The ‘cerebellum’ and the control of eye movements in cephalopods

THE cybernetic principles involved in the control of locomotion in vertebrates include feed-forward and feedback between the optic and vestibular systems, through a series of control centres, including the cerebellum. Cephalopod molluscs also show swift and well controlled locomotion and have eyes and static organs, but there is little detailed evidence as to how the information from these controls movement. The basal lobes of the supraoesophageal part of the brain are known to be higher motor centres, but this is, at best, a vague term. The new studies of these lobes and of the statocyst by my colleagues and I that are reported here show more clearly the part they play in the control of behaviour. Their organisation proves to be basically similar to that of the comparable systems of vertebrates.