The auditory spatial acuity of the domestic cat in the inter aural horizontal and median vertical planes

Abstract

The auditory spatial acuity of the domestic cat in the interaural horizontal plane was examined using broadband noise and nine pure-tone stimuli ranging in frequency from 0.5 to 32 kHz. Acuity in the median vertical plane was also examined using broadband noise and three pure tones of frequencies 2, 8 and 16 kHz. Minimum audible angles (MAAs) for a reference source directly in front of an animal were measured in the horizontal plane for five cats and in the vertical plane for four. The smallest MAAs measured were those for the noise stimulus, for which MAAs in the horizontal and vertical planes were similar in magnitude. Horizontal plane MAAs for low-frequency tones were smaller than those for high, and the pattern of MAA change with frequency was consistent with the use of interaural phase and sound pressure level difference cues to localize low- and high-frequency tones, respectively. Three of the four cats trained on the vertical plane MAA task did not achieve criterion performance for any of the three pure tones, and the MAAs obtained from the fourth cat at each frequency were relatively large. Vertical plane performance was consistent with the use of spectral transformation cues to discern the elevation of a complex stimulus.