Activation patterns of dopaminergic cell populations reflect different learning scenarios in a cichlid fish, Pseudotropheus zebra.

Dopamine is present in all vertebrates and the functional roles of the subsystems are assumed to be similar. Whereas the effect of dopaminergic modulation is well investigated in different target systems, less is known about the factors that are causing the modulation of dopaminergic cells. Using the zebra mbuna, Pseudotropheus zebra, a cichlid fish from Lake Malawi as a model system, we investigated the activation of specific dopaminergic cell populations detected by double-labeling with TH and pS6 antibodies while the animals were solving different learning tasks.

Smart sharks: a review of chondrichthyan cognition.

450 million years of evolution have given chondrichthyans (sharks, rays and allies) ample time to adapt perfectly to their respective everyday life challenges and cognitive abilities have played an important part in that process. The diversity of niches that sharks and rays occupy corresponds to matching diversity in brains and behaviour, but we have only scratched the surface in terms of investigating cognition in this important group of animals. The handful of species that have been cognitively assessed in some detail over the last decade have provided enough data to safely conclude that sharks and rays are cognitively on par with most other vertebrates, including mammals and birds.

Acoustic discrimination in the grey bamboo shark Chiloscyllium griseum.

Cognitive abilities of sharks are well developed and comparable to teleosts and other vertebrates. Most studies exploring elasmobranch cognitive abilities have used visual stimuli, assessing a wide range of discrimination tasks, memory retention and spatial learning abilities. Some studies using acoustic stimuli in a cognitive context have been conducted, but a basic understanding of sound induced behavioural changes and the underlying mechanisms involved are still lacking.

Counting on Numbers-Numerical Abilities in Grey Bamboo Sharks and Ocellate River Stingrays.

Over the last decade, studies examining the cognitive abilities of fish have increased, using a broad range of approaches. One of the foci has been to test the ability of fish to discriminate quantities of items and to determine whether fish can solve tasks solely on the basis of numerical information. This study is the first to investigate this ability in two elasmobranch species.

Not just shades of grey: life is full of colour for the ocellate river stingray (Potamotrygon motoro).

Previous studies have shown that marine stingrays have the anatomical and physiological basis for colour vision, with cone spectral sensitivity in the blue to green range of the visible spectrum. Behavioural studies on Glaucostegus typus also showed that blue and grey can be perceived and discriminated. The present study is the first to assess visual opsin genetics in the ocellate river stingray (Potamotrygon motoro) and test whether individuals perceive colour in two alternative forced choice experiments.

Visual discrimination and resolution in freshwater stingrays (Potamotrygon motoro).

Potamotrygon motoro has been shown to use vision to orient in a laboratory setting and has been successfully trained in cognitive behavioral studies using visual stimuli. This study explores P. motoro's visual discrimination abilities in the context of two-alternative forced-choice experiments, with a focus on shape and contrast, stimulus orientation, and visual resolution.

Serial reversal learning in freshwater stingrays (Potamotrygon motoro).

Serial reversal learning is considered a reliable approach for the testing of behavioral flexibility, and animals that inhabit fluctuating habitats and different environments are expected to possess behavioral and cognitive flexibility. The ocellate river stingray (Potamotrygon motoro) is one such species. Comprising the first serial reversal learning experiment among elasmobranchs, this study trained seven juvenile P.

Immediate early gene expression related to learning and retention of a visual discrimination task in bamboo sharks (Chiloscyllium griseum).

Using the expression of the immediate early gene (IEG) egr-1 as a neuronal activity marker, brain regions potentially involved in learning and long-term memory functions in the grey bamboo shark were assessed with respect to selected visual discrimination abilities. Immunocytochemistry revealed a significant up-regulation of egr-1 expression levels in a small region of the telencephalon of all trained sharks (i.e.

Same or different? Abstract relational concept use in juvenile bamboo sharks and Malawi cichlids.

Sorting objects and events into categories and concepts is an important cognitive prerequisite that spares an individual the learning of every object or situation encountered in its daily life. Accordingly, specific items are classified in general groups that allow fast responses to novel situations. The present study assessed whether bamboo sharks and Malawi cichlids can distinguish sets of stimuli (each stimulus consisting of two abstract, geometric objects) that meet two conceptual preconditions, i.

The Ebbinghaus illusion in the gray bamboo shark (Chiloscyllium griseum) in comparison to the teleost damselfish (Chromis chromis).

This is the first study to comparatively assess the perception of the Ebbinghaus-Titchener circles and variations of the Delboeuf illusion in four juvenile bamboo sharks (Chiloscyllium griseum) and five damselfish (Chromis chromis) using identical training paradigms. We aimed to investigate whether these two species show similarities in the perceptual integration of local elements into the global context. The Ebbinghaus-Titchener circles consist of two equally sized central test circles surrounded by smaller or larger circles of different size, number and/or distance.

Something worth remembering: visual discrimination in sharks.

