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    Lecture 11. Avian Nervous System

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    Cube Maxim
    The document discusses the nervous system and senses of birds. It covers the following key points: 1. The brain of birds is organized differently than other vertebrates, with enlarged regions like the cerebellum and optic lobes that help control complex behaviors and sensory processing. 2. Birds have advanced cognitive abilities like episodic memory, allowing them to remember past events and make decisions based on timing. 3. Unlike most animals, birds are able to sleep with half their brain active at a time to stay alert for predators. 4. Birds have well-developed senses of touch and taste that help them find food in conditions like wet sand or unripe fruit. Their sense of smell is also

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    Lecture 11. Avian Nervous System

    Uploaded by

    Cube Maxim
    127 views6 pages
    The document discusses the nervous system and senses of birds. It covers the following key points: 1. The brain of birds is organized differently than other vertebrates, with enlarged regions like the cerebellum and optic lobes that help control complex behaviors and sensory processing. 2. Birds have advanced cognitive abilities like episodic memory, allowing them to remember past events and make decisions based on timing. 3. Unlike most animals, birds are able to sleep with half their brain active at a time to stay alert for predators. 4. Birds have well-developed senses of touch and taste that help them find food in conditions like wet sand or unripe fruit. Their sense of smell is also

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    nervous system of fishes and avian nervous system

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    The document discusses the nervous system and senses of birds. It covers the following key points: 1. The brain of birds is organized differently than other vertebrates, with enlarged regions like the cerebellum and optic lobes that help control complex behaviors and sensory processing. 2. Birds have advanced cognitive abilities like episodic memory, allowing them to remember past events and make decisions based on timing. 3. Unlike most animals, birds are able to sleep with half their brain active at a time to stay alert for predators. 4. Birds have well-developed senses of touch and taste that help them find food in conditions like wet sand or unripe fruit. Their sense of smell is also

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    127 views6 pages

    Lecture 11. Avian Nervous System

    Uploaded by

    Cube Maxim
    The document discusses the nervous system and senses of birds. It covers the following key points: 1. The brain of birds is organized differently than other vertebrates, with enlarged regions like the cerebellum and optic lobes that help control complex behaviors and sensory processing. 2. Birds have advanced cognitive abilities like episodic memory, allowing them to remember past events and make decisions based on timing. 3. Unlike most animals, birds are able to sleep with half their brain active at a time to stay alert for predators. 4. Birds have well-developed senses of touch and taste that help them find food in conditions like wet sand or unripe fruit. Their sense of smell is also

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    of 6

    3/27/2008

    Nervous System: Brain and Senses

    Structural parts of brain similar in all vertebrates but they differ in their complexity and organization.

    Bird brain is Bi d b i i organized diff i d differently tl

    I. Overview A. Systems Nervous system consists of Central Nervous System brain and spinal cord Peripheral Nervous System cranial & spinal nerves, autonomic nerves, and sense organs

    B. Functions obtain information about internal and external environment analyze and respond to information store information t i f ti coordinate outgoing motor impulses to skeletal muscles and viscera

    II. Brain A. Characteristics Because of shared ancestry brains of reptiles and birds are similar

    larger cerebral hemispheres larger cerebella larger optic lobes smaller olfactory bulbs

    3/27/2008

    B. Generalized Anatomy medulla part of brainstem, helps control heart rate, respiration, blood pressure optic lobe part of midbrain, large in birds

    cerebellum coordination of skeletal muscle activity, large in birds cerebrum 2 hemispheres plus olfactory lobes, sensory information relayed here, learned information stored, send motor nerves to body

    Cerebral hemishpheres consist of 2 regions dorsal - Pallium ventral SubPallium all vertebrates have cerebrum based on same basic plan

    Changes due to loss, fusion or enlargement of various regions Reptiles Pallium has dorsal ventricular ridge (DVR) Birds DVR expands further and includes hyperstriatum p yp plus wulst ( q to birds, (unique , serve as center of learning and intelligence)

    Mammals do not have enlarged DVR but Pallium is enlarged (cerebral cortex)

    3/27/2008

    Requirement for sophistication in sensory processes motor control behavior selective forces driving development and volume of DVR

    DVR best developed in Crows, Magpies, Jays Parrots Least developed Pigeons, Doves Quail, Chickens

    C. Memory Birds remember where and when food cached


    Clayton and Dickinson 1998 Nature 395:272-278

    Type referred to as mental time travel it involves mental images of past events

    Where did I put my keys visualize yourself night b f i li lf i ht before walking into house

    Episodic Memory 1st demonstration in animals other than humans

    Making decisions based on timing of past events critical for episodic memory Allowed Scrub Jays to cache favorite food (waxworms) on 1 side of sand tray

    Jays retrieved wax worms if less than 4 hours old Learned wax worms decompose avoided older waxworms in favor of peanuts

    Peanuts cached on other

    3/27/2008

    D. Single Hemisphere Sleep Birds are able to sleep with brain active Brain hemispheres alternate sleep (Rattenborg et al. 1999. Nature 397:397)

    Eye controlled by sleeping hemisphere droops shut, eye controlled by alert hemisphere is open.

    Evident in flocks

    Predict extra vigilance in end of row sleepers.

    Only been identified in birds, aquatic mammals (dolphins, whales, seals, manatees).

    End birds tended to keep eye open on side away from flock mates. Birds toward center no preference.

    Why? Wh ?

    III.Sense Organs A. Tactile Touch receptors (Herbst corpuscles) abundant in bills of some birds Waterfowl Shorebirds Tongues of woodpeckers

    Piersma et al. 1998. Proc. Royal Soc. London B. 265:1377.

    Red Knots Locate shellfish in wet sand by probing bill ~ cm into sand

    3/27/2008

    Hid small stones in sand (simulating shell fish) Knots could not find them in dry sand. - must be due to differences in currents of water in wet sand between particles particles.

    Knots have 10 20 Herbst corpuscles sensitive to differences in pressure.

    When bill inserted into wet sand creates a pressure wave because of inertia in water between sand particles and stones.

    Rapid up and down movements of birds bill packs the sand, displacing interstial water, causing residual pressure surrounding object to increase.

    Knots can not distinguish between shellfish and stones thus they never are found foraging in sand with stones!!

    B. Olfaction based in surface epithelium of olfactory cavities traditionally thought limited most probably can smell to some extent well developed sense in Turkey Vultures, Kiwis, Albatrosses, Petrels

    C. Taste compared to other vertebrates have few taste buds Chicken 24 Starling 200 Mallard 375 Lizard - ~550 Humans 9,000 Catfish 100,000

    3/27/2008

    located on back of tongue and floor of pharynx some have well developed sense of taste Sanderlings & Dunlins can distinguish between sand where no worms had been present and sand where worms were present!

    Hummingbirds can distinguish solutions with different sugar concentrations

    many species can tolerate high acidic and alkaline solutions (can tolerate unripe fruit)

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