Flexibility and rigidity in hunting behaviour in rodents: is there room for cognition?

Identification of central amygdala and trigeminal motor nucleus connectivity in humans: An ultra‐high field diffusion MRI study

“…The rodent study proves that the CeA–5M is crucial for the delivery of killing bites on prey through the engagement of jaw musculature. However, in a naturalistic setting, the cascade of events in the environment (such as the visual detection of prey) that result in the engagement of jaw musculature via CeA–5M to deliver a biting attack remain variable across rodent species (Reznikova et al, 2022 ). We speculate that the CeA–5M circuit is only engaged after certain corticosensory inputs have been processed by the brain, and that the activation of jaw musculature is a relatively automatic/reflexive response compared with the cortical processing and the associated behaviors that take place beforehand.…”

Information Theory Opens New Dimensions in Experimental Studies of Animal Behaviour and Communication

“…The terms and notions based on the revisited concept of FAP [ 34 ] are as follows: behavioural elements are minimal units of behaviours, that is, elementary movements and postures, and the ethogram is a comprehensive list, inventory, or description of the behaviour of an organism [ 27 ]. Fixed action pattern (FAP) is a complex motor act involving a specific temporal sequence of unlearned repetitive movements, which is triggered by an external stimulus and is influenced by underlying motivation, but relatively unaffected by feedback.…”

“…Reznikova et al [ 34 ] apply the term behavioural stereotype , referring to relatively stable and recurrent sequences of behavioural elements. The term “stereotype” can be confused with the unrelated term stereotypies : abnormal behaviour described, for example, in animals confined to zoos or farms, when animals lack control over important aspects of their environment [ 39 ].…”

“…The term “stereotype” can be confused with the unrelated term stereotypies : abnormal behaviour described, for example, in animals confined to zoos or farms, when animals lack control over important aspects of their environment [ 39 ]. Reznikova et al [ 34 ] suggest the term behavioural tuplet to denote a relatively stable and recurrent chain of behavioural elements. Both behavioural sequences and behavioural stereotypes may include one or more FAPs as parts.…”

“…Rearing ants from pupae in the laboratory enabled researchers to reveal that ants possess innate behavioural programs of different completeness. Those specimens equipped with the complete pattern enjoy an inherited template of potential prey and a readily available hunting stereotype; others possess fragments of the pattern and complete them through simple forms of social learning [ 17 , 34 ]. Ryabko et al [ 17 ] compared two groups of highly genetically variable ants: members of a natural colony (“wild”) and naive (laboratory-reared from pupae) ants.…”