Summary
The elucidation of spatial coding in the hippocampus requires exploring diverse animal species. While robust place-cells are found in the mammalian hippocampus, much less is known about spatial coding in the hippocampus of birds – and nothing is known about avian spatial representation during flight. Here we used a wireless-electrophysiology system to record single neurons in the hippocampus and related pallial structures from freely flying barn owls (Tyto alba) – a central-place nocturnal predator species with excellent navigational abilities. The owl’s 3D position was monitored while it flew back and forth between two perches. We found place cells – neurons that robustly represented the owl’s location during flight, and its flight-direction – as well as neurons that coded the owl’s perching position between flights. Spatial coding was invariant to changes in lighting conditions and to the position of a salient object in the room. Place cells were found in the anterior hippocampus and in the adjacent posterior hyperpallium apicale, and to a much lesser extent in the visual Wulst (visual-cortex homologue). The finding of place-cells in flying owls suggests commonalities in spatial coding across a variety of species – including rodents, bats and owls.
Competing Interest Statement
The authors have declared no competing interest.
