Shortcutting from self-motion signals reveals a cognitive map in mice

Animals navigate by learning the spatial layout of their environment. We investigated spatial learning of mice in an open maze where food was hidden in one of a hundred holes. Mice leaving from a stable entrance learned to efficiently navigate to the food without the need for landmarks. We develop a quantitative framework to reveal how the mice estimate the food location based on analyses of trajectories and active hole checks. After learning, the computed ``target estimation vector’’ (TEV) closely approximated the mice’s trajectory and its hole check distribution. We propose that the TEV can be precisely connected to the properties of hippocampal place cells. Finally, we provide the first demonstration that, after learning the location of two food sites, the mice took a shortcut between the sites, demonstrating that they had generated a cognitive map.