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Culbert BM, Ligocki IY, Salena MG, Wong MYL, Hamilton IM, Bernier NJ, Balshine S. Social regulation of arginine vasopressin and oxytocin systems in a wild group-living fish. Horm Behav 2024; 161:105521. [PMID: 38452613 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2024.105521] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2023] [Revised: 02/09/2024] [Accepted: 02/26/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024]
Abstract
The neuropeptides arginine vasopressin (AVP) and oxytocin (OXT) are key regulators of social behaviour across vertebrates. However, much of our understanding of how these neuropeptide systems interact with social behaviour is centred around laboratory studies which fail to capture the social and physiological challenges of living in the wild. To evaluate relationships between these neuropeptide systems and social behaviour in the wild, we studied social groups of the cichlid fish Neolamprologus pulcher in Lake Tanganyika, Africa. We first used SCUBA to observe the behaviour of focal group members and then measured transcript abundance of key components of the AVP and OXT systems across different brain regions. While AVP is often associated with male-typical behaviours, we found that dominant females had higher expression of avp and its receptor (avpr1a2) in the preoptic area of the brain compared to either dominant males or subordinates of either sex. Dominant females also generally had the highest levels of leucyl-cystinyl aminopeptidase (lnpep)-which inactivates AVP and OXT-throughout the brain, potentially indicating greater overall activity (i.e., production, release, and turnover) of the AVP system in dominant females. Expression of OXT and its receptors did not differ across social ranks. However, dominant males that visited the brood chamber more often had lower preoptic expression of OXT receptor a (oxtra) suggesting a negative relationship between OXT signalling and parental care in males of this species. Overall, these results advance our understanding of the relationships between complex social behaviours and neuroendocrine systems under natural settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brett M Culbert
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.
| | - Isaac Y Ligocki
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA; Department of Biology, Millersville University, Millersville, PA, USA
| | - Matthew G Salena
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Marian Y L Wong
- School of Earth, Atmospheric and Life Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Ian M Hamilton
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA; Department of Mathematics, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - Nicholas J Bernier
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada
| | - Sigal Balshine
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
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2
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Stennette KA, Godwin JR. Estrogenic influences on agonistic behavior in teleost fishes. Horm Behav 2024; 161:105519. [PMID: 38452611 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2024.105519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2023] [Revised: 02/20/2024] [Accepted: 02/22/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024]
Abstract
Teleost fishes show an extraordinary diversity of sexual patterns, social structures, and sociosexual behaviors. Sex steroid hormones are key modulators of social behaviors in teleosts as in other vertebrates and act on sex steroid receptor-containing brain nuclei that form the evolutionarily conserved vertebrate social behavior network (SBN). Fishes also display important differences relative to tetrapod vertebrates that make them particularly well-suited to study the physiological mechanisms modulating social behavior. Specifically, fishes exhibit high levels of brain aromatization and have what has been proposed to be a lifelong, steroid hormone dependent plasticity in the neural substrates mediating sociosexual behavior. In this review, we examine how estrogenic signaling modulates sociosexual behaviors in teleosts with a particular focus on agonistic behavior. Estrogens have been shown to mediate agonistic behaviors in a broad range of fishes, from sexually monomorphic gonochoristic species to highly dimorphic sex changers with alternate reproductive phenotypes. These similarities across such diverse taxa contribute to a growing body of evidence that estrogens play a crucial role in the modulation of aggression in vertebrates. As analytical techniques and genomic tools rapidly advance, methods such as LC-MS/MS, snRNAseq, and CRISPR-based mutagenesis show great promise to further elucidate the mechanistic basis of estrogenic effects on social behavior in the diverse teleost lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine A Stennette
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
| | - John R Godwin
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA.
