Ana Carolina Luchiari, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte
November 24, 2023 | 15h30 | Online: https://fc-up-pt.zoom.us/j/84429728251
Climate change poses a formidable challenge to ectothermic animals, especially those residing near their thermal limits. While numerous studies have delved into aspects such as aggression, sociability, and breeding behavior, the warming climate poses a direct threat to survival by introducing challenges to cognitive functions. Surprisingly, cognition remains a relatively scarce area of study in this context. Cognition, encompassing the faculties of information perception, attention, focus, decision-making, learning, and memory, plays a crucial role in an organism’s survival. The profound impact of warming on cognition cannot be understated. In our investigation with damselfish, we scrutinized the repercussions of elevated temperatures on both cognition and behavior. Through assessments of learning performance, we unveiled substantial deficits. Furthermore, our modeling endeavors with zebrafish underscored the enduring effects of temperature on the brain, persisting long after the immediate encounter with a heatwave. This research topic sheds light on the far-reaching consequences of climate change on cognitive processes in aquatic species.
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