Early visual experience affects postnatal auditory responsiveness in bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus).

Results from 6 experiments suggest perinatal visual experience interferes with postnatal auditory responsiveness in bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus). Light- or dark-reared control chicks responded similarly to bobwhite maternal Calls A or B following hatching. Light-reared chicks that experienced 10 min/hr of Call A or B from hatching until testing preferred the familiar call at Days 2-4, but dark-reared chicks preferred the familiar call at all ages. Increased amounts of exposure to maternal calls during postnatal Days 1-2 led to auditory responsiveness deficits in light-reared chicks. Similarly, embryos exposed to 10 min/hr of prenatal visual cues required 48 hr of postnatal Call A or B exposure to demonstrate auditory discrimination. These findings highlight the linkages between developing auditory and visual systems during infancy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prenatal auditory experience directs species-typical perceptual responsiveness in bobwhite quail chicks (Colinus virginianus).

The present study examined the role of the relationship between pre- and postnatal stimulus cues in directing perceptual preferences of bobwhite quail chicks. Bobwhite quail were exposed to either prenatal auditory or prenatal auditory-visual stimulation. Both prenatal auditory and auditory-visual stimulation resulted in accelerated responsiveness to combined postnatal auditory-visual cues. However, whether or not subjects displayed accelerated perceptual responsiveness depended on the relationship between the nature of the pre- and postnatal auditory stimuli used. These results demonstrate the salience of auditory cues in directing early postnatal perceptual behavior in precocial birds and help to explicate why prior research in this area has found that augmented prenatal sensory stimulation can result in either accelerated or decelerated patterns of perceptual functioning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Type of prenatal sensory experience affects auditory learning in bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus).

This study examined the effects of specific types of prenatal auditory stimulation on the auditory learning capacity of bobwhite embryos (Colinus virginianus) incubated in either communal or isolation conditions. Results revealed that socially incubated embryos could learn an individual bobwhite maternal call, whereas embryos denied physical and tactile stimulation as a result of isolation incubation failed to demonstrate prenatal auditory learning of the maternal call. In contrast, embryos exposed to bobwhite chick contentment calls in the period prior to hatching demonstrated prenatal auditory learning, whether they were incubated socially or in isolation. Socially incubated and isolation-incubated embryos exposed to bobwhite chick distress calls failed to learn the individual maternal call, indicating that the type of sensory stimulation the developing organism encounters prenatally is important in fostering normal perceptual learning ability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Timing of presentation of prenatal auditory stimulation alters auditory and visual responsiveness in bobwhite quail chicks (Colinus virginianus).

One group of bobwhite quail embryos (Colinus virginianus) was exposed to 10 min/hr of bobwhite chick contentment calls immediately followed by 10 min/hr of bobwhite chick distress calls. A 2nd group of embryos was exposed to the same auditory stimulation but in the opposite order of presentation. Postnatal testing revealed that chicks exposed prenatally to the bobwhite chick contentment call and distress call (in either order of presentation) continued to respond to maternal auditory cues into later stages of postnatal development compared with unmanipulated chicks. Chicks exposed prenatally to the contentment call followed by the distress call showed an accelerated pattern of visual responsiveness to maternal cues, whereas chicks exposed prenatally to the distress call followed by the contentment call showed deficits in the normal pattern of perceptual visual responsiveness, suggesting that the auditory stimulation precocial avian embryos encounter 1st is influential in directing early intersensory development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Modified sensory features of social stimulation alter the perceptual responsiveness of bobwhite quail chicks (Colinus virginianus).

This study examined the sensory features of postnatal social experience that bobwhite quail chicks (Colinus virginianus) require to maintain species-typical responding to maternal auditory–visual cues. Chicks were reared in 1 of 3 conditions after hatching: altered tactile, auditory, or visual experience with siblings. Findings revealed that altered tactile, auditory, or visual experience during the first 36 or the first 72 hr following hatching modified chicks' preferential responding to species-specific maternal cues. During the second 36 hr, altered tactile or auditory experience disrupted chicks' perceptual development, whereas altered visual experience did not affect species-typical responsiveness. Results indicate that (a) timing of early postnatal visual experience can affect early filial responsiveness to maternal cues and (b) normal sensory experience derived from early social interaction affects species-typical perceptual development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intersensory redundancy facilitates prenatal perceptual learning in bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus) embryos.

