Research Programs

Visual Search and Prey Evolution
Spatial Cognition and Navigation
Sociality and Cognition in Parrots
Mechanisms of Social Cognition
Full Publication Records
for Faculty Affiliates
Are Provided on their Personal Pages


Principal Publications from the
Center for Avian Cognition


Virtual Evolution

Nachev, V., Stich, K.P., Winter, C., Bond, A., Kamil, A., & Winter, Y. (2017). Cognition-mediated evolution of low-quality floral nectars. Science 355: 75-78. PDF

Bond, A.B. (2007). The evolution of color polymorphism: Crypticity, searching images, and apostatic selection. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 38 : 489-514. PDF

Bond, A.B., & Kamil, A.C. (2006). Spatial heterogeneity, predator cognition, and the evolution of color polymorphism in virtual prey. PNAS 103: 3214-3219. PDF

Bond, A.B., & Kamil, A.C. (2002). Visual predators select for crypticity and polymorphism in virtual prey. Nature 415: 609-614. PDF

Kamil, A.C., & Bond, A.B. (2002). Cognition as an independent variable: Virtual ecology. In: M. Bekoff, C. Allen & G. Burghardt (Eds.), The Cognitive Animal (pp. 143-149). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. PDF

Kamil, A.C., & Bond, A.B. (2001). The evolution of virtual ecology. In: L.A. Dugatkin (Ed.), Model Systems in Behavioral Ecology (pp. 288-310). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. PDF

Bond, A.B., & Kamil, A.C.(1998). Apostatic selection by blue jays produces balanced polymorphism in virtual prey. Nature 395: 594-596. PDF



Searching Images and Selective Attention

Bond, A.B. (2018). Searching images and the meaning of alarm calls. Learning & Behavior https://doi.org/10.3758/s13420-018-0350-1. PDF

Goto, K., Bond, A.B., Burks, M., & Kamil, A.C. (2014). Visual search and attention in blue jays (Cyanocitta cristata): Associative cuing and repetition priming. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Learning and Cognition 40: 185-194. PDF

Diamond, J., & Bond, A.B. (2014). The visual trickery of obscured animals. American Scientist 102: 52-59. Online Access

Diamond, J., & Bond, A.B. (2013). Concealing Coloration in Animals. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Link to Book

Dykema, J.A. (2008). "Effects of gregariousness, conspicuousness, and novelty on blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata) learned avoidance and stimulus generalization of unpalatable prey" (April, 2008). Master's Thesis, University of Nebraska - Lincoln. PDF

Kamil, A.C., & Bond, A.B. (2006). Selective attention, priming, and foraging behavior. In: T.R. Zentall & E. Wasserman (Eds.), Comparative Cognition: Experimental Explorations of Animal Intelligence (pp. 106-126). Oxford: Oxford U. Press. PDF

Cink, C.A. (2002). "Factors influencing the use of searching images by blue jays hunting for cryptic prey" (May, 2002). Doctoral Dissertation, University of Nebraska - Lincoln. PDF

Dukas, R., & Kamil, A.C. (2001). Limited attention: The constraint underlying search image. Behavioral Ecology 12: 192-199. PDF

Dukas, R., & Kamil, A. C. (2000). The cost of limited attention in blue jays. Behavioral Ecology 11: 502-506. PDF

Bond, A.B., & Kamil, A.C. (1999). Searching image in blue jays: Facilitation and interference in sequential priming. Animal Learning and Behavior 27: 461-471. PDF

Kono, H., Reid, P.J., & Kamil, A.C. (1998). The effect of background cuing on prey detection. Animal Behaviour 56: 963-972. PDF

Langley, C., Riley, D.A., Bond, A.B., & Goel, N. (1995). Visual search for natural grains in pigeons: Search images and selective attention. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes 22: 139-151. PDF


Spatial Cognition and Navigation

Pesendorfer, M.B., Sillett, T.S., Morrison, S.A., & Kamil, A.C. (2016). Context-dependent seed dispersal by a scatter-hoarding corvid. Journal of Animal Ecology 85 : 798-805. PDF

Lewis, J.L., Kamil, A.C., & Webbink, K.E. (2013). Changing room cues reduces the effects of proactiv interference in Clark's nutcrackers, Nucifraga columbiana. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes 39: 187-192. PDF

Gould, K.L., Gilbertson, K.E., Hrvol, A.J., Nelson, J.C., Seyfer, A.L., Brantner, R.M., & Kamil, A.C. (2013). Differences in relative hippocampus volume and number of hippocampus neurons among five corvid species. Brain, Behavior and Evolution 81: 56-70. PDF

Gould, K.L., Ort, A.J., & Kamil, A.C. (2012). Do Clark's nutcrackers demonstrate what-where-when memory on a cache-recovery task? Animal Cognition 15: 37-44. PDF

Keefe, C.L. (2011). "The effects of social context and cache survival on pinyon jay caching behavior" (July, 2011). Doctoral Dissertation, University of Nebraska - Lincoln. PDF

