Journal
PHYSIOLOGY & BEHAVIOR
Volume 74, Issue 1-2, Pages 237-244Publisher
PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/S0031-9384(01)00552-2
Keywords
lateralization; asymmetry; social recognition; right hemisphere; fish
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We measured the time spent in monocular viewing during inspection of their own mirror images in females of three species of fish (Xenotoca eiseni, Gambusia holbrooki and Xenopoecilus sarasinorum) using a rectangular tank in which animals could observe their own reflections in two mirrors positioned along the major walls, and in females of five species of fish (X. eiseni, G. holbrooki, X sarasinorum, Danio rerio and Gnatonemus petersii) using a quasi-circular tank in which fish could rotate clockwise or anticlockwise and observe their own reflections in a mirror positioned along the outer wall. Results revealed a consistent left-eye preference during initial sustained fixation in all species irrespective of the apparatus. However, in the quasi-circular tank, fish showed more variability of response. The asymmetry was apparent during the first 5 min of observation and tended to fade thereafter, probably as a result of habituation. These findings add to current evidence for a quite invariant pattern in the direction of lateralization in similar tasks in a variety of vertebrate species, with a preferential involvement of structures located to the right side of the brain in response to the viewing of images of conspecifics. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.
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