Successive Acquisitions and Extinctions with Goldfish (Carassius Auratus) in a Swimway Situation

Abstract

Goldfish were trained in a successive acquisition and extinction shuttle-swimway situation. Groups of 12 fish experienced alternating days of acquisition and extinction, extinction following immediately after each daily acquisition session, and acquisition following immediately after each daily extinction session. None of the groups produced decreasing resistance to extinction across extinctions within eight successive acquisitions and extinctions. A group of fish given 16 successive acquisitions and extinctions with alternating days of acquisition and extinction learned to decrease swimming speeds after eight successive extinctions. However, these fish also decreased acquisition speeds across the last 8 successive acquisitions.