Effects of toxin magnitude on taste aversion and taste-potentiated aversion to visual cues in chicks (Gallus...

Chicks (n = 208) received CS solutions of red water, red 2.0% vinegar, clear water, or clear 2.0% vinegar, followed by an I.P. injection of 0.4 M lithium chloride at 0.2% or 0.5% body weight, and then received 2 test trials with red water or clear 2.0% vinegar. In testing with red water, measures of latency to start drinking, latency to make 9 more drinks after the first, and amount drunk provided reliable evidence of potentiated aversion to visual cues with a greater magnitude of potentiation shown following the 0.2% injection than the 0.5% injection. In testing with clear vinegar, the "9-drink" latency measure and amount drunk yielded reliable evidence of taste aversion, with greater aversion shown following the 0.5% injection than the 0.2% injection. Findings are discussed in terms of associative and taste primacy views of potentiation effects.