Contextual conditioning and the control of copulatory behavior by species-specific sign stimuli in male Japanese quail.

Three experiments were conducted to identify species-specific sign stimuli sufficient to elicit copulatory behavior in male Japanese quail and to determine how learning is involved in the control of behavior by these sign stimuli. In Exp 1, sexually experienced Ss were tested for copulatory behavior with a live female quail and with a model consisting of a female quail's head and neck mounted in front of a foam pad. Comparable levels of copulatory behavior were observed in the two tests, indicating that static visual cues provided by a female quail's head and neck are sufficient to elicit copulatory behavior in this species. Exp 2 showed that male birds that previously received numerous opportunities to copulate with a live female quail in the test situation were significantly more likely to copulate with the head?+?neck model than were sexually inexperienced Ss. Exp 3 showed that prior sexual experience with live quail facilitated responding to the head?+?neck model only if the sexual experience was provided in the same place where Ss were later tested with the model. This finding suggests that sexual experience facilitates control of copulatory behavior by species-specific sign stimuli through contextual conditioning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stimulus control of copulatory behavior in sexually naive male Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica): Effects of test context and stimulus movement.

Sexually experienced male quail (Coturnix japonica) are more likely to engage in copulatory behavior than sexually naive ones. These experiments suggest that sexual experience in a particular place may facilitate later copulatory responding because of increased familiarity with the contextual cues of the environment. Male quail in Exp 1 did not copulate reliably with taxidermic models of females in a novel context, even though some of the subjects were allowed to copulate with female quail in their home cages. In contrast, sexually naive males in Exps 2 and 3 copulated vigorously with taxidermic models of females in a familiar context. In Exp 4, sexually naive males tested in an unfamiliar context were more likely to copulate with a moving than with a static model. The stimulus control of copulatory behavior in sexually naive male quail was similar to that in sexually experienced ones but only in familiar contexts. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of enclosure size on sexual behavior of Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica).

The authors determined whether results of experiments on copulatory and affiliative behavior of pairs of Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) conducted in a closely confining apparatus would predict behavior in a large enclosure in which female quail could avoid contact with male quail. As found previously in studies of closely confined quail, in a large enclosure containing numerous barriers, both unmated female quail and mated female quail laying unfertilized eggs were more likely to remain near a confined male quail than were mated female quail laying fertilized eggs. Furthermore, the number of copulations that a pair engaged in when closely confined predicted the number of copulations that they engaged in when they were in the large enclosure. Patterns of affiliation and of mating in a confining laboratory apparatus thus predicted behavior in a larger enclosure that provided female quail with opportunity to avoid contact with male quail. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexual fetishism in a quail (Coturnix japonica) model system: Test of reproductive success.

In the present study, the authors explored the reproductive consequences of fetishistic behavior in a previously developed animal model of sexual fetishism (F. K?ksal et al., 2004). Male domesticated quail (Coturnix japonica) received sexual conditioning trials in which a terrycloth object (the conditioned stimulus [CS]) was paired with the opportunity to copulate with a female quail (the unconditioned stimulus). Approximately half of the male quail came to copulate with the CS object and were considered to have developed fetishistic behavior. Each of the male quail was then tested with a female quail, whose eggs were incubated to determine rates of fertilization. The CS object was present for 30 s before and during the copulation test. Fetishistic male quail were slower to achieve cloacal contact with the female quail and showed less efficient copulatory behavior. However, they fertilized a greater proportion of eggs than nonfetishistic male quail. These results are unexpected from previous studies of the relationship between reproductive success and copulatory behavior and are discussed in terms of how fetishistic behavior directed toward an inanimate object may modify male-female interactions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexual-discrimination learning in male Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica).

We investigated how male Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica) learn through extensive social and sexual experience to discriminate between male and female conspecifics. Opportunity for heterosexual copulation was important for this learning, but even extensive copulatory opportunity was not sufficient to produce a sexual discrimination; subjects also required exposure to other males. Exposure to females after copulatory opportunity did not produce a sexual discrimination but facilitated its acquisition. Time or exposure to only the visual features of male birds (provided by taxidermic models) after copulatory opportunity did not result in differential responding to male and female conspecifics. Finally, presenting stimulus birds one at a time proved to be a more sensitive test of sexual-discrimination learning than presenting two stimulus birds at the same time. The results indicate that sexual-discrimination learning is similar to conventional associative learning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relative Contributions of the Male and the Female to Sexual Behavior and Reproductive Success in the Japanese Quail (Coturnix japonica).

