The effects of superior colliculus lesions in hamsters: Feature detection versus spatial localization

Visual Awareness Due to Neuronal Activities in Subcortical Structures: A Proposal

“…Bilateral ablation of the hamster's SC causes deficits in orienting, but, again, the animals are clearly not blind (Schneider, 1969;Thinus-Blanc, Scardigli, & Buhot, 1991;Carman & Schneider, 1992). Pattern discrimination skills survive bilateral ablation of the SC (Schneider, 1969).…”

Reconceptualizing inhibition of return as

“…Histological staining has revealed a laminar structure, with the superficial layers involved in the processing of spatial information on the basis of visual signals, whereas the deeper layers receive signals from vision, audition, and tactile sensations, allowing multisensory representations of space (May, 2005;Wallace, Wilkinson, & Stein, 1996). Ablation studies in cats (Burnett, Stein, Chaponis, & Wallace, 2004;Lomber, Payne, & Cornwell, 2001), rats (Overton & Dean, 1988), and hamsters (Thinusblanc, Scardigli, & Buhot, 1991) have demonstrated a causal link between activity in the SC and the production of orienting behaviors and responses to novelty. For example, Lomber et al (2001) unilaterally deactivated the superficial layer of the SC in cats and found profound orienting deficits for both moving and stationary visual stimuli presented in the contralateral hemispace.…”

Multiple Visual Field Representations in the Visual Wulst of a Laterally Eyed Bird, the Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata)

“…In our case, visual wulst and visual cortex both hold an orderly representation of the visual field, and such topographic maps are most probably an ideal basis for fast feature detection (e.g. [ 67 ]) and object localization [ 68 ]. In the case of the visual wulst, we have argued that feature detection or identification may not be its predominant task because there is no foveal overrepresentation which enhances the resolution of the system and supports stimulus identification [ 13 ].…”