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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America logoLink to Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
. 1981 Jan;78(1):640–642. doi: 10.1073/pnas.78.1.640

One-trial associative learning modifies food odor preferences of a terrestrial mollusc

Christie Sahley *, Alan Gelperin *, Jerry W Rudy †,
PMCID: PMC319110  PMID: 16592960

Abstract

We present evidence of rapid and reliable associative learning by the terrestrial mollusc, Limax maximus. Slugs were exposed once to a pairing of a highly attractive food odor (potato or carrot) and a saturated solution of quinidine sulfate, a bitter-tasting plant substance. In comparison with control slugs, the exposed slugs subsequently displayed a markedly reduced preference for the odor paired with quinidine. This reduced odor preference was limited to the specific odor paired with quinidine and did not generalize to other food odors.

Keywords: conditioning, slug, Limax

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Selected References

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