[3H]SCH 23390 bound with high affinity (Kd = 0.6 nM) and in a saturable manner (Bmax = 130 fmol/mg protein) to membrane preparations of the chick optic lobe. Pharmacological experiments, using several dopaminergic ligands, revealed that [3H]SCH 23390 bound stereospecifically to dopaminergic receptors of the D1 type in this tissue. Other experiments revealed that dopamine was able to induce cyclic AMP accumulation in the optic lobe (ED50 = 3 microM), an effect that was blocked by fluphenazine, a potent D1 antagonist (IC50 = 1.8 microM). The developmental profile of tissue dopamine-dependent cyclic AMP accumulation, however, was quite different from the differentiation pattern of [3H]SCH 23390 specific binding sites. While [3H]SCH 23390 binding sites increased 4-fold after the 12th embryonic day (E12), dopamine-dependent cyclic AMP accumulation was maximal in earlier stages, decreasing progressively after E10. In tissues from embryos at E16 or older, no difference was observed between basal and dopamine-stimulated levels of cyclic AMP. These data suggest that D1 receptors are coupled to adenylate cyclase in a limited period of the development of the optic lobe and that D1 receptors not coupled to the enzyme can be a common feature in the CNS.