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Perception and neuronal coding of subjective contours in the owl

Nature Neuroscience volume 2, pages 660–663 (1999)Cite this article

Abstract

Robust form perception and underlying neuronal mechanisms require generalized representation of object boundaries, independent of how they are defined. One visual ability essential for form perception is reconstruction of contours absent from the retinal image. Here we show that barn owls perceive subjective contours defined by grating gaps and phase-shifted abutting gratings. Moreover, single-neuron recordings from visual forebrain (visual Wulst) of awake, behaving birds revealed a high proportion of neurons signaling such subjective contours, independent of local stimulus attributes. These data suggest that the visual Wulst is important in contour-based form perception and exhibits a functional complexity analogous to mammalian extrastriate cortex.

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Figure 1: Stimuli used in behavioral tests and corresponding psychophysical performance of two owls.
Figure 2: Responses of visual forebrain neurons to stimuli defined by contrast borders or subjective contours.
Figure 3
Figure 4: Responses to subjective contours in abutting gratings of different line density and spacing.
Figure 5: Mean responses of a total of 13 neurons were unaffected by variable density or spacing of the grating lines.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to R. v.d.Willigen for introduction to graphics programming. B. Gaese provided a clocked-sequence program for data collection. We thankB. Gaese and H. Luksch for suggestions on an earlier version of the manuscript and M. Schäfer for help with data analysis. Supported by a grant from the DFG to H.W. (WA 606/6).

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  1. Lehrstuhl für Zoologie/Tierphysiologie, Institut für Biologie II, RWTH Aachen, Kopernikusstrasse 16, Aachen, D-52074, Germany

    Andreas Nieder & Hermann Wagner

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  2. Hermann Wagner
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Correspondence to Andreas Nieder.

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Nieder, A., Wagner, H. Perception and neuronal coding of subjective contours in the owl. Nat Neurosci 2, 660–663 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1038/10217

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