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The directionality of the ear of the pigeon (Columba livia)

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Summary

The directionality of cochlear microphonic potentials in the azimuthal plane was investigated in the pigeon (Columba livia), using acoustic free-field stimulation (pure tones of 0.25–6 kHz).

At high frequencies in the pigeon's hearing range (4–6 kHz), changing azimuth resulted in a maximum change of the cochlear microphonic amplitude by about 20 dB (SPL). The directionality decreased clearly with decreasing frequency.

Acoustic blocking of the contralateral ear canal could reduce the directional sensitivity of the ipsilateral ear by maximally 8 dB. This indicates a significant sound transmission through the bird's interaural pathways. However, the magnitude of these effects compared to those obtained by sound diffraction (maximum > 15 dB) suggests that pressure gradients at the tympanic membrane are only of subordinate importance for the generation of directional cues.

The comparison of interaural intensity differences with previous behavioral results confirms the hypothesis that interaural intensity difference is the primary directional cue of azimuthal sound localization in the high-frequency range (2–6 kHz).

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Abbreviations

CM :

cochlear microphonic potential

IID :

interaural intensity difference

IID-MRA :

minimum resolvable angle calculated from interaural intensity difference

MRA :

minimum resolvable angle

OTD :

interaural ongoing time difference

RMS :

root mean square

SPL :

sound pressure level

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  1. Lehrstuhl für Allgemeine Zoologie und Neurobiologie der Ruhr-Universität, Bochum, Postfach 102148, 1, Federal Republic of Germany

    Jörg Lewald

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Lewald, J. The directionality of the ear of the pigeon (Columba livia). J Comp Physiol A 167, 533–543 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00190824

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