Organization of attack and other behaviors of White King pigeons exposed to intermittent water presentations

Abstract

Six water-deprived pigeons were exposed to a fixed-time 90-sec water schedule with and without a conspecific target available. Target contacts and the pigeon's location in the test chamber during the interreinforcement interval were recorded, and the results were compared with those previously obtained with food reinforcement. Prior to target introduction, water-reinforced birds spent more total time in the front near the reinforcer dispenser and less in the rear than food-reinforced birds and, unlike food-reinforced birds, exhibited postreinforcement drinkinglike behaviors near the reinforcer dispenser before moving away from that area. With the target available, the level, topography, and duration of target-directed biting pecks were comparable for food-and water-reinforced pigeons. In contrast, the temporal organization of target pecks reflected the different temporal and spatial organizations of behavior prior to target introduction. For both food-and water-reinforced birds, the time between reinforcers at which a bird was spatially situated halfway between the front and rear of the chamber prior to target presentation was positively correlated with the time at which maximum target contact subsequently occurred.