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Choi N, Mathevon N, Hebets EA, Beauchaud M. Influence of ambient water coloration on habitat and conspecific choice in the female Lake Malawi cichlid, Metriaclima zebra. Curr Zool 2024; 70:214-224. [PMID: 38726246 PMCID: PMC11078059 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoad015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Female cichlid fish living in African great lakes are known to have sensory systems that are adapted to ambient light environments. These sensory system adaptations are hypothesized to have influenced the evolution of the diverse male nuptial coloration. In rock-dwelling Lake Malawi mbuna cichlids, however, the extent to which ambient light environments influence female sensory systems and potentially associated male nuptial coloration remains unknown. Yet, the ubiquitous blue flank coloration and UV reflection of male mbuna cichlids suggest the potential impacts of the blue-shifted ambient light environment on these cichlid's visual perception and male nuptial coloration in the shallow water depth in Lake Malawi. In the present study, we explored whether and how the sensory bias of females influences intersexual communication in the mbuna cichlid, Metriaclima zebra. A series of choice experiments in various light environments showed that M. zebra females 1) have a preference for the blue-shifted light environment, 2) prefer to interact with males in blue-shifted light environments, 3) do not show a preference between dominant and subordinate males in full-spectrum, long-wavelength filtered, and short-wavelength filtered light environments, and 4) show a "reversed" preference for subordinate males in the UV-filtered light environment. These results suggest that the visual perception of M. zebra females may be biased to the ambient light spectra in their natural habitat by local adaptation and that this sensory bias may influence the evolution of blue and UV reflective patterns in male nuptial coloration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noori Choi
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, USA
- ENES Bioacoustics Research Laboratory, CRNL, CNRS, Inserm, Université de Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France
- Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Nicolas Mathevon
- ENES Bioacoustics Research Laboratory, CRNL, CNRS, Inserm, Université de Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France
| | - Eileen A Hebets
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, USA
| | - Marilyn Beauchaud
- ENES Bioacoustics Research Laboratory, CRNL, CNRS, Inserm, Université de Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France
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Pauers MJ, Grudnowski JA. Assortative aggression among males in a sympatric pair of Labeotropheus from Lake Malaŵi, Africa. JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY 2020; 97:183-189. [PMID: 32293026 DOI: 10.1111/jfb.14346] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2020] [Revised: 04/04/2020] [Accepted: 04/05/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Female mate choice has strong experimental support as a diversifying force in the speciation of the haplochromine cichlid fishes of Lake Malaŵi, Africa. Somewhat less understood is the role that male-male aggression might have played in the evolution of new species of these fishes. In the rock-dwelling haplochromines of Lake Malaŵi, primarily territory-holding males successfully court females; by determining which males gain territories, male-male aggression could support speciation by excluding less-fit males from the breeding population. To test the hypothesis that males should direct more aggression towards conspecific rivals, the aggression directed towards conspecific and heterospecific opponents was compared in a sympatric pair of cichlids of the genus Labeotropheus Ahl 1927 (Labeotropheus fuelleborni Ahl 1927 and Labeotropheus trewavasae Fryer 1956). It was found that when presented with a pair of rivals, males of both species did direct more aggression towards the conspecific opponent, and the amount of aggression increased when the conspecific opponent was larger than the heterospecific opponent. In addition, this study found a difference in the behavioural repertoire of the species: L. fuelleborni tends to rely on displays to intimidate opponents, whereas L. trewavasae employs more physical attacks to drive away opponents. Males of both species can thus recognize conspecifics and assess an opponent's relative threat to their ability to successfully reproduce, and use species-specific strategies to intimidate opponents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael J Pauers
- Section of Vertebrate Zoology, Milwaukee Public Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
- Department of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee at Waukesha, Waukesha, Wisconsin, USA
- School of Freshwater Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Jacob A Grudnowski
- Department of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee at Waukesha, Waukesha, Wisconsin, USA
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Amorim MCP, Fonseca PJ, Mathevon N, Beauchaud M. Assessment of fighting ability in the vocal cichlid Metriaclima zebra in face of incongruent audiovisual information. Biol Open 2019; 8:8/12/bio043356. [PMID: 31852657 PMCID: PMC6955207 DOI: 10.1242/bio.043356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Information transfer between individuals typically depends on multiple sensory channels. Yet, how multi-sensory inputs shape adaptive behavioural decisions remains largely unexplored. We tested the relative importance of audio and visual sensory modalities in opponent size assessment in the vocal cichlid fish, Metriaclima zebra, by playing back mismatched agonistic sounds mimicking larger or smaller opponents during fights of size-matched males. Trials consisted in three 5-min periods: PRE (visual), PBK (acoustic+visual) and POST (visual). During PBK agonistic sounds of smaller (high frequency or low amplitude) or larger (low frequency or high amplitude) males were played back interactively. As a control, we used white noise and silence. We show that sound frequency but not amplitude affects aggression, indicating that spectral cues reliably signal fighting ability. In addition, males reacted to the contrasting audio-visual information by giving prevalence to the sensory channel signalling a larger opponent. Our results suggest that fish can compare the relevance of information provided by different sensory inputs to make behavioural decisions during fights, which ultimately contributes to their individual fitness. These findings have implications for our understanding of the role of multi-sensory inputs in shaping behavioural output during conflicts in vertebrates. Summary: Cichlid fish rely on the sensory channel indicating higher risk when facing incongruent visual and acoustic information during opponent assessment.