The Amphibian Visual System

List of ContributorsPreface1 Amphibians, Their Evolutionary History, Taxonomy, and Ecological Adaptations Past History of Amphibia Relationships and Biogeography of Living Amphibians Anuran Adaptation Reproductive Strategies Regional Adaptation A Look Ahead2 Anatomy and Physiology of the Frog Retina Introduction Anatomy Visual Pigments Basic Electrophysiology Functional Electrophysiology Conclusion3 Central Visual Pathways in the Frog Introduction Optic Nerve Central Visual Pathways Conclusion4 Spatial Vision in Anurans Introduction Problems in Studying Spatial Vision Localization of Prey Objects Depth Estimation Selection among Two Prey Stimuli Directionality of Avoidance Behaviors Orientation and Shape in Discrimination of Barriers Stepping onto Surfaces Orientation to the Bank of Ponds Differentiation of Localizing Behaviors and Their Anatomic Basis Retinotopic Specificity in Localizing Behaviors Frog Vision in Phylogenetic Perspective Concluding Remarks5 The Visual System of the Toad: Behavioral and Physiological Studies on a Pattern Recognition System Introduction Quantitative Analysis of the Key Stimuli "Prey" and "Enemy" Prey Catching and Avoidance "Zones" in the Brain Neural Coding of Behaviorally Relevant Form Features along the Visual Pathway Hypothesis: The First Basic Steps in Prey-Enemy Recognition Computer Analysis of the Hypothetical Prey-Enemy Pattern Recognition System by Means of Model Nerve Nets General Discussion6 The Urodele Visual System Commonly Studied Families Visually Guided Behavior Anatomy and Physiology of the Visual System Urodeles and Comparative Neurobiology of the Visual System7 The Amphibian Visual System as a Model for Developmental Neurobiology Introduction General Concepts: Induction, Determination, and Differentiation; Regulation, Fields, and Positional Information The Development of the Eye The Formation of Synaptic Connections between the Eye and Brain Axial Polarization of the Retina The Acquisition of Tectal Polarity The Cell Cycle and Differentiation Cell Coupling The Current Status of the Chemoaffinity Theory Endocrine Influences in Neurogenesis Trophic Influences Cell Death The Role of Function in Neurogenesis Summary8 Standards for Laboratory Amphibians Introduction The Biological Standard The Supply of Amphibians Solutions to the ProblemsBibliographySubject Index