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Updated: Jul 5, 2026
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Testing for Metacognitive Responding Using an Odor-based Delayed Match-to-Sample Test in Rats
Published on: June 18, 2018
Memory without awareness: pigeons do not show metamemory in delayed matching to sample
Jennifer E Sutton1, Sara J Shettleworth
1Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. jsutton7@uwo.ca
Summary
This study investigated metamemory, or awareness of one's own memory, in pigeons. Results suggest pigeons may lack this ability, unlike rhesus macaques, as their choices did not consistently reflect memory accuracy.
Area of Science:
- Animal cognition
- Comparative psychology
- Behavioral neuroscience
Background:
- Metamemory, the ability to assess one's own memory, is well-documented in rhesus macaques.
- Previous research by Inman and Shettleworth (1999) found limited evidence for metamemory in pigeons.
- Further investigation is needed to clarify the presence of metamemory in avian species.
Purpose of the Study:
- To further investigate the presence or absence of metamemory in pigeons.
- To determine if pigeons can accurately report on their memory performance.
- To compare metamemory capabilities between pigeons and other species like rhesus macaques.
Main Methods:
- Three experimental paradigms were employed to test pigeon metamemory.
- Pigeons were offered a "safe" alternative choice during matching-to-sample tests.
- Confidence ratings were collected after task completion in a separate experiment.
Main Results:
- Pigeons' choices of the safe option did not consistently correlate with their matching accuracy.
- Behavior did not change predictably with omitted samples, contrary to metamemory predictions.
- Confidence ratings did not align with expected patterns for an animal possessing metamemory.
Conclusions:
- The findings do not provide conclusive evidence for metamemory in pigeons.
- Pigeons' performance in these tasks suggests a potential lack of metacognitive ability regarding memory.
- Further research may explore alternative explanations or paradigms to assess avian metacognition.
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