Postembryonic maturation of the vertical lobe complex and early development of predatory behavior in the cuttlefish...

In two groups of newly hatched cuttlefish, from eggs incubated at different temperatures, the emergence of predatory pursuit was correlated with the development of some characteristics of the vertical lobe complex (namely, the development of the vertical and superior frontal lobes and the appearance of the vertical-subvertical lobe tracts) and with the state of resorption of the inner yolk sac. The temperature of egg incubation influences the appearance of postnatal pursuit behavior. Expression of this predatory behavioral characteristic is concomitant with the appearance of the vertical-subvertical lobe tracts. In contrast, the growth of the vertical and the superior frontal lobes relative to the growth of the supraesophageal mass and final yolk absorption are not correlated with the appearance of pursuit. To maintain a prey in the frontal visual field during predatory pursuit, short-term memory processes must be involved. Thus, the development of the vertical-subvertical lobe tracts, which is concomitant with the emergence of pursuit, appears essential in the maturation of these short-term memory processes.