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Visual Imprinting in Birds: Behavior, Models, and Neural Mechanisms

Filial imprinting is a process, readily observed in precocial birds, whereby a social attachment is established between a young animal and an object that is typically (although not necessarily) a parent. During a perinatal sensitive period, the young animal learns characteristics of the object (the...

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Autor principal: McCabe, Brian J.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Frontiers Media S.A. 2019
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6558373/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31231236
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2019.00658
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author McCabe, Brian J.
author_facet McCabe, Brian J.
author_sort McCabe, Brian J.
collection PubMed
description Filial imprinting is a process, readily observed in precocial birds, whereby a social attachment is established between a young animal and an object that is typically (although not necessarily) a parent. During a perinatal sensitive period, the young animal learns characteristics of the object (the imprinting stimulus) simply by being exposed to it and will subsequently recognize and selectively approach this stimulus. Imprinting can thus establish a filial bond with an individual adult: a form of social cohesion that may be crucial for survival. Behavioral predispositions can act together with the learning process of imprinting in the formation, maintenance, and modification of the filial bond. Memory of the imprinting stimulus, as well as being necessary for social recognition, is also used adaptively in perceptual classification of sensory signals. Abstract features of an imprinting stimulus, such as similarity or difference between stimulus components, can also be recognized. Studies of domestic chicks have elucidated the neural basis of much of the above behavior. This article discusses (1) principal behavioral characteristics of filial imprinting and related predispositions, (2) theoretical models that have been developed to account for this behavior, and (3) physiological results elucidating the underlying neural mechanisms. Interactions between these different levels of analysis have resulted in advancement of all of them. Taken together, the different approaches have helped define strategies for investigating mechanisms of learning, memory, and perception.
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spelling pubmed-65583732019-06-21 Visual Imprinting in Birds: Behavior, Models, and Neural Mechanisms McCabe, Brian J. Front Physiol Physiology Filial imprinting is a process, readily observed in precocial birds, whereby a social attachment is established between a young animal and an object that is typically (although not necessarily) a parent. During a perinatal sensitive period, the young animal learns characteristics of the object (the imprinting stimulus) simply by being exposed to it and will subsequently recognize and selectively approach this stimulus. Imprinting can thus establish a filial bond with an individual adult: a form of social cohesion that may be crucial for survival. Behavioral predispositions can act together with the learning process of imprinting in the formation, maintenance, and modification of the filial bond. Memory of the imprinting stimulus, as well as being necessary for social recognition, is also used adaptively in perceptual classification of sensory signals. Abstract features of an imprinting stimulus, such as similarity or difference between stimulus components, can also be recognized. Studies of domestic chicks have elucidated the neural basis of much of the above behavior. This article discusses (1) principal behavioral characteristics of filial imprinting and related predispositions, (2) theoretical models that have been developed to account for this behavior, and (3) physiological results elucidating the underlying neural mechanisms. Interactions between these different levels of analysis have resulted in advancement of all of them. Taken together, the different approaches have helped define strategies for investigating mechanisms of learning, memory, and perception. Frontiers Media S.A. 2019-05-29 /pmc/articles/PMC6558373/ /pubmed/31231236 http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2019.00658 Text en Copyright © 2019 McCabe. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
spellingShingle Physiology
McCabe, Brian J.
Visual Imprinting in Birds: Behavior, Models, and Neural Mechanisms
title Visual Imprinting in Birds: Behavior, Models, and Neural Mechanisms
title_full Visual Imprinting in Birds: Behavior, Models, and Neural Mechanisms
title_fullStr Visual Imprinting in Birds: Behavior, Models, and Neural Mechanisms
title_full_unstemmed Visual Imprinting in Birds: Behavior, Models, and Neural Mechanisms
title_short Visual Imprinting in Birds: Behavior, Models, and Neural Mechanisms
title_sort visual imprinting in birds: behavior, models, and neural mechanisms
topic Physiology
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6558373/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31231236
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2019.00658
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