Perception of Temporal Properties in Self-Generated Songs by Bengalese Finches (Lonchura striata var. domestica )

• Published in: Journal of comparative psychology (1983) 2000-09, Vol.114 (3), p.239-245
• Main Authors: Okanoya, Kazuo, Tsumaki, Satoru, Honda, Eri
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Analysis of Variance; Animal; Animal cognition; Animal communication; Animal Vocalizations; Animals; Auditory Discrimination; Behavior, Animal; Birds; Conditioning, Operant; Cues; Discrimination Learning; Male; Models, Neurological; Perceptions; Psychology; Recognition (Psychology); Self-Perception; Singing; Social Perception; Songbirds; Vocalization, Animal
• ISSN: 0735-7036; 1939-2087
• DOI: 10.1037/0735-7036.114.3.239

In the songbird forebrain, neuronal selectivity for temporal properties of each bird's self-generated song has been well described, but the behavioral and perceptual correlates of this selectivity are not known. By operant procedures, the authors trained Bengalese finches ( Lonchura striata var. domestica ) to discriminate between songs that were played normally and in reverse. Male Bengalese finches learned the discrimination quicker when their self-generated song was used as a stimulus than when a song of another conspecific bird was used. When the global note order was retained but each note was locally reversed, the song was more likely to be regarded as a forward song by the singer himself, but not by other birds. These results provide psychophysical evidence that the special processing of the self-generated song observed at the neural level might reflect an individual's perception of his self-produced song.