Modularity as a fish (Xenotoca eiseni) views it: Conjoining geometric and nongeometric information for spatial reorientation.

Abstract

When disoriented in a closed rectangular tank, fish (Xenotoca eiseni) reoriented in accord with the large-scale shape of the environment, but they were also able to conjoin geometric information with nongeometric properties such as the color of a wall or the features provided by panels located at the corners of the tank. Fish encoded geometric information even when featural information sufficed to solve the spatial task. When tested after transformations that altered the original arrangement of the panels, fish were more affected by those transformations that modified the geometric relationship between the target and the shape of the environment. Finally, fish appeared unable to use nongeometric information provided by distant panels. These findings show that a reorientation mechanism based on geometry is widespread among vertebrates, though the joint use of geometric and nongeometric cues by fish suggest that the degree of information encapsulation of the mechanism varies considerably between species.

Is there an innate geometric module? Effects of experience with angular geometric cues on spatial re-orientation based on the shape of the environment

“…the colour of a wall) in order to reorient themselves [e.g. Wsh: redtail splitWns (Xenotoca eiseni): Sovrano et al 2002Sovrano et al , 2003goldWsh (Carassius auratus) : Vargas et al 2004; birds: chicks (Gallus gallus): Vallortigara et al 1990Vallortigara et al , 2004pigeons (Columba livia) : Kelly et al 1998;Vargas et al 2004a;mammals: rhesus monkeys: Gouteux et al 2001;tamarins: Deipolyi et al 2001]. Interestingly, however, a "primacy" of geometric information seems to be apparent in spatial reorientation.…”

Whither geometry? Troubles of the geometric module

“…Subsequently, a substantial corpus of 'geometry' studies tested various vertebrate species, including fish [9,10], birds [11,12] and monkeys [13] (see review in Ref. [14]).…”

View-based strategy for reorientation by geometry

“…According to Gallistel (Gallistel, 1990), geometry would be encoded in allocentric coordinates, thus providing a metric frame to the 'cognitive map' (Tolman, 1948; O'Keefe and Nadel, 1978; Morris et al, 1982;Wang and Spelke, 2002). Subsequent work has shown that fish [Xenotoca eiseni (Sovrano et al, 2002;Sovrano et al, 2003); Carassius auratus (Vargas et al, 2004)], birds [domestic chicks (Vallortigara et al, 1990); pigeons (Kelly et al, 1998)], rodents [rats (Golob and Taube, 2002)], nonhuman primates [rhesus monkey , tamarins (Deipolyi et al, 2001)] and humans (Hermer and Spelke, 1994;Hermer and Spelke, 1996) reoriented according to the geometric information (i.e. metric and the left-right discrimination sense) specified by the macroscopic layout of surfaces (reviewed by Wang and Spelke, 2002;Cheng and Newcombe, 2005;Vallortigara, 2009).…”