Storage of auditory temporal patterns in the songbird telencephalon

A quantitative model of auditory learning is presented to predict how auditory patterns are stored in the songbird auditory forebrain. This research focuses on the caudomedial nidopallium (NCM) in the songbird telencephalon, a candidate site for song perception and the formation of song auditory memories. The objective is to introduce simplified features of bird song that could be used by the auditory forebrain to identify and distinguish memorized songs. The results elucidate which biological mechanisms are sufficient for temporal pattern prediction and the storage of higherorder patterns, where by higher-order, we mean the specific arrangement of syllables into song motifs (phrases) to reveal neural mechanisms of syntax. Key words: auditory, learning, avian forebrain, synaptic plasticity, habituation Auditory processing and auditory memories are essential to animals that use vocal communication in social behavoir (see reviews in [1]). In songbirds, vocal learning and retention of ...

• Type: Journal
• Year: 2007
• Where: IJON
• Authors: Patrick D. Roberts, Roberto A. Santiago, Tarciso Velho, Claudio V. Mello
• Keywords: Auditory Forebrain, Auditory Memories, Auditory Processing, IJON 2007