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3
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Carter G, Ward J. Independent and synergistic effects of microplastics and endocrine-disrupting chemicals on the reproductive social behavior of fathead minnows ( Pimephales promelas). Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e10846. [PMID: 38327688 PMCID: PMC10847624 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.10846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2023] [Revised: 12/11/2023] [Accepted: 12/18/2023] [Indexed: 02/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Microplastics (MPs) have become an environmental concern in recent years, with most research focused on the physiological effects of exposure. Comparatively little consideration has been given to the potential behavioral impacts of exposure, which may also have fitness consequences for individuals. Moreover, MPs can serve as vectors for endocrine-disrupting chemicals and other locally co-occurring contaminants known to impair behavioral responses. This project aimed to determine whether MPs alone or in association with a common environmental EDC (17-alpha ethinyl estradiol; EE2) alter reproductive behavior and decision-making in fish. Male and female fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) were exposed to MPs associated with either a low (10 ng/L; MPEE2 10) or high (50 ng/L, MPEE2 50) concentration of EE2, or MPs without EE2 (MPvirgin) for 30 days via a dietary feeding protocol. Behavioral trials were conducted on Day 31 to determine the effects of exposure on male-female social interactions. The expression of male sexually selected traits, including courtship, was unaffected by exposure. However, non-exposed females in all treatment groups trended toward discrimination against exposed males, which reached statistical significance for the MPEE2 50 group. Female fish exposed to MPs, alone or in association with EE2, were equally likely to approach and associate with non-exposed and exposed males. The results from this study suggest that MPs may alter social behavior in fishes and that the behavioral impacts of exposure may be more strongly pronounced in females than males. Such individual-level changes in fitness have the potential to impact population size, with downstream effects on the broader aquatic community.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grace Carter
- Biology DepartmentBall State UniversityMuncieIndianaUSA
| | - Jessica Ward
- Biology DepartmentBall State UniversityMuncieIndianaUSA
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4
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Muñoz-Arroyo S, Guerrero-Tortolero DA, Hernández-Olalde L, Balart EF. Bidirectional sex-change behavior and physiological aspects in the Gorgeous goby Lythrypnus pulchellus (Gobiidae). JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY 2024; 104:184-205. [PMID: 37779354 DOI: 10.1111/jfb.15573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2023] [Revised: 09/07/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 10/03/2023]
Abstract
The Gorgeous goby Lythrypnus pulchellus shows extreme sexual plasticity with the bidirectional sex-change ability socially controlled in adults. Therefore, this study describes how the hierarchical status affects hormone synthesis through newborn hormone waste products in water and tests the influence of body size and social dominance establishment in sex reversal duration and direction. The associated changes in behavior and hormone levels are described under laboratory conditions in male-male and female-female pairs of similar and different body sizes, recording the changes until spawning. The status establishment occurred in a relatively shorter time period in male and female pairs of different sizes (1-3 days) compared to those of similar size (3-5 days), but the earlier one did not significantly affect the overall time of sex change (verified by pair spawning). The changes in gonads, hormones, and papilla occurred in sex-changer individuals, but the first one was observed in behavior. Courtship started at 3-5 days in male pairs and from 2 h to 1 day in female pairs of both groups of different and similar sizes. Hormones did not gradually move in the new sexual phenotype direction during the sex-change time course. Nonetheless, estradiol regulated sex change and 11-ketotestosterone enabled bidirectional sex change and was modulated by agonistic interactions. Cortisol is associated with status and gonadal sex change. In general, similar mechanisms underlie sex change in both directions with a temporal change sequence in phases. These results shed new light on sex-change mechanisms. Further studies should be performed to determine whether these localized changes exist in the steroid hormone synthesis along the brain-pituitary gonad axis during social and bidirectional sex changes in L. pulchellus.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Eduardo F Balart
- Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas del Noroeste, S.C. (CIBNOR), La Paz, Mexico
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5
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Alex D, Cardoso SD, Ramos A, Gonçalves D. Behavioral and endocrine responses to noninteractive live and video conspecifics in males of the Siamese fighting fish. Curr Zool 2023; 69:568-577. [PMID: 37637314 PMCID: PMC10449422 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoac078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2022] [Accepted: 09/26/2022] [Indexed: 08/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The physiological mechanisms underlying variation in aggression in fish remain poorly understood. One possibly confounding variable is the lack of standardization in the type of stimuli used to elicit aggression. The presentation of controlled stimuli in videos, a.k.a. video playback, can provide better control of the fight components. However, this technique has produced conflicting results in animal behavior studies and needs to be carefully validated. For this, a similar response to the video and an equivalent live stimulus needs to be demonstrated. Further, different physiological responses may be triggered by live and video stimuli, and it is important to demonstrate that video images elicit appropriate physiological reactions. Here, the behavioral and endocrine responses of male Siamese fighting fish Betta splendens to a matched-for-size conspecific fighting behind a one-way mirror, presented live or through video playback, were compared. The video playback and live stimulus elicited a strong and similar aggressive response by the focal fish, with a fight structure that started with stereotypical threat displays and progressed to overt attacks. Postfight plasma levels of the androgen 11-ketotestosterone were elevated as compared to controls, regardless of the type of stimuli. Cortisol also increased in response to the video images, as previously described for live fights in this species. These results show that the interactive component of a fight and its resolution are not needed to trigger an endocrine response to aggression in this species. The study also demonstrates for the first time in a fish a robust endocrine response to video stimuli and supports the use of this technique for researching aggressive behavior in B. splendens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deepa Alex
