Connections of the dorsomedial part of the nucleus intercollicularis in a male non-songbird, the Grey partridge: a tract-tracing study

Abstract

Vocal control systems have been poorly investigated in non-songbirds. In this study we describe descending neural pathways to the dorsomedial portion of the nucleus intercollicularis (ICo) in a galliform (male Grey partridges) by means of the DiI in vitro tracing technique. The simple and sex-dimorphic vocalizations of partridges, which have a critical role in sexual selection, favour this species as a model system for the study of vocal control mechanisms. Our data demonstrate that the ICo, an important site mediating the activation of vocal behavior in all birds, receives afferents from several important higher centers: the nucleus pretectalis, the tuberoinfundibular hypothalamic region, the dorsal thalamus, the preoptic region and the paleostriatal region. Efferent connections of the ICo were directed mainly to the hypothalamic area. This complex neural pathway is consistent with a major role of ICo in male courtship and vocal performance control.