Information presented redundantly and in temporal synchrony across sensory modalities (intersensory redundancy) selectively recruits attention and facilitates perceptual learning in human infants. This comparative study examined whether intersensory redundancy also facilitates perceptual learning prenatally. The authors assessed quail (Colinus virginianus) embryos' ability to learn a maternal call when it was (a) unimodal, (b) concurrent but asynchronous with patterned light, or (c) redundant and synchronous with patterned light. Chicks' preference for the familiar over a novel maternal call was assessed 24 hr following hatching. Chicks receiving redundant, synchronous stimulation as embryos learned the call 4 times faster than those who received unimodal exposure. Chicks who received asynchronous bimodal stimulation showed no evidence of learning. These results provide the first evidence that embryos are sensitive to redundant, bimodal information and that it can facilitate learning during the prenatal period. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social experience with siblings fosters species specific responsiveness to maternal visual cues in bobwhite quail chicks (Colinus virginianus).

Examined the role of visual and social experience with siblings in the development of bobwhite quail chicks' preference for species-specific maternal visual cues. Chicks were reared in 1 of 4 conditions: group, isolation, partial isolation, and heterospecific group. They were tested in simultaneous choice tests with species-typical and species-atypical audiovisual stimuli. Results revealed that only Ss that were reared in a group with same-aged conspecifics preferred the visual features of a bobwhite hen model. Ss in the other 3 conditions did not exhibit species-specific visual preference. Findings suggest that visual experience and direct social interaction with siblings facilitate the development of bobwhite chicks' species-specific responsiveness to static maternal visual cues and illustrate the important influence of experience with conspecifics in the development of early perceptual preferences. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prenatal experience and postnatal perceptual preferences: Evidence for attentional-bias in bobwhite quail embryos ( Colinus virginianus).

Previous studies have indicated that concurrent multimodal sensory stimulation can interfere with prenatal perceptual learning. This study further examined this issue by exposing 3 groups of bobwhite quail embryos (Colinus virginianus) to (a) no supplemental stimulation, (b) a bobwhite maternal call, or (c) a maternal call paired with a pulsating light in the period prior to hatching. Experiments differed in terms of the types of stimuli presented during postnatal preference tests. Embryos receiving no supplemental stimulation showed no preference between stimulus events in all testing conditions. Embryos receiving exposure to the unimodal maternal call preferred the familiar call over an unfamiliar call regardless of the presence or absence of pulsating light during testing. Embryos exposed to the call-light compound preferred the familiar call only when it was paired with the light during testing. These results suggest that concurrent multimodal stimulation does not interfere with prenatal perceptual learning by overwhelming the young organism's limited attentional capacities. Rather, multimodal stimulation biases what information is attended to during exposure and subsequent testing. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Species-specific auditory preference of bobwhite quail chicks (Colinus virginianus) is altered by social interaction with siblings.

The study examined whether reinstating specific aspects of the normally occurring postnatal setting (ongoing social interaction with siblings during rearing and/or testing) would influence bobwhite quail chicks' attraction to their species-typical maternal call. Results revealed that incubator-reared chicks exhibit a strong preference for the species-typical bobwhite maternal call over a group of the same-aged siblings in simultaneous choice tests at 24 hr and 48 hr after hatching, but only if the birds are kept in relative social isolation. No preference for the maternal call was found at 24 hr or at 48 hr if chicks were reared in a group of same-aged chicks from hatching and tested to the maternal call vs. siblings or the maternal call paired with a live adult bobwhite hen vs. siblings. These results raise doubts about the appropriateness of the usual methods of isolation rearing in the study of species-typical perceptual preferences and underscore the importance of considering features of the natural social context in the analysis of early perceptual and social behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interactive and vicarious acquisition of auditory preferences in Northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) chicks.