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Clara P Amorim
- MARE-Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, ISPA-Instituto Universitário, 1149-041 Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Paulo J Fonseca
- Departamento de Biologia Animal and cE3c - Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Nicolas Mathevon
- Equipe de Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle ENES/CRNL, University of Lyon/Saint-Etienne, CNRS UMR5292, INSERM UMR_S 1028, 42023 Saint-Etienne, France
| | - Marilyn Beauchaud
- Equipe de Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle ENES/CRNL, University of Lyon/Saint-Etienne, CNRS UMR5292, INSERM UMR_S 1028, 42023 Saint-Etienne, France
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Chabrolles L, Ben Ammar I, Fernandez MS, Boyer N, Attia J, Fonseca PJ, Amorim MCP, Beauchaud M. Appraisal of unimodal cues during agonistic interactions in Maylandia zebra. PeerJ 2017; 5:e3643. [PMID: 28785523 PMCID: PMC5543927 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.3643] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2017] [Accepted: 07/12/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Communication is essential during social interactions including animal conflicts and it is often a complex process involving multiple sensory channels or modalities. To better understand how different modalities interact during communication, it is fundamental to study the behavioural responses to both the composite multimodal signal and each unimodal component with adequate experimental protocols. Here we test how an African cichlid, which communicates with multiple senses, responds to different sensory stimuli in a social relevant scenario. We tested Maylandia zebra males with isolated chemical (urine or holding water coming both from dominant males), visual (real opponent or video playback) and acoustic (agonistic sounds) cues during agonistic interactions. We showed that (1) these fish relied mostly on the visual modality, showing increased aggressiveness in response to the sight of a real contestant but no responses to urine or agonistic sounds presented separately, (2) video playback in our study did not appear appropriate to test the visual modality and needs more technical prospecting, (3) holding water provoked territorial behaviours and seems to be promising for the investigation into the role of the chemical channel in this species. Our findings suggest that unimodal signals are non-redundant but how different sensory modalities interplay during communication remains largely unknown in fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Chabrolles
- Equipe Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle, ENES/Neuro-PSI CNRS UMR 9197, Université de Lyon/Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France
| | - Imen Ben Ammar
- Equipe Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle, ENES/Neuro-PSI CNRS UMR 9197, Université de Lyon/Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France
| | - Marie S.A. Fernandez
- Equipe Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle, ENES/Neuro-PSI CNRS UMR 9197, Université de Lyon/Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France
- INRIA, Beagle, Université de Lyon, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Nicolas Boyer
- Equipe Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle, ENES/Neuro-PSI CNRS UMR 9197, Université de Lyon/Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France
| | - Joël Attia
- Equipe Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle, ENES/Neuro-PSI CNRS UMR 9197, Université de Lyon/Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France
| | - Paulo J. Fonseca
- Departamento de Biologia Animal and cE3c—Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - M. Clara P. Amorim
- MARE—Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, ISPA, Instituto Universitário, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Marilyn Beauchaud
- Equipe Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle, ENES/Neuro-PSI CNRS UMR 9197, Université de Lyon/Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France
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Greenberg J, Jordan RC, Sorensen AE. The effect of territory quality on female preference in Metriaclima zebra. Afr J Ecol 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/aje.12278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Joshua Greenberg
- Department of Ecology and Evolution; Rutgers University; 14 College Farm Road New Brunswick NJ 08901 U.S.A
| | - Rebecca C. Jordan
- Department of Ecology and Evolution; Rutgers University; 59 Lipman Drive Room 104 New Brunswick NJ 08901 U.S.A
| | - Amanda E. Sorensen
- Department of Ecology and Evolution; Rutgers University; 59 Lipman Drive Room 108 New Brunswick NJ 08901 U.S.A
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Selz OM, Pierotti MER, Maan ME, Schmid C, Seehausen O. Female preference for male color is necessary and sufficient for assortative mating in 2 cichlid sister species. Behav Ecol 2014. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/aru024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
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