Avian Auditory-Vocal Motor Interfaces (Journal-Brain, Behavior and Evolution, 1994 , Vol 44, No 4-5)

Some of the most profound scientific questions in comparative neurobiology today are presented in this new publication which focuses on the nature of avian auditory-motor interfaces. It explores our current understanding of the nature of the interface(s) between auditory and vocal motor structures that have evolved in extant avian species. The papers in this volume deal with the comparative anatomy and chemoarchitecture of the neural circuitry by which auditory and motor nuclei are interconnected, the comparative chemoarchitecture of vocal nuclei, the neurophysiological basis of vocal motor control and the neurologic bases of vocal learning. These topics form the basis for addressing four key questions: By what pathways may auditory information influence forebrain structures in birds? How does the organization of these pathways differ among currently existing avian species? What roles do such interfaces play in mediating vocal performance and vocal learning? How do such functional relationships vary among existing species? It will provide comparative neurobiologists with a fascinating insight into this important subject.