Studies examining the effects of stimulus contingency on filial imprinting have produced inconsistent findings. In the current study, day-old bobwhite chicks (Colinus virginianus) received individual 5-min sessions in which they were provided contingent, noncontingent, or vicarious exposure to a variant of a bobwhite maternal assembly call. Chicks given contingent exposure to the call showed a significant preference for the familiar call 24 hr following exposure and significantly greater preferences than chicks given noncontingent exposure. Chicks given vicarious exposure to recordings of another chick interacting with the maternal call showed significant deviations from chance responding; however, the direction of chick preference (toward the familiar or unfamiliar) depended on the particular call used. These results indicate that both direct and indirect (vicarious) exposure to stimulus contingency can enhance the acquisition of auditory preferences in precocial avian hatchlings. Precocial avian hatchlings thus likely play a more active role in directing their own perceptual and behavioral development than has typically been thought. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prenatally elevated physiological arousal interferes with perceptual learning in bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus) embryos.

Neonatal studies suggest elevated arousal can negatively influence perceptual and cognitive processes during early development. The authors explored this issue during the prenatal period by pharmacologically elevating physiological arousal in bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus) embryos during exposure to a maternal call, then assessing preference for the familiar call following hatching. Embryos receiving norepinephrine showed a prenatal elevation in heart rate and failed to demonstrate a preference for the familiar call following hatching. Embryos not receiving norepinephrine showed no elevation in heart rate and demonstrated a preference for the familiar call. These results indicate elevated arousal can interfere with perceptual learning during the prenatal period and provide additional evidence for an optimal window of arousal necessary to foster species-typical perceptual functioning during early development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Augmented prenatal auditory stimulation alters postnatal perception, arousal, and survival in bobwhite quail chicks

Progress in biological psychiatry is contingent on progress in neurobiology and on research into proper characterisation and assessment of abnormal behavior. Advances in neurobiology are rapid and steady; diagnostic research does not keep pace. On the contrary, the diagnostic approach seems solidified, as today's basic premises are uncritically accepted. The diagnostic requirements for meaningful biological psychiatric research are discussed and contrasted with present-day diagnostic practices. Serious reflection on the state of psychiatric diagnosing is urgently needed.     

Intersensory experience and early perceptual development: Postnatal experience with multimodal maternal cues affects intersensory responsiveness in Bobwhite Quail Chicks.

Unlike the other sensory modalities of precocial infants, the visual modality does not normally become functional until after birth or hatching. Despite this unique developmental status, the role of emerging visual experience on postnatal perceptual organization remains unclear. In this study, bobwhite quail hatchlings were reared in conditions that manipulated postnatal experience with maternal visual cues, either alone or in conjunction with maternal auditory cues. Results revealed that bobwhite chicks require postnatal exposure to both maternal auditory and visual cues following hatching to demonstrate species-specific perceptual preferences. Chicks that received temporally disparate maternal auditory and visual cues or experience with only maternal visual or maternal auditory cues failed to show species-typical perceptual responsiveness. These results suggest that developmental mechanisms involving both visual and auditory sensory experience underlie the emergence of early intersensory integration. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Amount of prenatal visual stimulation alters incubation time and postnatal preferences in leopard geckos (Eublepharis macularius).

The authors exposed gecko (Eublepharis macularius) embryos to patterned visual stimulation beginning at either 1 week or 2 weeks prior to hatching. Embryos exposed to the substantially augmented amount of prenatal visual stimulation hatched significantly earlier than the embryos either exposed to the moderately augmented prenatal visual stimulation or not exposed to any prenatal visual stimulation (p?p?p?     

Constitutional biases in early perceptual learning: III. Similarities and differences between artificially selected and imprinted color preferences in quail chicks (Coturnix coturnix japonica).

Tested color preferences and preference generalization in naive and imprinted Japanese quail chicks drawn from the 20th generation of a genetic control line and 2 genetic lines that were bidirectionally selected for preferences between blue and red. 12 hrs of imprinting to blue or red on the 1st posthatch day resulted in large preference changes in the genetic controls, and these Ss exhibited no or only small additional changes from 3 more days of imprinting (for the total of 66 hrs of exposure time). By contrast, 12 hrs of imprinting of artificially selected Ss did not change or only marginally changed their genetically manipulated preferences, but 66 hrs of imprinting changed them by magnitudes as large as or larger than those in genetic controls. Reciprocal imprinting partially mimicked the phenotypic effects of bidirectional selection. Differences between transfer and generalization of phenotypically similar but genetically and experientially different preferences indicated dissimilar mediation of the implicit gene effects and learning effects. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Constitutional biases in early perceptual learning: II. Visual preferences in artificially selected, visually naive and imprinted quail chicks (C. coturnix japonica).