Two contrasting investigative techniques provided evidence consistent with the interpretation that female quail (Coturnix japonica) regulate male copulatory behavior by the duration of their immobility and through this behavioral mechanism they also control the rate of fertilization of their eggs. In Experiment 1, copulation tests with males and females from different genetic lines showed that the type of female that participated in a copulatory test significantly influenced the latency of the male's grab, mount, and cloacal contact responses and also determined the efficiency of the male's copulatory behavior. These measures of male performance were correlated with female immobility in Experiment 2, which used a more homogeneous population of quail. Furthermore, 2 of these measures (copulatory efficiency and the latency to make cloacal contact) were correlated with fertilization rate. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Methamphetamine impairs sexual motivation but not sexual performance in male Japanese quail.

The present study investigated the effects of chronic pre-exposure to methamphetamine on sexual motivation and performance in male Japanese quail. Quail were pre-exposed to methamphetamine (1.0 or 3.0 mg/kg ip) or saline (ip) once daily for 10 days and locomotor activity was measured. After a 10 day washout period, sexual motivation was measured in a straight-arm runway with visual access to a female at one end. Three to 5 hr after sexual motivation tests, males were allowed to copulate with a receptive female quail and copulatory behavior was assessed. Tests were conducted once per day for 10 days. Results showed that males pre-exposed to methamphetamine had decreased locomotor activity compared to saline controls. Males pre-exposed to METH later ran slower toward a female in the runway and spent less time near her. In contrast, methamphetamine pre-exposed males showed similar copulatory behavior as saline pre-exposed males. The findings suggest that chronic pre-exposure to methamphetamine may impair sexual motivation but not sexual performance. The findings are discussed from a comparative perspective and with regard to their clinical relevance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Fosinoprilate prolongs the action potential: reduction of iK and enhancement of the L-type calcium current in guinea pig ventricular myocytes

Changes in the gross and cellular morphology of the nucleus preopticus medianus (POMn) were measured in response to changes in photoperiod in adult male Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica). POMn volume and the soma size of a dorsolateral population of neurons within POMn decreased when birds were moved from long day housing conditions (16L,8D) to short day housing conditions (8L,16D), and then increased again when birds were moved back to long day conditions, presumably as a function of the changes in circulating testosterone that accompanied changing daylengths. Male Japanese quail exhibit sexual behavior only when housed under long day housing conditions that approximate the photoperiod of the spring/summer breeding season, and do not exhibit sexual behavior when housed under short day conditions characteristic of fall/winter. Because POMn is known to be critically involved in the expression of male copulatory behavior, these morphological changes in the adult brain likely represent key functional events associated with the seasonal regulation of sexual behavior in male Japanese quail.     

Effects of neurochemical lesions of the preoptic area on male sexual behavior in the Japanese quail

Two experiments were carried out during which the noradrenergic neurotoxin, 5-amino-2,4-dihydroxy-alpha-methylphenylethylamine (5-ADMP) was applied to the brain of quail in order to evaluate the role of the noradrenergic system in the control of male copulatory behavior. In the first experiment, the ICV injection of 5-ADMP slightly enhanced the sexual behavior observed in testosterone (T)-treated castrated male quail. This brings additional support to the notion that norepinephrine tonically inhibits male copulatory behavior in quail. In the second experiment, 5-ADMP implanted directly into the preoptic area disrupted the restoration by T of copulatory behavior in castrated quail and, at the same time, produced a brain lesion that partly destroyed the sexually dimorphic medial preoptic nucleus, a previously established site of T action on behavior. These lesions produced by a high (presumably too high) concentration of neurotoxin provided an independent confirmation of effects previously observed after electrolytic lesions. Correlation analyses also confirmed that the medial part of the POM just rostral to the anterior commissure is more closely associated with copulatory behavior and may, therefore, represent a key center for steroid action on this behavior.     

Hormonal control of behavior in the Japanese quail.

Adult male and female Japanese quail were functionally castrated by exposure to a short photoperiod and then injected with either estradiole benzoate (EB) or testosterone propionate (TP). Females injected with EB (n = 24) exhibited normal sexual receptivity again but displayed no male courtship behavior. Males injected with EB (n = 10) showed both male and female copulatory patterns. Females injected with TP (n = 14) showed little sexual behavior of any sort, while males injected with TP (n = 10) displayed male sexual behavior. The male quail is thus more bisexual than the female. In contrast with mammalian species, the female is more bisexual. The difference is discussed in relation to the differences in the embryology and cytogenetics of birds and mammals. (29 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dopamine release in the medial preoptic area is related to hormonal action and sexual motivation.

