Time-place learning in golden shiners (Pisces: Cyprinidae)

Area of Science:

• Animal Behavior
• Chronobiology
• Fish Ecology

Background:

• Foraging behavior in fish is influenced by temporal and spatial factors.
• Understanding how fish learn and adapt to environmental cues is vital for ecological studies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if golden shiners (Notemigonus crysoleucas) can learn to associate specific locations with distinct times of day for foraging.
• To determine the role of circadian rhythms in temporal discrimination for feeding.

Main Methods:

• Golden shiners were trained in aquaria with timed, location-specific food delivery over 3-4 weeks.
• Fish location was recorded at intervals after food was withheld to assess learned associations.
• Experiments included phase-shifts in photoperiod to examine the underlying clock mechanisms.

Main Results:

• Fish demonstrated significant time-place learning, appearing at the correct location at the designated feeding time.
• Learning was more evident with two distinct locations compared to three, suggesting context-dependent learning.
• Photoperiod phase-shifts revealed that temporal discrimination relies on a gradually adjustable circadian clock.

Conclusions:

• Golden shiners possess the ability to learn and utilize time-place associations for foraging, likely influenced by their natural habitat's spatial complexity.
• Circadian clock mechanisms are fundamental to their temporal foraging decisions and can be modulated by environmental light cycles.