No abstract

No abstract

Two studies are reported that describe the development of spontaneous alternation in the kitten. The first indicates that 3- and 4-week-old kittens do not alternate whereas animals 5 weeks and older do alternate. The second suggests that inability to discriminate maze arms is an unlikely explanation for the lack of alternation among the youngest animals. The approximate simultaneity between the onset of alternation (described here) and the maturation of the kitten hippocampus (described by others) is taken as support for the notion that hippocampal maturation may be related to the development of spontaneous alternation.

No abstract

Seventy-eight kittens from 3 to 7 weeks of age were studied in an open-field arena. Three major age-dependent changes were noted: (1) the number of floor squares entered was markedly higher for 5- and 6-week-olds than for younger animals, and slightly lower for 7-week-olds than for 5- and 6-week-olds; (2) the tendency to backtrack from 1 square to a just-vacated square decreased with age, the largest change occurring between 4 and 5 weeks of age; (3) the within-session decrement in locomotion was largest for 3-week-old kittens but was smallest for 4-week-olds and increased monotonically with age thereafter. The results suggest a possible role of hippocampal maturation.