- Institute of Science and Environment, University of Saint Joseph, Rua de Londres 106, Macao SAR, China
| | - Sara D Cardoso
- Institute of Science and Environment, University of Saint Joseph, Rua de Londres 106, Macao SAR, China
| | - Andreia Ramos
- Institute of Science and Environment, University of Saint Joseph, Rua de Londres 106, Macao SAR, China
| | - David Gonçalves
- Institute of Science and Environment, University of Saint Joseph, Rua de Londres 106, Macao SAR, China
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6
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Scaia MF, Trudeau VL, Somoza GM, Pandolfi M. Fighting cichlids: An integrated multimodal analysis to understand female and male aggression in Cichlasoma dimerus. Horm Behav 2023; 148:105301. [PMID: 36623433 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2022.105301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2022] [Revised: 12/17/2022] [Accepted: 12/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Aggression has been historically linked to males and androgen levels and, even if females from different species also display aggressive behavior, female aggression is still widely understudied. The aim of the present work is to disentangle how sex differences in social plasticity can be explained by sex steroid hormone levels, gonadal state and/or morphometric characteristics. In this context, we performed intrasexual dyadic encounters to identify social plasticity after acquiring a winner or loser status in males and females of Cichlasoma dimerus. This integral analysis suggests that the reproductive and hormonal variables analyzed explain the behavioral variation among winner and loser males and females, and that there are significant differences between sexes and contest outcome when individual morphometric variables are excluded from the analysis. Interestingly, there are no sex differences in aggressive and submissive behaviors, and clustering into winners and losers is mainly explained by specific behavioral displays, such as bites, chases, approaches, passive copings, and escapes. Correlation heatmaps show a positive correlation between estradiol with aggression and a negative correlation with submission, suggesting estrogens may have a dual role regulating agonistic behavior. Finally, these results suggest that size difference can help to understand aggression in females but not in males, and that assessment of the opponent's body size is important to understand aggression also before the initiation of the contest in both sexes. Overall, this study constitutes an integral approach adding insights into the importance of reproductive and hormonal variables to understand social plasticity in males and females.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Florencia Scaia
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada, CONICET, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Vance L Trudeau
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario K1N 6N5, Canada
| | - Gustavo Manuel Somoza
- Instituto Tecnológico de Chascomús (CONICET-UNSAM), Chascomús, Argentina; Escuela de Bio y Nanotecnologías (UNSAM). Argentina
| | - Matías Pandolfi
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada, CONICET, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
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7
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Cavallino L, Rincón L, Scaia MF. Social behaviors as welfare indicators in teleost fish. Front Vet Sci 2023; 10:1050510. [PMID: 37168096 PMCID: PMC10164990 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1050510] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2022] [Accepted: 04/06/2023] [Indexed: 05/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Animal welfare is a key issue not only for aquaculture industry and food production, but also for daily husbandry practices in research topics related to physiology in wild and farmed animals. In this context, teleost fish constitute interesting models to assess alternative welfare indicators because of their wide diversity in reproductive and social structures. Any framework for assessing teleost fish welfare needs to account for the physiological mechanisms involved in each species as a first step. A comprehensive approach should also take into account how these physiological and behavioral parameters can be altered by environmental enrichment considering the specific requirements in each case and identifying intrinsic biological characteristics of individual species. This review will show how cortisol and sex steroids regulate social behavior in teleost fish, and how different aspects of social behavior can be employed as welfare indicators according to specific characteristics in each case. This article will consider evidence in teleost fish, including cichlids, characids and cyprinids with different reproductive strategies and social structures (e.g., territorial social hierarchies or shoaling behavior). Neotropical species will be particularly emphasized. The main laboratory-based animal welfare indicators are cortisol, a classical stress hormone, together with sex steroids. Considering that the endocrine landscape is intrinsically related to social behavior, reproductive and agonistic behavioral traits such as aggression, anxiety and courtship are key elements to assess welfare under housing and culture conditions. This review highlights the importance of assessing physiological mechanisms and identifying behavioral characteristics in teleost fish, especially in Neotropical species, as a baseline to understand which environmental enrichment can improve animal welfare in each individual species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luciano Cavallino
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada – CONICET, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Laura Rincón
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada – CONICET, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - María Florencia Scaia
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada – CONICET, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- *Correspondence: María Florencia Scaia,
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8
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Manara V, Ruberto T, Swaney WT, Reddon AR. Subordinate submissive responses are predicted by dominant behaviour in a cooperatively breeding fish. BEHAVIOUR 2022. [DOI: 10.1163/1568539x-bja10192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
