ERIC Number: EJ991558
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2007-Nov
Pages: 10
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0022-5002
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Seasonal Variation in Pigeon Body Weight and Delayed Matching-to-Sample Performance
Sargisson, Rebecca J.; McLean, Ian G.; Brown, Glenn S.; White, K. Geoffrey
Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, v88 n3 p395-404 Nov 2007
The weights of 5 pigeons with free access to food, monitored over 3 calendar years in the laboratory, were found to fluctuate with season. All pigeons were at their heaviest in the winter and were lightest in the summer. Five different pigeons performed a standard delayed matching-to-sample task for 44 weeks from January to November. Their weights were held at 85% of their summer free-feeding weights, making their predicted deprivation level higher in the winter relative to predicted winter free-feeding weights. Slopes of forgetting functions fit to weekly response totals for each pigeon were shallower in winter, showing an improvement in accuracy with longer delays. Thus, delayed matching-to-sample performance may have been affected by the practice of maintaining the pigeons at a constant body weight throughout the calendar year. (Contains 6 figures.)
Descriptors: Body Weight, Animals, Animal Behavior, Food, Reinforcement, Climate, Experimental Psychology, Reaction Time
Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior. Available from: Indiana University Department of Psychology. Bloomington, IN 47405. Tel: 812-334-0395; Fax: 812-855-4691; e-mail: jeab@indiana.edu; Web site: http://seab.envmed.rochester.edu/jeab/index.html
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A

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