The effects of sex and retention interval on performance in two novel spatial memory tasks

Female cowbirds have more accurate spatial memory than males

Biology Letters ◽

10.1098/rsbl.2014.0026 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 20140026 ◽

Cited By ~ 44

Author(s):

Mélanie F. Guigueno ◽

Danielle A. Snow ◽

Scott A. MacDougall-Shackleton ◽

David F. Sherry

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Retention Interval ◽

Spatial Memory ◽

Spatial Cognition ◽

Sex Difference ◽

Molothrus Ater ◽

Seasonal Differences ◽

Brood Parasites ◽

Foraging Task ◽

Similar Search

Brown-headed cowbirds ( Molothrus ater ) are obligate brood parasites. Only females search for host nests and they find host nests one or more days before placing eggs in them. Past work has shown that females have a larger hippocampus than males, but sex differences in spatial cognition have not been extensively investigated. We tested cowbirds for sex and seasonal differences in spatial memory on a foraging task with an ecologically relevant retention interval. Birds were trained to find one rewarded location among 25 after 24 h. Females made significantly fewer errors than males and took more direct paths to the rewarded location than males. Females and males showed similar search times, indicating there was no sex difference in motivation. This sex difference in spatial cognition is the reverse of that observed in some polygynous mammals and is consistent with the hypothesis that spatial cognition is adaptively specialized in this brood-parasitic species.

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Observational Spatial Memory in North Island Robins (Petroica Longpies)

10.26686/wgtn.17000632.v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

◽

Nicola Ellen Armstrong

Keyword(s):

Retention Interval ◽

Spatial Memory ◽

Interval Number ◽

Small Scale ◽

Food Hoarding ◽

Scale Factors ◽

Retention Intervals ◽

Two Parameters ◽

Prey Items

<p>Observational spatial memory is employed by members of food-hoarding species to pilfer caches created by other individuals more effectively. North Island robins (Petroica australis) experience high levels of reciprocal cache pilferage within mate pairs. These circumstances were hypothesised to produce conditions under which advanced pilferage strategies such as observational spatial memory may evolve. Here I tested the ability of North Island robins to use observational spatial memory to discriminate between varying prey rewards. Three experiments were conducted which differed in the maximum number of prey items offered as a reward. Additional variables of retention interval, number of cache sites and a variable reward were included to assess how the birds’ memory was affected by small-scale factors. Results showed that North Island robins performed above chance expectations in most treatment combinations, indicating that they were able to utilize observational spatial memory. They were equally able to discriminate between different combinations of prey numbers that were hidden in 2, 3 and 4 caches sites from between 0, 10 and 60 seconds. Overall results indicate that North Island robins can solve complex numerical problems involving more than two parameters and up to one minute long retention intervals without training.</p>

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Observational Spatial Memory in North Island Robins (Petroica Longpies)

10.26686/wgtn.17000632 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

◽

Nicola Ellen Armstrong

Keyword(s):

Retention Interval ◽

Spatial Memory ◽

Interval Number ◽

Small Scale ◽

Food Hoarding ◽

Scale Factors ◽

Retention Intervals ◽

Two Parameters ◽

Prey Items

<p>Observational spatial memory is employed by members of food-hoarding species to pilfer caches created by other individuals more effectively. North Island robins (Petroica australis) experience high levels of reciprocal cache pilferage within mate pairs. These circumstances were hypothesised to produce conditions under which advanced pilferage strategies such as observational spatial memory may evolve. Here I tested the ability of North Island robins to use observational spatial memory to discriminate between varying prey rewards. Three experiments were conducted which differed in the maximum number of prey items offered as a reward. Additional variables of retention interval, number of cache sites and a variable reward were included to assess how the birds’ memory was affected by small-scale factors. Results showed that North Island robins performed above chance expectations in most treatment combinations, indicating that they were able to utilize observational spatial memory. They were equally able to discriminate between different combinations of prey numbers that were hidden in 2, 3 and 4 caches sites from between 0, 10 and 60 seconds. Overall results indicate that North Island robins can solve complex numerical problems involving more than two parameters and up to one minute long retention intervals without training.</p>

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Review for "Anti‐Lingo ‐1 antibody ameliorates spatial memory and synapse loss induced by chronic stress"

10.1002/cne.25038/v1/review2 ◽

2020 ◽

Keyword(s):

Spatial Memory ◽

Chronic Stress ◽

Synapse Loss

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Wechsler Memory Scale, Rivermead Behavioral Memory Test, and Everyday Memory Questionnaire in Healthy Adults and Alzheimer Patients

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027//1015-5759.18.1.63 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 63-77 ◽

Cited By ~ 34

Author(s):

Anastasia Efklides ◽

Efterpi Yiultsi ◽

Theopisti Kangellidou ◽

Fotini Kounti ◽

Fotini Dina ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Spatial Memory ◽

Semantic Memory ◽

Memory Test ◽

Healthy Adults ◽

Gender Effects ◽

Everyday Memory ◽

Wechsler Memory Scale ◽

Everyday Memory Questionnaire ◽

Behavioral Memory ◽

Memory Questionnaire

Summary: The Wechsler Memory Scale (WMS) is a laboratory-based memory test that has been criticized for its lack of ecological validity and for not testing long-term memory. A more recent memory test, which aims at testing everyday memory, is the Rivermead Behavioral Memory Test (RBMT); it tests prospective memory and other forms of memory not tapped by WMS. However, even this test does not capture all aspects of everyday memory problems often reported by adults. These problems are the object of the Everyday Memory Questionnaire (EMQ). This study aimed at identifying the relationships between these three memory tests. The differential effect of Alzheimer's disease (AD) on the above relationships was also studied. The sample consisted of 233 healthy adults (20 to 75+ years of age) and 39 AD patients (50 to 75 years of age). Confirmatory factor analysis revealed the following latent factors: Verbal Memory, Visual Reconstruction, Orientation, Message (action embedded in spatial context), Visual Recognition, Spatial Memory, New Learning/Association Forming, Prospective/Episodic Memory, and Metamemory. These first-order factors were further explained by two second-order factors: Semantic Memory and Coordination of Semantic and Visuo-Spatial Memory. This basic structure was preserved in the sample of AD patients, although AD patients performed less well on the WMS and the RBMT. Some interesting findings regarding semantic memory, face recognition, and metamemory in AD patients are also reported. Age, education, but no gender effects on memory performance were also detected.

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