To help elucidate how general the role of dopamine (DA) release in the medial preoptic area (mPOA) is for the activation of male sexual behavior in vertebrates, we recently developed an in vivo microdialysis procedure in the mPOA of Japanese quail. Using these techniques in the present experiment, the temporal pattern of DA release in relation to the precopulatory exposure to a female and to the expression of both appetitive and consummatory aspects of male sexual behavior was investigated. Extracellular samples from the mPOA of adult sexually experienced male quail were collected every 6 min before, while viewing, while in physical contact with, and after exposure to a female. In the absence of a precopulatory rise in DA, males failed to copulate when the barrier separating them from the female was removed. In contrast, males that showed a substantial increase in mPOA DA during precopulatory interactions behind the barrier, copulated with females after its removal. However, there was no difference in DA during periods when the quail were copulating as compared to when the female was present but the males were not copulating. In addition, we show that precopulatory DA predicts future DA levels and copulatory behavior frequency. Furthermore, the size of the cloacal gland, an accurate indicator of testosterone action, is positively correlated with precopulatory DA. Taken together, these results provide further support for the hypothesis that DA action in the mPOA is specifically linked to sexual motivation as compared to copulatory behavior per se. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of novelty on the reproductive behavior of male Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica).

In Exp I, 8 sexually deprived male Japanese quail were exposed to 1 of 7 female Japanese quail until they satisfied a 20-min sexual satiation criterion. The female was then replaced with a novel female or was allowed to remain in the test cage undisturbed. Introduction of the novel female did not reinvigorate sexual behavior above levels observed when the female was allowed to remain undisturbed. In Exp II, with 9 males and 15 females, males that were not sexually deprived were tested in the presence of 2 females. During experimental tests, 1 of the females was novel and the other was familiar. During control tests, both of the females were familiar. The presence of a novel female increased overall levels of male sexual behavior and also increased the number of males engaged in reproductive behavior. However, the enhanced sexual behavior was not differentially directed toward the novel or familiar female. Implications of these findings for the mating system of Japanese quail and for studies of the role of novelty in sexual behavior are discussed. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intermanual differences on motor and psychomotor tests in alcoholics: no evidence for selective right-hemisphere dysfunction

The effects of pharmacological manipulations of dopaminergic transmission on appetitive and consummatory aspects of male sexual behavior were investigated in castrated male Japanese quail treated with exogenous testosterone. Appetitive male sexual behavior was assessed by measuring a learned social proximity response and consummatory behavior was assessed by measuring copulatory behavior per se. The nonselective dopamine receptor agonist, apomorphine, inhibited in a dose-dependent manner both components of male sexual behavior. Two indirect dopamine agonists were also tested. Nomifensine, a dopamine re-uptake inhibitor, decreased appetitive sexual behavior but increased the frequency of mount attempts, a measure of consummatory sexual behavior. Amfonelic acid, a compound that enhances dopaminergic tone by a complex mechanism, increased aspects of both appetitive and consummatory behaviors. These data suggest that, in quail, as in rodents, increases in dopaminergic tone facilitate both appetitive and consummatory aspects of male sexual behavior. Apomorphine may be inhibitory in quail because it acts primarily on D2-like receptors, unlike in rats, where it stimulates sexual behavior and acts primarily on D1-like receptors at low doses but interacts with D2-like receptors at higher doses. This is supported by the observation that stereotyped pecking, a behavior stimulated selectively in quail by D2 agonists, was increased by apomorphine but not by the two indirect agonists. The observed partial dissociation between the effects of these dopaminergic agonists on appetitive and consummatory sexual behaviors suggests that these two components of male sexual behavior may be controlled by the action of dopamine through different neuronal systems.     

Sexual approach conditioning: Unconditioned stimulus factors.

Unconditioned stimulus (US) factors were investigated in a Pavlovian sexual conditioning paradigm with male Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica). Copulation with a female quail was more effective than exposure to a female without copulation, but the latter also produced conditioned responding (Exp 1). The greater effectiveness of copulatory opportunity as a US was probably not due to nonassociative effects of copulation (Exp 2). Visual cues of the female, as presented on a taxidermic model, were not effective unless the Ss had prior sexual experience that increased their response to the model (Exps 3a and 3b). Successful conditioning with noncopulatory female exposure is significant because it allows for sexual learning to occur in a broader range of circumstances than does conditioning with copulation and because it permits conducting multiple trials per day because males do not become satiated as rapidly. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Is sexual motivational state linked to dopamine release in the medial preoptic area?

The medial preoptic area (mPOA) is a key site for the dopaminergic enhancement of male sexual behavior. Dopamine release increases in the rat mPOA with mating, supporting the critical stimulatory role played by preoptic dopamine on male sexual behavior. However, it has been questioned whether dopamine is specifically related to the occurrence of male sexual behavior and not simply involved in general arousal. To address this question, we asked whether dopamine release in the mPOA is linked to the production of male sexual behavior in Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica), a species that exhibits a much shorter temporal pattern of copulation than rats and does not have an intromittent organ, resulting in a very different topography of their sexual response. Extracellular samples from the mPOA of adult sexually experienced male quail were collected every 6 min before, during, and after exposure to a female using in vivo microdialysis and analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection. Extracellular dopamine significantly increased in the presence of a female and returned to baseline after removal of the female. However, quail that failed to copulate did not display this increased release. These findings indicate that it is not solely the presence of a female that drives dopamine release in males, but how a male responds to her. Furthermore, in quail that copulated, dopamine release did not change in samples collected during periods of no copulation. Together, these findings support the hypothesis that dopamine action in the mPOA is specifically linked to sexual motivation and not only to copulatory behavior or physical arousal. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Copulatory behavior of deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus): II. A study of some factors regulating the fine structure of behavior.

