Agonistic behaviour of juvenile gulls, a neuroethological study

Abstract

The results relating to agonistic behaviour obtained during an exploration of the brain of juvenile herring and lesser black-backed gulls (Larus argentatus andfuscus) with electrical stimulation are reported. As an introduction the normal agonistic behaviour of immature gulls is described. While the flight and aggressive behaviour is largely unritualized the threat behaviour is more stereotyped. Three basic threat patterns are distinguished: the arched, hunched, and squat postures. The relationship of these juvenile agonistic patterns with adult courtship is considered. A large number of sites evoking fear behaviour were found, anatomically widely and incoherently distributed. It is demonstrated that the spontaneous fearfulness levels of individual subjects influences the likelihood of obtaining escape eliciting loci. Stimulation of a number of these sites had an after-effect: a persistent, increased probability of escape behaviour. It seems likely that a proportion of the fear sequences elicited were secondary responses to evoked sensory hallucinations and forced small movements. None of the sites explored yielded outright attack behaviour. Thirteen sites yielded characteristic threat sequences. About half of them produced changes in 'mood' persisting for some 15 min. The sites were clustered in a paleostriatal-septal periventricular and an infundibular area. Histological differentiation of the neuroventricular interface at these areas is noted. Based on these it is argued that the secretion of 'liquormones' is responsible for the changes in 'mood' that followed stimulation.

On the Ontogeny of Display Behaviour in the Black-Headed Gull: I. the Gradual Emergence of the Adult Forms

“…The interpretation of the gradual development of the form of complete choking is depicted in Fig. 2b-g and is in line with remarks made by other authors about the development of choking in several gull species (DELIUS, 1973;HENTY, 1966;MOYNIHAN, 1959). The posture develops gradually towards a more pronounced form through the simultaneous occurrence of more form elements.…”

Nucleus striae terminalis lesions affect agonistic behavior of pigeons

“…In line with findings in mammals, where electrical stimulation of the nucleus striae terminalis has been shown to evoke agonistic responses [6,19], one of us [2] found that stimulation of the same nucleus and its neighbourhood (as well as of the nucleus arcuatus hypothalami, known in birds as nucleus infundibuli) in herring and lesser black-backed gulls elicited threat behavior sequences. A review indicated that equivalent results had been obtained in other avian species, including the pigeon.…”

“…The present study focuses on the septal termination of the stria terminalis in the pigeon. In a previous investigation one of us [2] had found that electrical stimulation of the nucleus striae terminalis and its neighbourhood in awake, unrestrained gulls (Larus argentatus and fuscus) yielded threat behavior, sometimes accompanied by an increased tendency to respond aggressively to external stimuli for some fifteen minutes after the stimulation ended [7]. Histological peculiarities of the area in question, including an associated ependymal differentiation, suggested that the nucleus striae terminalis may be secreting into the lateral ventricle.…”

“…Attention has now turned to the role that the nucleus might have in the control of mammalian sexual behavior [4,17]. The notion that the nucleus striae has an influence on aggressive behavior through ventricular neurosecretory activity [2,3] remains open. The present results can not decide the issue.…”

Agonistic Behavior Elicited by Electrical Stimulation of the Brain in Western Collared Lizards, <i>Crotaphytus collaris</i>

“…Brain areas involved in agonistic behavior have been described in fish es [Demski, 1973;Demski and Gerald, 1974;Demski and Knigge, 1971], birds [Akerman, 1966;Andrew and Oades, 1973;Delius, 1973;Harwood and Vowles, 1967;Maley, 1969;P hillips, 1964;Phillips and Youngren, 1971;Putkonen, 1967;, reptiles [Distel, 1973;Keating et al, 1970;Kennedy, 1975;Tarr, 1971], and mammals, in cluding man [for references see the recent surveys by Clemente and Chase, 1973;Goldstein, 1974], These regions include the amygdala and septal areas of the telencephalon, the hypothalamus, and the periventricu lar areas of the midbrain and hindbrain. The studies on neural localiza tion of agonistic behavior in reptiles present only a fragmentary picture of the regions involved in aggression, defense and escape.…”