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Perceptual sensitivity varies from moment to moment. One potential source of variability is spontaneous fluctuations in cortical activity that can travel as a wave. Spontaneous traveling waves have been reported during anesthesia, but questioned as to whether they are relevant to waking cortical function. Using newly developed analytic techniques, we find spontaneous waves of activity in extrastriate visual cortex of awake marmosets (Callithrix jacchus). In monkeys trained to detect faint visual targets, the timing and position of spontaneous traveling waves, prior to target onset, predict the magnitude of evoked activity and the likelihood of detection. In contrast, spatially disorganized fluctuations of neural activity are much less predictive. These results reveal an important role for spontaneous traveling waves in sensory processing through modulating neural and perceptual sensitivity.

Fluctuations in cortical activity often travel as waves, shape incoming sensory information, and affect conscious perception.