Control of spatial orientation in terrestrial toads (Rhinella arenarum).

Abstract

Three experiments were conducted to determine problem-solving strategies used by toads, Rhinella arenarum (= Bufo arenarum), in spatial learning situations, using water as reward. Experiment 1 showed that toads can acquire a spatial orientation based on a body-centered turn -an internal self-reference cue. Experiment 2 showed that toads can use a fixed landmark (visual cue) as guidance to solve a spatial problem. Experiment 3 determined whether maze learning was based on "body-centered turn" or "guidance". In this case, animals were trained with a fixed visual cue in relation to a body-centered turn (i.e., simultaneously with the internal self-reference cue) and then tested with the visual cue dissociated from positional cues. Toads trained with the combination of a visual cue and a body-centered turn preferred the latter (turn response) when the two sources of information were set in conflict on probe trials. Toads showed behavioral patterns similar to those described in rodents trained under similar condition, thus, suggesting an early evolutionary origin for these problem-solving strategies.

Telencephalic Neuronal Activation Associated with Spatial Memory in the Terrestrial Toad <b><i>Rhinella arenarum:</i></b> Participation of the Medial Pallium during Navigation by Geometry

“…Previous behavioral experiments in R. arenarum have shown that terrestrial toads are able to learn complex tasks such as spatial navigation using various types of information [Daneri et al, 2011[Daneri et al, , 2015. In addition, our first data on spatial learning in toads also revealed that MP lesions impair spatial learning in a plus maze task [Daneri et al, unpubl.…”

“…Nonetheless, previous work on cognition in the terrestrial toad Rhinella arenarum demonstrated considerable learning abilities [e.g. Muzio et al, 1992Muzio et al, , 2011, particularly with regard to spatial learning and memory [Daneri et al, 2011[Daneri et al, , 2015. Though less complex compared to that of amniotes [e.g.…”

Bloqueo y ensombrecimiento en un grupo de vertebrados filogenéticamente antiguo: los anfibios

“…Los anfibios son un excelente modelo para el estudio de distintos fenómenos de aprendizaje (Daneri, et al, 2011;Muzio, 1999Muzio, , 2012. Para trabajar con anfibios es necesario generar un paradigma experimental adecuado que se ajuste a la biología particular de la especie seleccionada y, en este aspecto, su dependencia del agua es un factor clave.…”

Landmark learning by juvenile salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum)

“…The ability to associate physical or olfactory landmarks with resources is one form of spatial learning, and landmarks can provide a basis for organization of a more complex cognitive map (Tinbergen, 1932;Singer et al, 2006). A few target taxa have been studied in detail, including ants (Graham et al, 2010), bees (Collett et al, 2002), pigeons (Sutton, 2003), hummingbirds (Healy and Hurly, 2013) and rodents (Bettis and Jacobs, 2013), but some form of landmark learning has been described in a variety of species (e.g., fishes: Warburton, 1990;Odling-Smee andBraithwaite, 2003, amphibians: Crane andMathis, 2011;Daneri et al, 2011, reptiles: Day et al, 1999Holtzman et al, 1999;Lopez et al, 2001).…”