Symmetry in the pigeon with sample and comparison stimuli in different locations. II

Pigeons were trained on arbitrary (hue-form) and identity (hue-hue and form-form) successive matching with center-key samples and left-key comparisons. Later, they were tested on form-hue (symmetry) probe trials that were structured either in the different-locations fashion as the baseline trials (viz., center-key samples and left-key comparisons) or with a constant location by using center-key samples and center-key comparisons. Three of four pigeons showed symmetry when the probe-trial samples and comparisons appeared in center- and left-key spatial locations, respectively, but none did when both appeared in one (center-key) location. Subsequently, pigeons previously tested with center-key samples and left-key comparisons were tested with those form-hue stimuli shown in the same (center-key) location, and vice versa for the other pigeons. None of the former pigeons showed symmetry on the second test even if they had on the first test. By contrast, two of three pigeons that had not shown symmetry with single-location samples and comparisons did so when those stimuli appeared in different (center- vs. left-key) locations. Taken together, these results show that symmetrical relations between the same, nominal matching stimuli depend on where those stimuli appear in testing vis-à-vis in training and, more generally, confirm that spatial location is part of the functional matching stimuli.