In 7 experiments on factors regulating copulatory behavior in deer mice, changes in copulatory behavior across series within a test reflected changes in both male and female, with the male apparently predominant. Even when mating with females of a species with a very different copulatory pattern (cactus mice), male deer mice retained the species-typical pattern. Mating in a 2-male/1-female condition produced little alteration in copulatory behavior from that in the 1-male/1-female condition. Under some test conditions, levels of aggressive behavior in the 2-male/1-female condition was considerable. There was generally covariation among body weight, social dominance, and copulation, with heavier males being dominant and ejaculating more often than lighter males. When females were in hormone-induced estrus, mount and intromission latencies were longer and ejaculation frequencies were lower than with either cycling or postpartum estrus. Significant differences between cycling and postpartum estrus were detectable with a within-Ss design. Mate familiarity had little effect on parameters of copulatory behavior once initiated. Effects of both male and female were detected when mating partners were changed between tests and test–retest correlation coefficients were calculated. (67 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexual dimorphism in the social proximity behavior of Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica).

Previous research by the present authors (see record 1986-16367-001) showed that after opportunity for copulation, male Japanese quail spent about 75% of their time throughout daylight hours near a window that provided visual access to a female conspecific. In Exp I of the present study, 8 female Japanese quail typically spent less than 20% of their time near a window that provided visual access to 1 of 8 male conspecifics under comparable conditions. In Exp II, using the same Ss, a small clear plastic cage was placed in a large test arena, and Ss were observed when the cage was either empty or contained a sexual partner. Males tended to remain much closer to the cage when it contained a female conspecific than when it was empty. In contrast, the presence of a male did not significantly attract females to the cage area. These findings demonstrate strong sexual dimorphism in the social proximity behavior of Japanese quail. Results are discussed in terms of implications concerning the social structure of Japanese quail and implications for studies of sexual classical conditioning. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Differences in the sexual conditioned behavior of male and female Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica).

The conditioned responses of male and female Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) were compared in a Pavlovian conditioning procedure in which presentation of a brief conditioned stimulus was immediately followed by the release of a copulation partner. Male quail vigorously approached the conditioned stimulus and were much more likely to enter the compartment housing their copulation partner than were female birds (Experiment 1). In females, sexual conditioning resulted in increased squatting (Experiment 2). This response was the reflection of sexual behavior rather than more general social behavior (Experiment 3). These findings provide the first definitive evidence of sexual learning in female quail and are consistent with the interpretation that sexual conditioning increases sexual arousal or receptivity in both sexes but the increase has different behavioral manifestations in male and female quail. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Aromatase inhibition blocks the activation and sexual differentiation of appetitive male sexual behavior in Japanese quail

Two experiments investigated the role of estrogens in the activation and sexual differentiation of appetitive sexual behavior (ASB) in Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) as measured by a learned social proximity response. Injection of the aromatase inhibitor R767 13 in castrated, testosterone (T)-treated male quail completely suppressed ASB, confirming that, like consummatory sexual behavior, ASB is mediated by T aromatization. ASB is not observed in female quail, even if they are treated with T as adults. The role of embryonic estrogens in the sexual differentiation of ASB was tested by blocking estrogen synthesis in ovo. Control male and T-treated female quail deprived of estrogens during embryonic life learned the social proximity response used to assess ASB, whereas control female quail did not, despite the presence of high T. Thus, ASB is demasculinized by the action of embryonic estrogens during ontogeny as is consummatory behavior.     

Photoperiodic and endocrine control of social proximity behavior in male Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica).

Experiment 1 demonstrated that the social proximity behavior of male Japanese quail declines significantly when photostimulation is restricted to 2 hr daily, but can be restored by reinstituting the normal schedule. Changes in the photoperiod produced corresponding changes in the size of the cloacal gland, an androgen-dependent organ. The low levels of social proximity behavior and cloacal gland size of males maintained on short daily exposures to light also could be reversed by sc implants of testosterone (Experiment 2), and this recovery was to some extent sensitive to testosterone dose (Experiment 3). The present studies indicate that social proximity behavior in male Japanese quail is androgen dependent and provide a behavioral assay for neurohormonal studies of sexual behavior that does not depend on brief phasic responses. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)