Measurement and control of pecking response location in the pigeon

Experimental arrangements for the detection and control of pecking response location in the pigeon are described. Two different, commercially available detection devices are compared, one utilizing an array of infrared light emitters and detectors (infrared device), the other requiring contact with sheets of conductive film (mylar device) but both specifying a location as a set of X-Y coordinates. The utility of these devices for monitoring peck location was assessed in experiments involving pecking responses emitted under continuous reinforcement, fixed ratio, and response differentiation schedules. Both devices allow measurement of responses over areas much greater than those of the standard pecking response key, provide information about the location of all responses, whether on or off a designated stimulus area, and permit the programming of reinforcement contingencies based upon peck location. While the two devices differ with respect to their sensitivity and their resolution, they yield similar distributions of peck locations for the same animal tested under similar reinforcement schedules. Both devices have some limitations related to their design as detectors of human touch, and suggestions for minimizing these limitations are presented.