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McMillan N, Hahn AH, Spetch ML, Sturdy CB. Avian cognition: examples of sophisticated capabilities in space and song. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS. COGNITIVE SCIENCE 2015; 6:285-97. [PMID: 26263230 DOI: 10.1002/wcs.1346] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2014] [Revised: 01/21/2015] [Accepted: 02/08/2015] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Although birds have traditionally and colloquially been considered less cognitively complex than mammals, and especially primates, more recent research has consistently refuted these assumptions. We argue that the impressive abilities of birds to navigate and communicate require considerable information-processing capabilities. These capacities include collecting, organizing, and selecting from a wide variety of navigational cues to orient toward and find a goal location in the spatial domain, and utilizing open-ended categorization and possibly even abstract reasoning to discriminate species-specific acoustic features of songs and calls. Furthermore, these abilities may be present across many avian species, providing evidence for domain-general cognitive facilities. We provide examples of processes in spatial learning and communication in birds, and locate them within the general literature, as evidence that the term 'bird-brain' should not be considered a pejorative.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neil McMillan
- Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Allison H Hahn
- Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Marcia L Spetch
- Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Christopher B Sturdy
- Department of Psychology & the Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
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3
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Avey MT, Bloomfield LL, Elie JE, Freeberg TM, Guillette LM, Hoeschele M, Lee H, Moscicki MK, Owens JL, Sturdy CB. ZENK activation in the nidopallium of black-capped chickadees in response to both conspecific and heterospecific calls. PLoS One 2014; 9:e100927. [PMID: 24963707 PMCID: PMC4071011 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0100927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2014] [Accepted: 05/31/2014] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Neuronal populations in the songbird nidopallium increase in activity the most to conspecific vocalizations relative to heterospecific songbird vocalizations or artificial stimuli such as tones. Here, we tested whether the difference in neural activity between conspecific and heterospecific vocalizations is due to acoustic differences or to the degree of phylogenetic relatedness of the species producing the vocalizations. To compare differences in neural responses of black-capped chickadees, Poecile atricapillus, to playback conditions we used a known marker for neural activity, ZENK, in the caudal medial nidopallium and caudomedial mesopallium. We used the acoustically complex 'dee' notes from chick-a-dee calls, and vocalizations from other heterospecific species similar in duration and spectral features. We tested the vocalizations from three heterospecific species (chestnut-backed chickadees, tufted titmice, and zebra finches), the vocalizations from conspecific individuals (black-capped chickadees), and reversed versions of the latter. There were no significant differences in the amount of expression between any of the groups except in the control condition, which resulted in significantly less neuronal activation. Our results suggest that, in certain cases, neuronal activity is not higher in response to conspecific than in response to heterospecific vocalizations for songbirds, but rather is sensitive to the acoustic features of the signal. Both acoustic features of the calls and the phylogenetic relationship between of the signaler and the receiver interact in the response of the nidopallium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marc T. Avey
- Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | | | - Julie E. Elie
- Department of Psychology, Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California, United States of America
| | - Todd M. Freeberg
- Departments of Psychology and Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | | | - Marisa Hoeschele
- Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Homan Lee
- Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | | | - Jessica L. Owens
- Department of Psychology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, United States of America
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Hoeschele M, Cook RG, Guillette LM, Hahn AH, Sturdy CB. Auditory same/different concept learning and generalization in black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus). PLoS One 2012; 7:e47691. [PMID: 23077660 PMCID: PMC3471856 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0047691] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2012] [Accepted: 09/17/2012] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract concept learning was thought to be uniquely human, but has since been observed in many other species. Discriminating same from different is one abstract relation that has been studied frequently. In the current experiment, using operant conditioning, we tested whether black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) could discriminate sets of auditory stimuli based on whether all the sounds within a sequence were the same or different from one another. The chickadees were successful at solving this same/different relational task, and transferred their learning to same/different sequences involving novel combinations of training notes and novel notes within the range of pitches experienced during training. The chickadees showed limited transfer to pitches that was not used in training, suggesting that the processing of absolute pitch may constrain their relational performance. Our results indicate, for the first time, that black-capped chickadees readily form relational auditory same and different categories, adding to the list of perceptual, behavioural, and cognitive abilities that make this species an important comparative model for human language and cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marisa Hoeschele
- Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Robert G. Cook
- Department of Psychology, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | | | - Allison H. Hahn
- Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Christopher B. Sturdy
- Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
- Centre for Neuroscience, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
- * E-mail:
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Moscicki MK, Hoeschele M, Bloomfield LL, Modanu M, Charrier I, Sturdy CB. Note types and coding in Parid vocalizations: the chick-a-dee call of the boreal chickadee (Poecile hudsonicus). THE JOURNAL OF THE ACOUSTICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2011; 129:3327-3340. [PMID: 21568433 DOI: 10.1121/1.3560925] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
An important first step in characterizing a vocalization is to classify, describe, and measure the elements of that vocalization. Here, this methodology is employed to study the chick-a-dee call of the boreal chickadee (Poecile hudsonicus). The note types (A, B, C, D, and D(h)) in a sample of boreal chickadee calls are identified and described, spectral and temporal features of each note type are analyzed, and production phenomena in each note type are identified and quantified. Acoustic variability is compared across note types and individuals to determine potential features used for note-type and individual discrimination. Frequency measures appear to be the most useful features for identifying note types and individuals, though total duration may also be useful. Call syntax reveals that boreal chick-a-dee calls follow a general rule of note-type order, namely A-B-C-D(h)-D, and that any note type in this sequence may be repeated or omitted. This work provides a thorough description of the boreal chickadee chick-a-dee call and will serve as a foundation for future studies aimed at elucidating this call's functional significance within this species, as well as for studies comparing chick-a-dee calls across Poecile species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michele K Moscicki
- Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, P217 Biological Sciences Building, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2E9, Canada
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