Tested approach choices in genetically and environmentally manipulated quail chicks with pairs of stimuli identical in size and luminance but different in color, flicker, or both color and flicker. Data indicated comparable flicker and vastly different color preferences in Ss that were bidirectionally selected for color choices. In the choices between composite stimuli, flicker effects dominated over color effects in genetic controls, and color effects over flicker effects in selected Ss. Imprinting to colors modified color preferences, but imprinting to white or colored flicker did not change, or only marginally changed, flicker preferences. Flicker in testing stimuli, however, influenced the phenotypic expression of acquired color preferences. Implications concerning the nature of constitutional biases and constitution–environment interactions in early perception and perceptual learning are discussed. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prenatal experience and avian development: brief auditory stimulation accelerates the hatching of Japanese quail

A single 2-hour exposure to auditory stimulation at any point during the final 3 days of incubation accelerates the hatching of Japanese quail. The 3-day sensitive period includes both prenatal and perinatal stages of incubation. So far as is known these results provide the first unequivocal evidence that short-term prenatal sensory stimulation can affect the development of an avian embryo.     

Constitutional biases in early perceptual learning: I. Preferences between colors, patterns, and composite stimuli of colors and patterns in genetically manipulated and imprinted quail chicks (C. coturnix japonica).

Bidirectional genetic selection of quail for early color preferences, for 18 generations, resulted in nearly perfect choices of blue over red in one and red over blue in the other selected line. It also enhanced the preference of a grated over a dotted black-and-white pattern. Color and pattern preferences in hybrids of selected and control lines fell back to about halfway between parental values. Choices between composite stimuli of colors and patterns indicated summation of the respective, genetically influenced preference values, with partial dominance of color over pattern effects. Exposure to colors modified color choices. Exposure to colored patterns likewise modified color choices, but it did not change, or only marginally changed, choices between patterns. The phenotypic expression of this selective learning, however, was influenced by the genetically manipulated preference values and preference combinations of colors and patterns in the stimuli with which postexposure performances were tested. Overall, data highlight the need for concepts that would discriminate between the developmental and the episodic expression of genetic influences and genotype–environment interactions in behavior. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of early auditory stimulation on the choice of acoustical environment by adult Swiss albino mice (Mus musculus).

In 2 experiments, 265 Swiss albino Rb-3 9-wk-old untreated mice, when placed in a novel environment composed of a central cage surrounded by 4 dark boxes in which different sounds were emitted, explored the boxes for 1 or 2 hrs. In most cases, Ss settled into 1 of the 4 boxes and built their nest. Most of the controls chose the silent compartment, whatever the sound delivered in the other boxes. An acoustic choice test was then carried out. Four groups of mice were exposed to a particular sound for 10 days: Group 1: Gestation Day 10 to birth; Group 2: birth to Day 10; Group 3: Day 10 to Day 20; Group 4: Day 20 to Day 30. Ss were then tested for box preference on Day 63 in the 4-box choice, one of which contained the sound of the earlier exposure. Ss stimulated before the 10th day after birth behaved in the same way as controls, whereas Ss stimulated between the 10th and the 20th days after birth exhibited a strong preference for the box delivering the sound of the previous treatment. This choice was significant, whatever the harmonic (Exp I) or impulsive (Exp II) nature of the sound. Ss stimulated between the 20th and the 30th days showed a preference for the silent box, but among the others, 75% chose the sound received during infancy. The behavior of Ss stimulated when adult was the same as that of the controls. (38 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Maternal contributions to sensory experience in the fetal and newborn rat (Rattus norvegicus).

Using videographic analyses, maternal contributions to the sensory environment of the perinatal rat were identified and quantified by analyzing, from the offspring's perspective, the dam's activities during gestation, labor, and delivery. The observations indicate that pregnant females remain highly active during the final week of gestation, as compared with nonpregnant control animals. Exploratory movements, feeding, drinking, self-grooming, and other activities of the rat dam pitch, turn, accelerate, and expose fetuses to mechanical pressures. During parturition uterine contractions and maternal licking and handling provide vigorous tactile and vestibular stimuli to pups. Newly born pups are exposed to intense thermal stimulation, cooling rapidly to the temperature of the postnatal environment. Results suggest that fetal and newborn rats are exposed during development to a broad range of maternally produced stimuli. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)