Distance estimation from monocular cues in an ethological visuomotor task

Abstract

In natural contexts, sensory processing and motor output are closely coupled, which is reflected in the fact that many brain areas contain both sensory and movement signals. However, standard reductionist paradigms decouple sensory decisions from their natural motor consequences, and head-fixation prevents the natural sensory consequences of self-motion. In particular, movement through the environment provides a number of depth cues beyond stereo vision that are poorly understood. To study the integration of visual processing and motor output in a naturalistic task, we investigated distance estimation in freely moving mice. We found that mice use vision to accurately jump across a variable gap, thus directly coupling a visual computation to its corresponding ethological motor output. Monocular eyelid suture did not affect gap jumping success, thus mice can use cues that do not depend on binocular disparity and stereo vision. Under monocular conditions, mice altered their head positioning and performed more vertical head movements, consistent with a shift from using stereopsis to other monocular cues, such as motion or position parallax. Finally, optogenetic suppression of primary visual cortex impaired task performance under both binocular and monocular conditions when optical fiber placement was localized to binocular or monocular zone V1, respectively. Together, these results show that mice can use monocular cues, relying on visual cortex, to accurately judge distance. Furthermore, this behavioral paradigm provides a foundation for studying how neural circuits convert sensory information into ethological motor output.

A thalamic hub-and-spoke circuit enables visual perception during action by coordinating visuomotor dynamics

“…While we investigated vLGN’s function mostly in situations where visual and behavioral signals were intentionally separated, during natural behavior movement-induced reafferent and exafferent signals are strongly and necessarily intermixed, as during saccades. These signals need to be discriminated, e.g., to estimate distance using monocular cues ( 44 , 45 ). Accordingly, using the visual cliff paradigm, we were able to show that vLGN-deficient mice have severe impairments in depth perception (Fig.…”

“…Recently, it has been shown that mice can use monocular and binocular cues to estimate depth ( 44 ) and that monocular perception requires motion for proper depth estimation ( 45 ). Therefore, we decided to test depth perception using a classical visual cliff paradigm (Fig.…”

Mormyrid fish as models for investigating sensory‐motor integration: A behavioural perspective

“…The role of eye and head movements in visual perception has been well‐studied in a number of taxa (see reviews: Kral, 2003 ; Land, 1999 ). For example, mice will alter their head position and head movements when completing a jumping task under monocular conditions, potentially to facilitate distance estimation via position or motion parallax (Parker et al., 2022 ). As such, sensory and motor systems can be thought of in a loop framework, each system acting as an input for the other.…”

“…Active sensing strategies are the processes by which sensory flow is modified by movement (Hofmann, Sanguinetti‐Scheck, Künzel, et al., 2013 ; Parker et al., 2022 ). Movements can be isolated to the sensor/emitter of the signal, or be more wide ranging, consisting of whole‐body movements (Hofmann, Sanguinetti‐Scheck, Künzel, et al., 2013 ; Kral, 2003 ).…”

“…As such, senses which are considered passive (e.g. vision) can often be used in an active way (for a discussion on active vision see Parker et al., 2022 ). Active sensing strategies have been particularly well‐studied in echolocating bats.…”