The genetic basis of spatial cognitive variation in a food-caching bird

Spatial cognition is used by most organisms to navigate their environment. Some species rely particularly heavily on specialized spatial cognition to survive, suggesting that a heritable component of cognition may be under natural selection. This idea remains largely untested outside of humans, perhaps because cognition in general is known to be strongly affected by learning and experience.1–4 We investigated the genetic basis of individual variation in spatial cognition used by non-migratory food-caching birds to recover food stores and survive harsh montane winters. Comparing the genomes of wild, free-living birds ranging from best to worst in their performance on a spatial cognitive task revealed significant associations with genes involved in neuron growth and development and hippocampal function. These results identify candidate genes associated with differences in spatial cognition and provide a critical link connecting individual variation in spatial cognition with natural selection. [Display omitted] [Display omitted] •Food-caching birds use spatial cognition to recover food stores and survive winter•Variation in cognitive phenotypes is associated with variation across the genome•Top outlier genes are associated with hippocampal development and function•Results link cognitive and genetic variation, making it available for selection Branch et al. find that individual variation in spatial cognition is associated with variation across the genome, showing that top outlier genes are associated with hippocampal development and function. This work is conducted on nonmigratory birds that use spatial learning and memory to relocate their food stores and survive harsh winters.