@article {53253, title = {Semi-chronic laminar recordings in the brainstem of behaving marmoset monkeys}, journal = {Journal of Neuroscience Methods}, year = {2018}, month = {Jan-10-2018}, abstract = {

Background

Chronic recordings with multi-electrode arrays are widely used to study neural networks underlying complex primate behaviors. Most of these systems are designed for studying neural activity in the cortical hemispheres resulting in a lack of devices being capable of simultaneously recording from ensembles of neurons in deep brainstem structures. However, to fully understand complex behavior, it is fundamental to also decipher the intrinsic mechanisms of the underlying motor pattern generating circuits in the brainstem.

New Method

We report a light-weight system that simultaneously measures single-unit activity from a large number of recording sites in the brainstem of marmoset monkeys. It includes a base chamber fixed to the animal\’s skull and a removable upper chamber that can be semi-chronically mounted to the base chamber to flexibly position an embedded micro-drive containing a 32-channel laminar probe to record from various positions within the brainstem for several weeks.

Results

The current system is capable of simultaneously recording stable single-unit activity from a large number of recording sites in the brainstem of vocalizing marmoset monkeys.

Comparison with Existing Methods

To the best of our knowledge, chronic systems to record from deep brainstem structures with multi-site laminar probes in awake, behaving monkeys do not yet exist.

Conclusions

The semi-chronic implantation of laminar electrodes into the brainstem of behaving marmoset monkeys opens new research possibilities in fully understanding the neural mechanisms underlying complex behaviors in marmoset monkeys.

}, keywords = {Callithrix jacchus, implanted electrodes, laminar multi-site microprobes, primates, semi-chronic recordings, single-unit recordings}, issn = {01650270}, doi = {10.1016/j.jneumeth.2018.10.026}, url = {https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0165027018303406https://api.elsevier.com/content/article/PII:S0165027018303406?httpAccept=text/xmlhttps://api.elsevier.com/content/article/PII:S0165027018303406?httpAccept=text/plain}, author = {Pomberger, Thomas and Hage, Steffen R.} } @article {50485, title = {Feeling anxious? The mechanisms of vocal deception in tufted capuchin monkeys}, journal = {Animal Behaviour}, volume = {130}, year = {2017}, month = {Jan-08-2017}, pages = {37 - 46}, abstract = {

An ability to deceive conspeci fi cs is thought to have favoured the evolution of large brains in social animals, but evidence that such behaviours require cognitive complexity is lacking. Tufted capuchin monkeys ( Sapajus spp.) have been documented to use false alarm calls during feeding in a manner that functions to deceive competitors. However, comparative evidence suggests that the production of vo- calizations by nonhuman primates is largely underpinned by emotional mechanisms, calling into question more cognitive interpretations of this behaviour. To determine whether emotional states are plausibly necessary and suf fi cient to proximately explain deceptive alarm call production, we examined the association between self-directed behaviours (SDBs), as a proxy for anxiety, and the production of spontaneous false alarm calls among tufted capuchins. Speci fi cally, we predicted that if anxiety is necessary for the production of false alarms, then individuals that produce spontaneous false alarms should exhibit more SDBs in those contexts in which they call. If anxiety is also suf fi cient to explain the false alarm call production, then we predicted that individuals that call more in a given context would show higher rates of SDBs in that context, and that high rates of calling would be temporally associated with high rates of SDBs. Our results support the contention that states of anxiety are necessary for an individual to spontaneously produce false alarms, but that such states are not suf fi cient to explain patterns of calling. The link between anxiety and deceptive calling thus appears complex, and cognitively based decision-making processes may play some role in call production.

}, keywords = {affect, alarm calls, anxiety, deceptive behaviour, emotions, primates, scratching, self-directed behaviours, vocalizations, within-group contest competition}, issn = {00033472}, doi = {10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.06.008}, url = {http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0003347217301835}, author = {Kean, Donna and Tiddi, Barbara and Fahy, Martin and Heistermann, Michael and Schino, Gabriele and Wheeler, Brandon C.} } @article {48144, title = {Sensory ecology of prey rustling sounds: acoustical features and their classification by wild Grey Mouse Lemurs}, journal = {Functional Ecology}, volume = {21}, year = {2007}, month = {Jan-02-2007}, abstract = {

1. Predatory mammals and birds from several phylogenetic lineages use prey rustling sounds to detect and locate prey. However, it is not known whether these rustling sounds convey information about the prey, such as its size or profitability, and whether predators use them to classify prey accordingly.

2. We recorded rustling sounds of insects in Madagascar walking on natural substrate and show a clear correlation between insect mass and several acoustic parameters.

3. In subsequent behavioural experiments in the field, we determined whether nocturnal animals, when foraging for insects, evaluate these parameters to classify their prey. We used field-experienced Grey Mouse Lemurs Microcebus murinus in short-term captivity. Mouse Lemurs are generally regarded as a good model for the most ancestral primate condition. They use multimodal sensorial information to find food (mainly fruit, gum, insect secretions and arthropods) in nightly forest. Acoustic cues play a role in detection of insect prey.

4. When presented with two simultaneous playbacks of rustling sounds, lemurs spontaneously chose the one higher above their hearing threshold, i.e. they used the rustling sound\&$\#$39;s amplitude for classification. We were not able, despite attempts in a reinforced paradigm, to persuade lemurs to use cues other than amplitude, e.g. frequency cues, for prey discrimination.

5. Our data suggests that Mouse Lemurs, when foraging for insects, use the mass\–amplitude correlation of prey-generated rustling sounds to evaluate the average mass of insects and to guide their foraging decisions.

}, keywords = {foraging, prey choice, prey selection, primates, size selection}, issn = {0269-8463}, doi = {10.1111/fec.2007.21.issue-110.1111/j.1365-2435.2006.01212.x}, url = {http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/toc/fec/21/1}, author = {Goerlitz, H. R. and Siemers, B. M.} }