Female cowbirds have more accurate spatial memory than males

Guigueno, Mélanie F.; Snow, Danielle A.; MacDougall‐Shackleton, Scott A.; Sherry, David F.

doi:10.1098/rsbl.2014.0026

Cited by 80 publications

(77 citation statements)

References 18 publications

(35 reference statements)

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“…Cowbirds perform well on spatial tasks. In an open field search task in which birds were required to find and remember for 24 h which one of 25 food cups was baited with food, females performed significantly better than males [Guigueno et al, 2014]. In a touch screen task, however, which required birds to recall which spatial location on a screen was associated with food reward, males performed better than females [Guigueno et al, 2015].…”

Section: Context-dependent Cells In the Cowbird Hippocampusmentioning

confidence: 99%

Are There Place Cells in the Avian Hippocampus?

et al. 2017

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Birds possess a hippocampus that serves many of the same spatial and mnemonic functions as the mammalian hippocampus but achieves these outcomes with a dramatically different neuroanatomical organization. The properties of spatially responsive neurons in birds and mammals are also different. Much of the contemporary interest in the role of the mammalian hippocampus in spatial representation dates to the discovery of place cells in the rat hippocampus. Since that time, cells that respond to head direction and cells that encode a grid-like representation of space have been described in the rat brain. Research with homing pigeons has discovered hippocampal cells, including location cells, path cells, and pattern cells, that share some but not all properties of spatially responsive neurons in the rodent brain. We have recently used patterns of immediate-early gene expression, visualized by the catFISH method, to investigate how neurons in the hippocampus of brood-parasitic brown-headed cowbirds respond to spatial context. We have found cells that discriminate between different spatial environments and are re-activated when the same spatial environment is re-experienced. Given the differences in habitat and behaviour between birds and rodents, it is not surprising that spatially responsive cells in their hippocampus and other brain regions differ. The enormous diversity of avian habitats and behaviour offers the potential for understanding the general principles of neuronal representation of space.

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Section: Context-dependent Cells In the Cowbird Hippocampusmentioning

confidence: 99%

Are There Place Cells in the Avian Hippocampus?

et al. 2017

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“…Radio telemetry and genetic studies of female cowbirds also indicate high breeding site and home range ( primary egg-laying area) fidelity both within and between years [26,30] which would allow females to gather information and use it in subsequent breeding decisions. Cowbird females are equipped with impressive spatial memories [31,32] and also monitor host nest contents, both before and after parasitism, to time the laying of eggs and ensure their acceptance by the host [33]. Parasitized nest sites are often parasitized again in subsequent attempts [34,35], potentially indicating preferences for particular individual hosts.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A generalist brood parasite modifies use of a host in response to reproductive success

et al. 2015

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Avian obligate brood parasites, which rely solely on hosts to raise their young, should choose the highest quality hosts to maximize reproductive output. Brown-headed cowbirds (Molothrus ater) are extreme host generalists, yet female cowbirds could use information based on past reproductive outcomes to make egg-laying decisions thus minimizing fitness costs associated with parasitizing low-quality hosts. We use a long-term (21 years) nest-box study of a single host, the prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea), to show that local cowbird reproductive success, but not host reproductive success, was positively correlated with the probability of parasitism the following year. Experimental manipulations of cowbird success corroborated that female cowbirds make future decisions about which hosts to use based on information pertaining to past cowbird success, both within and between years. The within-year pattern, in particular, points to local cowbird females selecting hosts based on past reproductive outcomes. This, coupled with high site fidelity of female cowbirds between years, points to information use, rather than cowbird natal returns alone, increasing parasitism rates on highly productive sites between years.

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“…Furthermore, the female cowbird must recognize and remember nests that are no longer available for parasitizing, indicating the female brood parasite must constantly update her memory of available host nests. When male and female cowbirds were trained to locate hidden food prior to testing their memory of these hidden food locations, results reveal that females trained on this spatial task made significantly fewer errors and took more direct paths to the location of stored food sites as compared to trained males (Guigueno et al 2014). Even though this was a food finding task rather than a nest searching task, it does imply that the female has superior spatial memory relative to the male.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 92%

“…Birds are an excellent system in which to understand the relationship of Hp and spatial memory as birds require spatial memory for food caching, homing, migration and nest searching (Rothstein et al 1987;Krebs et al 1989;Clayton 1995a,b;Healy et al 1996;White et al 2009;LaDage et al 2010LaDage et al , 2011Guigueno et al 2014). For example, Hp lesions cause deficits in spatial orientation of homing pigeons (Bingman & Mench 1990) as well as in the acquisition of new spatial memories in black-capped chickadees (Parus atricapillus) and dark-eyed juncos (Junco hyemalis; Hampton & Shettleworth 1996).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Region-specific neuron recruitment in the hippocampus of brown-headed cowbirds Molothrus ater (Passeriformes: Icteridae)

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2018

The European Zoological Journal

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Avian brood parasites do not raise their own young. Rather, they leave eggs and offspring in nests of other species. Finding potential nests to parasitize is mostly up to the female and requires enhanced spatial memory as the female must remember nest locations as well as whether each located nest is in the nest building, incubation or offspring provisioning stage. In many cases, enhancement of ecologically relevant spatial memory is associated with larger hippocampal volume compared to the sex, or a species, that does not have similar demand for spatial memory. Female brown-headed cowbirds (Molothrus ater), a parasitic species ubiquitous across North America, have greater hippocampus volume and new neuron recruitment as compared to male cowbirds and non-parasitic species. The present study reveals female cowbirds display greater new neuron recruitment compared to males specifically in the rostral hippocampal subdivision. It is still unclear, however, whether the function of new cells in the rostral hippocampus is related to sex differences in spatial memory. These data reveal the avian hippocampus exhibits subdivisions in new cell recruitment but it remains unclear whether these subdivisions serve distinct functions in spatial memory and other hippocampal functions.

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Female cowbirds have more accurate spatial memory than males

Cited by 80 publications

References 18 publications

Are There Place Cells in the Avian Hippocampus?

Are There Place Cells in the Avian Hippocampus?

A generalist brood parasite modifies use of a host in response to reproductive success

Region-specific neuron recruitment in the hippocampus of brown-headed cowbirds Molothrus ater (Passeriformes: Icteridae)

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