Goal orientation by geometric and feature cues: spatial learning in the terrestrial toad Rhinella arenarum

Abstract

Although of crucial importance in vertebrate evolution, amphibians are rarely considered in studies of comparative cognition. Using water as reward, we studied whether the terrestrial toad, Rhinella arenarum, is also capable of encoding geometric and feature information to navigate to a goal location. Experimental toads, partially dehydrated, were trained in either a white rectangular box (Geometry-only, Experiment 1) or in the same box with a removable colored panel (Geometry-Feature, Experiment 2) covering one wall. Four water containers were used, but only one (Geometry-Feature), or two in geometrically equivalent corners (Geometry-only), had water accessible to the trained animals. After learning to successfully locate the water reward, probe trials were carried out by changing the shape of the arena or the location of the feature cue. Probe tests revealed that, under the experimental conditions used, toads can use both geometry and feature to locate a goal location, but geometry is more potent as a navigational cue. The results generally agree with findings from other vertebrates and support the idea that at the behavioral-level geometric orientation is a conserved feature shared by all vertebrates.

Wild hummingbirds can use the geometry of a flower array

“…Furthermore, even when provided with visual or olfactory cues that differentiated the correct corner from the others, the rats continued to make geometric errors. Similar use of geometric relationships has been found in nearly every species tested since (Cheng et al 2013), including humans Spelke 1994, 1996), cyprinid and cichlid fish (Sovrano et al 2002, Brown et al 2007), pigeons (Kelly et al 1998), toads (Sotelo et al 2015), ants (Wystrach and Beugnon 2009), bees (Sovrano et al 2012) as well as three-day old domestic chicks Vallortigara 2008, 2010) that were naïve to any visually-derived geometric information prior to testing (Chiandetti et al 2014). …”

Hippocampal Pallium and Map-Like Memories through Vertebrate Evolution

“…Although the studies on the spatial capabilities of amphibians are clearly insufficient, recent laboratory and field experiments suggest that they possess elaborated spatial abilities [48] [49]. Also in Chondrichthyes or cartilaginous fish data concerning their spatial capabilities are really scarce, but a few experimental and field studies show that sharks (elasmobranchs) can use different strategies for navigation, and have long-term spatial memory [50]- [52].…”

Evolución De Fenómenos Básicos De Aprendizaje en Tareas De Memoria Espacial: Bloqueo, Ensombrecimiento E Inhibición Latente en Anfibios

“…En es te aspecto, el aprendizaje espacial es crucial para la supervivencia de una especie ya que contribuye no sólo a mejorar las conductas de escape y evitación de predadores, sino también a optimizar la ubicación de fuentes de alimento y agua, refugio y potenciales parejas. Por lo tanto, es esperable que este tipo de aprendizaje también haya sido moldeado por los procesos evolutivos (Bingman, Salas & Rodríguez, 2009;Sotelo, Bingman & Muzio, 2015).…”