This study investigated memory retention capabilities of juvenile gray bamboo sharks (Chiloscyllium griseum) using two-alternative forced-choice experiments. The sharks had previously been trained in a range of visual discrimination tasks, such as distinguishing between squares, triangles and lines, and their corresponding optical illusions (i.e.

The brain creates illusions not just for us: sharks (Chiloscyllium griseum) can "see the magic" as well.

Bamboo sharks (Chiloscyllium griseum) were tested for their ability to perceive subjective and illusionary contours as well as line length illusions. Individuals were first trained to differentiate between squares, triangles, and rhomboids in a series of two alternative forced-choice experiments. Transfer tests then elucidated whether Kanizsa squares and triangles, grating gaps and phase shifted abutting gratings were also perceived and distinguished.

Visual discrimination abilities in the gray bamboo shark (Chiloscyllium griseum).

This study assessed visual discrimination abilities in bamboo sharks (Chiloscyllium griseum). In a visual discrimination task using two-dimensional (2D) geometric stimuli, sharks learned to distinguish between a square, being the positive (rewarded) stimulus, and several negative stimuli, such as two differently sized triangles, a circle, a rhomboid and a cross. Although the amount of sessions to reach the learning criterion and the average trial time needed to solve each new task did not vary significantly, the number of correct choices per session increased significantly with on-going experiments.

Place learning prior to and after telencephalon ablation in bamboo and coral cat sharks (Chiloscyllium griseum and Atelomycterus marmoratus).

This study assessed complex spatial learning and memory in two species of shark, the grey bamboo shark (Chiloscyllium griseum) and the coral cat shark (Atelomycterus marmoratus). It was hypothesized that sharks can learn and apply an allocentric orientation strategy. Eight out of ten sharks successfully completed the initial training phase (by locating a fixed goal position in a diamond maze from two possible start points) within 14.

The shark Chiloscyllium griseum can orient using turn responses before and after partial telencephalon ablation.

This study assessed spatial memory and orientation strategies in Chiloscyllium griseum. In the presence of visual landmarks, six sharks were trained in a fixed turn response. Group 1 started from two possible compartments approaching two goal locations, while group 2 started from and approached only one location, respectively.

Avoidance conditioning in bamboo sharks (Chiloscyllium griseum and C. punctatum): behavioral and neuroanatomical aspects.

Animals face different threats; to survive, they have to anticipate how to react or how to avoid these. It has already been shown in teleosts that selected regions in the telencephalon, i.e.

Cognitive abilities in Malawi cichlids (Pseudotropheus sp.): matching-to-sample and image/mirror-image discriminations.

The ability to recognize and distinguish between visual stimuli is fundamental for everyday survival of many species. While diverse aspects of cognition, including complex visual discrimination tasks were previously successfully assessed in fish, it remains unknown if fish can learn a matching-to-sample concept using geometrical shapes and discriminate between images and their mirror-image counterparts. For this purpose a total of nine Malawi cichlids (Pseudotropheus sp.

Spatial learning and memory retention in the grey bamboo shark (Chiloscyllium griseum).

Like other vertebrates, fish can learn to solve a wide variety of tasks; however, many of their cognitive abilities, particularly in cartilaginous fishes, still remain unknown. This study investigated memory retention capabilities of spatial learning tasks in the grey bamboo shark (Chiloscyllium griseum, n=8) after behavioural training in a two-choice experiment (T-maze). Sharks learned to obtain food at a goal location, either by performing a specific turn response or by using a variety of external landmarks for guidance.

The role of olfaction throughout juvenile development: functional adaptations in elasmobranchs.

Seven elasmobranch species, a group known for their highly-developed sense of smell, were examined for developmental changes in the number of olfactory lamellae, the size of the surface area of the sensory olfactory epithelium and the mass of both the olfactory rosettes (primary input to the CNS), and the olfactory bulbs. Within each species, juveniles possessed miniature versions of the adult olfactory organs, visually not distinguishable from these and without any obvious structural differences (e.g.

Morphometric and ultrastructural comparison of the olfactory system in elasmobranchs: the significance of structure-function relationships based on phylogeny and ecology.

This study investigated the relationship between olfactory morphology, habitat occupancy, and lifestyle in 21 elasmobranch species in a phylogenetic context. Four measures of olfactory capability, that is, the number of olfactory lamellae, the surface area of the olfactory epithelium, the mass of the olfactory bulb, and the mass of the olfactory rosette were compared between individual species and groups, comprised of species with similar habitat and/or lifestyle. Statistical analyses using generalized least squares phylogenetic regression revealed that bentho-pelagic sharks and rays possess significantly more olfactory lamellae and larger sensory epithelial surface areas than benthic species.

Spatial memory and orientation strategies in the elasmobranch Potamotrygon motoro.

We investigated whether juvenile freshwater stingrays (Potamotrygon motoro) can solve spatial tasks by constructing a cognitive map of their environment. Two experimental conditions were run: allocentric and ego-allocentric. Rays were trained to locate food within a four-arm maze placed in a room with visual spatial cues.