Same or different? Abstract relational concept use in juvenile bamboo sharks and Malawi cichlids

Ducklings imprint on the relational concept of "same or different".

The ability to identify and retain logical relations between stimuli and apply them to novel stimuli is known as relational concept learning. This has been demonstrated in a few animal species after extensive reinforcement training, and it reveals the brain's ability to deal with abstract properties. Here we describe relational concept learning in newborn ducklings without reinforced training. ...

Same/different abstract-concept learning by pigeons.

Eight pigeons were trained and tested in a simultaneous same/different task. After pecking an upper picture, they pecked a lower picture to indicate same or a white rectangle to indicate different. Increases in the training set size from 8 to 1,024 items produced improved transfer from 51.3% to 84.6%. This is the first evidence that pigeons can perform a two-item same/different task as accurate...

Comment on "Ducklings imprint on the relational concept of 'same or different'".

Martinho and Kacelnik (Reports, 15 July 2016, p. 286) reported that newly hatched ducklings imprinted on relational concepts. We argue that reanalyzing the data at the individual level shows that this conclusion cannot be applied for all sets of stimuli presented and that the ability to grasp relational concepts is limited to the stimulus category that is most beneficial for survival.

Response to Comments on "Ducklings imprint on the relational concept of 'same or different'".

Two Comments by Hupé and by Langbein and Puppe address our choice of statistical analysis in assigning preference between sets of stimuli to individual ducklings in our paper. We believe that our analysis remains the most appropriate approach for our data and experimental design.

Same/Different Concept Formation in Pigeons