Representation of time in time-place learning

Ordinal, interval, and circadian mechanisms of solving a time-place task were tested. Rats searched for food twice in the morning and once in the afternoon (Group AB-C, n = 5) or once in the morning and twice in the afternoon (Group A-BC, n = 5) in a box with four food troughs. The location of the food depended on the time of day in a 12:12-h light:dark cycle. Acquisition was documented by food-site inspections at the correct locations prior to food availability. On nonrewarded probes, the time of the middle search (B) was shifted late (for Group AB-C) or early (for Group A-BC). The rats visited Location B at chance, contrary to an ordinal mechanism. When the posttesting meal and light-dark transitions were omitted, the rats visited correct locations with impaired performance but at above-chance levels on nonrewarded probes. The results are consistent with interval and circadian representations of time.