On the border: perimeter patrolling as a transitional exploratory phase in a diurnal rodent,the fat sand rat (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Psammomys obesus</Emphasis>) |
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Authors: | Reut Avni David Eilam |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Zoology, Tel-Aviv University, 69978 Ramat Aviv, Israel |
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Abstract: | Exploration is an initial phase of constructing spatial representation. In an illuminated environment, exploration by nocturnal
rodents takes the form of home-base behavior, with the rodents organizing their activity in relation to the base, repeatedly
orienting and returning to it. In the dark, home base behavior in gerbils is preceded by looping exploration, in which travel paths tangle into loops that close at various locations so that the gerbils pilot from one loop
to the next. In the present study we tested a diurnal gerbil, the fat sand rat, Psammomys obesus, in both a lit and a dark open field in order to compare its exploratory behavior with that of nocturnal rodents. We found
that under lit conditions, fat sand rats used perimeter patrolling, traveling mainly along the walls of the open field. In perimeter patrolling the animal probably monitors its location in
relation to the perimeter (arena walls), and not to a specific location as in home base. In the dark, fat sand rats first
used looping, and gradually shifted to perimeter patrolling exploration. We suggest that perimeter patrolling is a transient
phase in which the animal evaluates possible locations for a home base. Thus, perimeter patrolling is an intermediate phase
between looping, which is based on piloting from one landmark to the next, and home base exploration, in which the animal
continuously orients to a specific location. This spatial behavior of perimeter patrolling may shed light on phases of information
processing and spatial representation during exploration and navigation. |
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Keywords: | Cognitive map Home base Navigation Orientation Systematic search |
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