Neuroethology of spatial cognition

A key challenge for animals is recognising locations and navigating between them. These capacities are varied: we can remember where our car is parked at the mall, rats are able to remember where their nest location is while foraging for food morsels, and bats are able to fly directly to a favourite fruit tree 20 kilometers from their home cave. These spatial abilities, whether commonplace or remarkable, raise fundamental questions. First, how do animals find their way? Second, how does the brain represent the outside world? In this Primer, we will address both questions from the perspective of rodent cognition and neuroscience.