Pigeons were trained initially on a delayed matching task in which colors served as sample and comparison stimuli. During subsequent training, additional stimuli compounded with the sample signaled whether that trial involved a short (1 s) or a long (5 s) delay. In Experiment 1, occasional test trials were miscued (i.e., “short” cue-long delay, and “long” cue-short delay). Miscuing reduced accuracy at the short delay markedly and tended to increase accuracy at the long delay slightly. Additional experiments tested two theoretical accounts of the effects of cues correlated with retention interval length on matching accuracy. Experiments 2 and 3 revealed a robust effect of cuing when the cues followed sample termination, thereby refuting the view that such cues evoke differential attention to the sample stimulus. Experiments 4 and 5 failed to support the notion that such cues evoke differential postsample processing or rehearsal. Experiment 4 revealed that the cues did not influence rate of forgetting, and Experiment 5 revealed no effect of point of cue placement within the retention interval. It was concluded that cues correlated with retention interval length modulated matching accuracy independently of memory, perhaps by signaling different rates of reinforcement.