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Same/Different Abstract Concept Learning by Archerfish (Toxotes chatareus).
Cait Newport1,2, Guy Wallis3, Ulrike E Siebeck1
1School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
Plos One
|November 25, 2015
Summary
Archerfish (Toxotes chatareus) were tested on abstract concept learning, specifically sameness and difference. Results indicate fish cannot learn these abstract concepts using the tested simultaneous discrimination task.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive ethology
- Comparative psychology
- Animal behavior
Background:
- Abstract concept learning has been demonstrated in diverse species, but not previously in fish.
- Previous research indicates fish are generally unsuccessful in learning abstract concepts.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the capacity of archerfish (Toxotes chatareus) to learn abstract concepts of sameness and difference.
- To evaluate the efficacy of a simultaneous two-item discrimination task for assessing abstract concept learning in fish.
Main Methods:
- Six archerfish were trained using a two-phase simultaneous discrimination task to identify same or different stimuli pairs.
- Phase 1 involved non-changing symbols, while Phase 2 used varying symbols to test concept acquisition.
- A transfer test with novel stimuli assessed generalization of learned concepts.
Main Results:
- Five out of six archerfish completed Phase 1, indicating basic task comprehension.
- Only one fish passed Phase 2, and its subsequent transfer test performance was at chance level.
- Extended training with numerous exemplars did not enable the fish to reach the criterion.
Conclusions:
- The simultaneous two-item discrimination task is not suitable for testing abstract concepts like sameness and difference in archerfish.
- Current findings suggest archerfish may solve tasks through stimulus-specific associations or simple choice rules, not abstract concept learning.
- There is no evidence that archerfish, or fish in general, can learn abstract concepts based on the methods employed.
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