an increase in volume and synaptic complexes in both integration centers. In contrast, passive light exposure triggers light-spectrum (especially UV light) dependent changes in synaptic complexes upstream of the central complex. We discuss a multisensory circuit model in the ant brain for pathways mediating structural neuroplasticity at different levels following passive light exposure and multisensory experience during the performance of learning walks.
Collapse
|
5
|
Integration and evaluation of magnetic stimulation in physiology setups. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0271765. [PMID: 35867646 PMCID: PMC9307166 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0271765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2022] [Accepted: 07/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
A large number of behavioral experiments have demonstrated the existence of a magnetic sense in many animal species. Further, studies with immediate gene expression markers have identified putative brain regions involved in magnetic information processing. In contrast, very little is known about the physiology of the magnetic sense and how the magnetic field is neuronally encoded. In vivo electrophysiological studies reporting neuronal correlates of the magnetic sense either have turned out to be irreproducible for lack of appropriate artifact controls or still await independent replication. Thus far, the research field of magnetoreception has little exploited the power of ex vivo physiological studies, which hold great promise for enabling stringent controls. However, tight space constraints in a recording setup and the presence of magnetizable materials in setup components and microscope objectives make it demanding to generate well-defined magnetic stimuli at the location of the biological specimen. Here, we present a solution based on a miniature vector magnetometer, a coil driver, and a calibration routine for the coil system to compensate for magnetic distortions in the setup. The magnetometer fits in common physiology recording chambers and has a sufficiently small spatial integration area to allow for probing spatial inhomogeneities. The coil-driver allows for the generation of defined non-stationary fast changing magnetic stimuli. Our ex vivo multielectrode array recordings from avian retinal ganglion cells show that artifacts induced by rapid magnetic stimulus changes can mimic the waveform of biological spikes on single electrodes. However, induction artifacts can be separated clearly from biological responses if the spatio-temporal characteristics of the artifact on multiple electrodes is taken into account. We provide the complete hardware design data and software resources for the integrated magnetic stimulation system.
Collapse
|
6
|
Putman NF. Magnetosensation. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2022; 208:1-7. [PMID: 35098367 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-021-01538-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2021] [Revised: 12/17/2021] [Accepted: 12/20/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
|
7
|
Grob R, Holland Cunz O, Grübel K, Pfeiffer K, Rössler W, Fleischmann PN. Rotation of skylight polarization during learning walks is necessary to trigger neuronal plasticity in Cataglyphis ants. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20212499. [PMID: 35078368 PMCID: PMC8790360 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.2499] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2021] [Accepted: 01/05/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Many animals use celestial cues for impressive navigational performances in challenging habitats. Since the position of the sun and associated skylight cues change throughout the day and season, it is crucial to correct for these changes. Cataglyphis desert ants possess a time-compensated skylight compass allowing them to navigate back to their nest using the shortest way possible. The ants have to learn the sun's daily course (solar ephemeris) during initial learning walks (LW) before foraging. This learning phase is associated with substantial structural changes in visual neuronal circuits of the ant's brain. Here, we test whether the rotation of skylight polarization during LWs is the necessary cue to induce learning-dependent rewiring in synaptic circuits in high-order integration centres of the ant brain. Our results show that structural neuronal changes in the central complex and mushroom bodies are triggered only when LWs were performed under a rotating skylight polarization pattern. By contrast, when naive ants did not perform LWs, but were exposed to skylight cues, plasticity was restricted to light spectrum-dependent changes in synaptic complexes of the lateral complex. The results identify sky-compass cues triggering learning-dependent versus -independent neuronal plasticity during the behavioural transition from interior workers to outdoor foragers.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Robin Grob
- Behavioural Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocentre, University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Oliver Holland Cunz
- Behavioural Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocentre, University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Kornelia Grübel
- Behavioural Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocentre, University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Keram Pfeiffer
- Behavioural Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocentre, University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Rössler
- Behavioural Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocentre, University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Pauline N. Fleischmann
- Behavioural Physiology and Sociobiology (Zoology II), Biocentre, University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| |
Collapse
|