Gould, K.L., Kelly, D.M., & Kamil, A.C. (2010). What scatter-hoarding animals have taught us about small-scale navigation. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, Series B 365: 901–914. PDF

Kelly, D.M., Kamil, A.C., & Cheng, K. (2010). Landmark use by Clark’s nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana): Influence of disorientation and cue rotation on distance and direction estimates. Animal Cognition 13: 175. PDF

Kelly, D.M., Kippenbrock, S., Templeton, J.J., & Kamil, A.C. (2008). Use of a geometric rule or absolute vectors: Landmark use by Clark’s nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana). Brain Research Bulletin 76: 293-299. PDF

Kamil, A.C., & Gould, K.L. (2008). Memory in food caching animals. In: R. Menzel & J.H. Byrne (Eds.), Learning and Memory: A Comprehensive Reference, Vol I - Learning Theory and Behaviour (pp. 143-149). Amsterdam: Elsevier Press. PDF

Gibson, B.M., Wasserman, E.A., & Kamil, A.C. (2007). Pigeons and people select efficient routes when solving a one-way “traveling salesperson” task. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes 33: 244–261. PDF

Stafford, B.L., Balda, R.P., & Kamil, A.C. (2006). Does seed-caching experience affect spatial memory performance by pinyon jays? Ethology 112: 1202-1208. PDF

Balda, R.P., & Kamil, A.C. (2006). Linking life zones, life history traits, ecology, and spatial cognition in four allopatric southwestern seed caching corvids. In: M.F. Brown & R.G. Cook (Eds.) Animal Spatial Cognition: Comparative, Neural & Computational Approaches. Comparative Cognition Press of the Comparative Cognition Society, November, 2006. Electronic book. PDF

Lewis, J.L., & Kamil, A.C. (2006). Interference effects in the memory for serially presented locations in Clark’s nutcrackers, Nucifraga columbiana. 32: 407–418. PDF

Gibson, B.M., & Kamil, A.C. (2005). The fine-grained spatial abilities of three seed-caching corvids. Learning & Behavior 33: 59-66. PDF

Goodyear, A.J., & Kamil, A. C. (2004). Clark's nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana) and the effects of goal-landmark distance on overshadowing. Journal of Comparative Psychology 118:258-264. PDF

Spetch, M.C., Rust, T.B., Kamil, A.C., & Jones, J.E. (2003). Searching by rules: Pigeons’ (Columba livia) landmark-based search according to constant bearing or constant distance. Journal of Comparative Psychology 117: 123-132. PDF

Jones, J.E., Antoniadis, E., Shettleworth, S.J., & Kamil, A.C. (2002). A comparative study of geometric rule learning by nutcrackers, pigeons, and jackdaws. Journal of Comparative Psychology 116:350-356. PDF

Gibson, B.M., & Kamil, A.C. (2001). Tests for cognitive mapping in Clark's nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana). Journal of Comparative Psychology 115: 403-417. PDF

Gibson, B.M., & Kamil, A.C. (2001). Search for a hidden goal by Clark's Nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana) is more accurate inside than outside a landmark array. Animal Learning & Behavior. 29: 234-249. PDF

Kamil, A.C., Goodyear, A.J., & Cheng, K. (2001). The use of landmarks by Clark's nutcrackers: First tests of a new model. Journal of Navigation 54: 429-435. PDF

Kamil, A.C., & Cheng, K. (2001). Way-finding and landmarks: The multiple-bearings hypothesis. Journal of Experimental Biology 204: 103-113. PDF

Jones, J.E., & Kamil, A.C. (2001). The use of relative and absolute bearings by Clark's nutcrackers, (Nucifraga columbiana). Animal Learning & Behavior 29: 120-132. PDF

Kamil, A.C., & Jones, J.E. (2000). Geometric rule learning by Clark's nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana). Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes 26: 439-453. PDF

Gould-Beierle, K.L., & Kamil, A.C. (1999). The role of proximity in landmark use by Clark's nutcrackers. Animal Behaviour 58:477-488. PDF

Kamil, A. C., Balda, R. P., & Good, S. (1999). Patterns of movement and orientation during caching and recovery by Clark's nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana). Animal Behaviour 57 : 1327-1335. PDF

Balda, R.P., & Kamil, A.C. (1998). The ecology and evolution of spatial memory in corvids of the southwestern USA: The perplexing pinyon jay. In: R.P. Balda, I.M. Pepperberg, & A.C. Kamil (Eds.), Animal Cognition in Nature: The Convergence of Psychology and Biology in Laboratory and Field (pp. 29-64). San Diego, CA: Academic Press. PDF

Kamil, A. C., & Jones, J. E. (1997). Clark's nutcrackers learn geometric relationships among landmarks. Nature 390:276-279.

