Sentience does not require “higher” cognition

Vallortígara, Giorgio

doi:10.51291/2377-7478.1226

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…For example, future studies could investigate whether these differences between strains are already present during the learning process by analyzing the learning curves during training. This of course may lead to implications for animal welfare, though at present we have no reasons to assume that the lower performance of Ross308 correlates with lower sentience ( Marino, 2017a , b ; Vallortigara, 2017 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Hybro chicks outperform Ross308 in a numerical-ordinal task. Cognitive and behavioral comparisons between 2 broiler strains of newborn domestic chicks (Gallus gallus)

Rugani,

Zhang,

Scarsi

et al. 2023

Poultry Science

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Hybro chicks outperform Ross308 in a numerical-ordinal task. Cognitive and behavioral comparisons between 2 broiler strains of newborn domestic chicks (Gallus gallus)

Rugani,

Zhang,

Scarsi

et al. 2023

Poultry Science

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“…Nevertheless, there is no compelling reason to suspect that cleaner fish are exceptional within vertebrates or even within fish with respect to the underlying cognitive mechanisms allowing MSR ability (but see ref. 50 ). Our research suggests that MSR, self-face recognition, and implied mental states may be more abundant among vertebrates than currently appreciated.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cleaner fish recognize self in a mirror via self-face recognition like humans

Kohda

Bshary

Kubo

et al. 2023

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Some animals have the remarkable capacity for mirror self-recognition (MSR), yet any implications for self-awareness remain uncertain and controversial. This is largely because explicit tests of the two potential mechanisms underlying MSR are still lacking: mental image of the self and kinesthetic visual matching. Here, we test the hypothesis that MSR ability in cleaner fish, Labroides dimidiatus , is associated with a mental image of the self, in particular the self-face, like in humans . Mirror-naive fish initially attacked photograph models of both themselves and unfamiliar strangers. In contrast, after all fish had passed the mirror mark test, fish did not attack their own (motionless) images, but still frequently attacked those of unfamiliar individuals. When fish were exposed to composite photographs, the self-face/unfamiliar body were not attacked, but photographs of unfamiliar face/self-body were attacked, demonstrating that cleaner fish with MSR capacity recognize their own facial characteristics in photographs. Additionally, when presented with self-photographs with a mark placed on the throat, unmarked mirror-experienced cleaner fish demonstrated throat-scraping behaviors. When combined, our results provide clear evidence that cleaner fish recognize themselves in photographs and that the likely mechanism for MSR is associated with a mental image of the self-face, not a kinesthetic visual-matching model. Humans are also capable of having a mental image of the self-face, which is considered an example of private self-awareness. We demonstrate that combining mirror test experiments with photographs has enormous potential to further our understanding of the evolution of cognitive processes and private self-awareness across nonhuman animals.

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“…For one thing, reported behavioral indicators may occasionally be misinterpretations - often due to the application of anthropomorphism - of what was actually observed, and as such, could skew our perspective (Gutfreund, 2019 ). For another, advanced cognition doesn't necessarily coincide with conscious experience, even in human beings (Vallortigara, 2017 ). Given these caveats, what other reliable indices or proxies can we employ to probe for consciousness in cephalopods?…”

Section: Cephalopod Consciousness: a Short Overview Of Others' Contri...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Cephalopod Behavior: From Neural Plasticity to Consciousness

Ponte

Chiandetti

Edelman

et al. 2022

Front. Syst. Neurosci.

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It is only in recent decades that subjective experience - or consciousness - has become a legitimate object of scientific inquiry. As such, it represents perhaps the greatest challenge facing neuroscience today. Subsumed within this challenge is the study of subjective experience in non-human animals: a particularly difficult endeavor that becomes even more so, as one crosses the great evolutionary divide between vertebrate and invertebrate phyla. Here, we explore the possibility of consciousness in one group of invertebrates: cephalopod molluscs. We believe such a review is timely, particularly considering cephalopods' impressive learning and memory abilities, rich behavioral repertoire, and the relative complexity of their nervous systems and sensory capabilities. Indeed, in some cephalopods, these abilities are so sophisticated that they are comparable to those of some higher vertebrates. Following the criteria and framework outlined for the identification of hallmarks of consciousness in non-mammalian species, here we propose that cephalopods - particularly the octopus - provide a unique test case among invertebrates for examining the properties and conditions that, at the very least, afford a basal faculty of consciousness. These include, among others: (i) discriminatory and anticipatory behaviors indicating a strong link between perception and memory recall; (ii) the presence of neural substrates representing functional analogs of thalamus and cortex; (iii) the neurophysiological dynamics resembling the functional signatures of conscious states in mammals. We highlight the current lack of evidence as well as potentially informative areas that warrant further investigation to support the view expressed here. Finally, we identify future research directions for the study of consciousness in these tantalizing animals.

show abstract

Sentience does not require “higher” cognition

Cited by 6 publications

References 41 publications

Hybro chicks outperform Ross308 in a numerical-ordinal task. Cognitive and behavioral comparisons between 2 broiler strains of newborn domestic chicks (Gallus gallus)

Hybro chicks outperform Ross308 in a numerical-ordinal task. Cognitive and behavioral comparisons between 2 broiler strains of newborn domestic chicks (Gallus gallus)

Cleaner fish recognize self in a mirror via self-face recognition like humans

Cephalopod Behavior: From Neural Plasticity to Consciousness

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