Effects of post-exposure anaesthesia on the retention of imprinting.

Chicks anesthetized immediately, 6 min or 15 min after the end of a 20-min imprinting session show significantly less following behavior than untreated controls, when tested 3 days later. The results are interpreted in terms of consolidation disruption, implying a consolidation period of at least 15-min duration for this type of perceptual learning.