Exploration of the cognitive processing of the "double-headed eagle"-type visual system in pigeons

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K12726
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 90030:Cognitive science-related
• Research Institution: Chiba University
• Principal Investigator: Ushitani Tomokazu 千葉大学, 大学院人文科学研究院, 准教授 (20400806)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: 完全視交叉 / 空間的注意 / 比較認知 / 運動知覚 / 種間比較 / ハト / 資格情報処理

Outline of Final Research Achievements

We investigated how the separate, left and right visual systems of pigeons, which have eyes on both lateral sides of their heads exhibiting full decussation of the optic nerves, would process stimuli that moved across the left and right visual fields. In a stream/bounce discrimination paradigm, pigeons tended to report “stream” for the two objects when they moved toward each other, overlapped at the center of the monitor, and then separated. Pigeons also learned to discriminate the onset of movements, but their discrimination accuracy declined rapidly as the onset-time difference decreased. Thus, the inputs from the pigeons' left and right visual systems were processed in an integrated manner, suggesting that the coexistence of the two systems may simply serve to expand the visual field, rather than providing an advantage such as directing attention to multiple objects simultaneously.

Free Research Field

比較認知科学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究は，使用した被験体であるハトに留まらず，頭部側面に眼のある動物がどのように視覚情報処理しているかについて示唆をもたらす重要な知見を提供した。捕食のある可能性の動物は視野を広げることで危険回避する確率を上げることができるが，複数の物体に同時に注意を向けるなど広い視野を補うような特殊な情報処理には，ハードウェアの進化に対する大きな利点がないのかも知れない。これは，運転サポートシステムなどの開発上，有益な視座を提供するものであろう。