Balda, R.P., Kamil, A.C.,& Bednekoff, P.A. (1996). Predicting cognitive capacity from natural history: Examples from four species of corvids. In: V. Nolan, Jr., & E. D. Ketterson (Eds.), Current Ornithology, Vol 13, (pp. 33–66). New York: Plenum Press. PDF

Olson, D.J., Kamil, A.C., Balda, R.P., & Nims, P.J. (1995). Performance of four seed-caching corvid species in operant tests of nonspatial and spatial memory. Journal of Comparative Psychology 109: 173-181. PDF

Kamil, A.C., Balda, R.P., & Olson, D.J. (1994). Performance of four seed-caching corvid species in the radial-arm maze analog. Journal of Comparative Psychology 108: 385–393. PDF


Sociality and Cognition in Parrots

Bond, A.B., & Diamond, J. (2019) Thinking Like a Parrot: Perspectives from the Wild. Chicago, IL: U. of Chicago Press. Link to Book

Bond, A.B. (2017). Bird Brain: An Exploration of Avian Intelligence (book review). The Auk 134: 477-478. PDF

Morrison, L.L. (2009). "Sociality and reconciliation in monk parakeets (Myiopsitta monachus)" (April, 2009). Master's Thesis, University of Nebraska - Lincoln. PDF

Diamond, J., Eason, D., Reid, C., & Bond, A.B. (2006) Social play in kakapo (Strigops habroptilus) with comparisons to kea (Nestor notabilis) and kaka (Nestor meridionalis). Behaviour 143: 1397-1423. PDF

Bond, A.B., & Diamond, J. (2005) Geographic and ontogenetic variation in the contact calls of the kea (Nestor notabilis). Behaviour 142: 1-20. PDF

Diamond, J., & Bond, A.B. (2004) Social play in kaka (Nestor meridionalis) with comparisons to kea (Nestor notabilis). Behaviour 141: 777-799. PDF

Diamond, J., & Bond, A.B. (2003) A comparative analysis of social play in birds. Behaviour 140: 1091-1115. PDF

Diamond, J., & Bond, A.B. (1999) Kea, Bird of Paradox: The Evolution and Behavior of a New Zealand Parrot. Berkeley, CA: U. of California Press. Link to Book

Bond, A.B., & Diamond, J. (1992) Population estimates of kea in Arthur's Pass National Park. Notornis 39: 151-160. PDF

Diamond, J., & Bond, A.B. (1991) Social behavior and the ontogeny of foraging in the kea (Nestor notabilis). Ethology 88: 128-144. PDF

Bond, A.B., Wilson, K.J., & Diamond, J. (1991) Sexual dimorphism in the kea (Nestor notabilis). Emu 91: 12-19. PDF

Diamond, J., & Bond, A.B. (1989) Lasting responsiveness of a kea (Nestor notabilis) toward its mirror image. Avicultural Magazine 89: 92-94. PDF



Mechanisms of Social Cognition

Duque, J.F., Leichner, W., Ahmann, H. & Stevens, J.R. (2018). Mesotocin influences pinyon jay prosociality. Biology Letters 14(4): 20180105.

Bond, A.B. (2017). Bird Brain: An Exploration of Avian Intelligence (book review). The Auk 134: 477-478. PDF

Duque, J.F. & Stevens, J.R. (2016). Voluntary food sharing in pinyon jays: The role of reciprocity and dominance. Animal Behaviour 122: 135-144. PDF

Stevens, J.R., Kennedy, B.A., Morale, D., & Burks, M. (2016). The domain specificity of intertemporal choice in pinyon jays. Psychonomic Bulletin and Review 23: 915–921. PDF

Wei, C.A., Kamil, A.C., & Bond, A.B. (2014). Direct and relational representation during transitive list linking in pinyon jays (Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus). Journal of Comparative Psychology 128: 1-10. PDF

Bond, A.B., Wei, C.A., & Kamil, A.C. (2010). Cognitive representation in transitive inference: A comparison of four corvid species. Behavioural Processes 85: 283-292. PDF

Bond, A.B., Kamil, A.C., & Balda, R.P. (2007). Serial reversal learning and the evolution of behavioral flexibility in three species of North American corvids (Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus, Nucifraga columbiana, Aphelocoma californica). Journal of Comparative Psychology 121: 372-379. PDF

Paz-y-Miño C, G., Bond, A.B., Kamil, A.C., & Balda, R.P. (2004). Pinyon jays use transitive inference to predict social dominance. Nature 430: 778-781. PDF

Bond, A.B., Kamil, A.C. & Balda, R.P. (2003). Social complexity and transitive inference in corvids. Animal Behaviour, 65: 479-487. PDF

Templeton, J.J., Kamil, A.C. & Balda, R.P. (1999). Sociality and social learning in two species of corvids. Journal of Comparative Psychology 113: 450-455. PDF

Balda, R.P., Kamil, A.C. & Bednekoff, P.A. (1997). Predicting cognitive capacities from natural histories: Examples from four corvid species. Current Ornithology 13: 33-66. PDF

Kamil, A.C. (1987). A synthetic approach to the study of animal intelligence. In: D.W. Leger (Ed.), Comparative Perspectives in Modern Psychology: Nebraska Symposium on Motivation, Vol. 35 (pp. 230-257). Lincoln, NE: U. of Nebraska Press. PDF