In complex social groups, animals rely on communication to facilitate priority access to resources and minimise the costs of conflict. Animals typically have more aggression signals than submission signals. However, some social species do show multiple submission signals, and the context in which these different signals are used is often not well understood. In the current study, we assessed agonistic interactions within groups of the cooperatively breeding daffodil cichlid fish (Neolamprologus pulcher) to investigate the relationship between the aggressive behaviours of the dominant breeding pair, and the submissive responses of the highest ranked subordinate within the group. Daffodil cichlids may respond to aggression by fleeing or by the production of either a tail quiver display or a head up display. Among the two submission signals, the tail quiver display was used more frequently in response to a threat display, while head up displays were produced approximately equally in response to both threat displays and overt aggression. An exaggerated version of the head up display was given more often in response to overt aggression, suggesting a graded submissive response both within and between the two submission signals. Within fish, the frequency of head up displays, but not tail quiver displays, correlated positively with the frequency of threat displays received. The current study helps us to better understand the use of submission signals in a highly social vertebrate and sheds light on submission as an understudied aspect of communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronica Manara
- School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK
| | - Tommaso Ruberto
- School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK
| | - William T. Swaney
- School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK
| | - Adam R. Reddon
- School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK
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9
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Drea CM, Davies CS. Meerkat manners: Endocrine mediation of female dominance and reproductive control in a cooperative breeder. Horm Behav 2022; 145:105245. [PMID: 35988450 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2022.105245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2022] [Revised: 07/18/2022] [Accepted: 08/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
This article is part of a Special Issue (Hormones and Hierarchies). To gain more balanced understanding of sexual selection and mammalian sexual differentiation processes, this review addresses behavioral sex differences and hormonal mediators of intrasexual competition in the meerkat (Suricata suricatta) - a cooperative breeder unusual among vertebrates in its female aggression, degree of reproductive skew, and phenotypic divergence. Focused on the evolution, function, mechanism, and development of female dominance, the male remains a key reference point throughout. Integrated review of endocrine function does not support routine physiological suppression in subordinates of either sex, but instead a ramp up of weight, reproduction, aggression, and sex steroids, particularly androgens, in dominant females. Important and timely questions about female competition are thus addressed by shifting emphasis from mediators of reproductive suppression to mediators of reproductive control, and from organizational and activational roles of androgens in males to their roles in females. Unusually, we ask not only how inequity is maintained, but how dominance is acquired within a lifetime and across generations. Antiandrogens administered in the field to males and pregnant dominant females confirm the importance of androgen-mediated food competition. Moreover, effects of maternal endocrine milieu on offspring development reveal a heritable, androgenic route to female aggression, likely promoting reproductive priority along dominant matrilines. Integrating endocrine measures with long-term behavioral, ecological, morphological, and life-history data on normative and experimental individuals, across life stages and generations, provides better appreciation of the role of naturally circulating androgens in regulating the female phenotype, and sheds new light on the evolution of female dominance, reproductive inequity, and cooperative breeding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christine M Drea
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708-0383, USA; Kalahari Research Trust, Kuruman River Reserve, Northern Cape, South Africa.
| | - Charli S Davies
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708-0383, USA; Kalahari Research Trust, Kuruman River Reserve, Northern Cape, South Africa
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10
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Maruska KP, Anselmo CM, King T, Mobley RB, Ray EJ, Wayne R. Endocrine and neuroendocrine regulation of social status in cichlid fishes. Horm Behav 2022; 139:105110. [PMID: 35065406 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2022.105110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2021] [Revised: 12/28/2021] [Accepted: 01/04/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Position in a dominance hierarchy profoundly impacts group members' survival, health, and reproductive success. Thus, understanding the mechanisms that regulate or are associated with an individuals' social position is important. Across taxa, various endocrine and neuroendocrine signaling systems are implicated in the control of social rank. Cichlid fishes, with their often-limited resources of food, shelter, and mates that leads to competition, have provided important insights on the proximate and ultimate mechanisms related to establishment and maintenance of dominance hierarchies. Here we review the existing information on the relationships between endocrine (e.g., circulating hormones, gonadal and other tissue measures) and neuroendocrine (e.g., central neuropeptides, biogenic amines, steroids) systems and dominant and subordinate social rank in male cichlids. Much of the current literature is focused on only a few representative cichlids, particularly the African Astatotilapia burtoni, and several other African and Neotropical species. Many hormonal regulators show distinct differences at multiple biological levels between dominant and subordinate males, but generalizations are complicated by variations in experimental paradigms, methodological approaches, and in the reproductive and parental care strategies of the study species. Future studies that capitalize on the diversity of hierarchical structures among cichlids should provide insights towards better understanding the endocrine and neuroendocrine mechanisms contributing to social rank. Further, examination of this topic in cichlids will help reveal the selective pressures driving the evolution of endocrine-related phenotypic traits that may facilitate an individual's ability to acquire and maintain a specific social rank to improve survival and reproductive success.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen P Maruska
- Department of Biological Sciences, 202 Life Sciences Bldg., Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, United States of America.
| | - Chase M Anselmo
- Department of Biological Sciences, 202 Life Sciences Bldg., Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, United States of America
| | - Teisha King
- Department of Biological Sciences, 202 Life Sciences Bldg., Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, United States of America
| | - Robert B Mobley
- Department of Biological Sciences, 202 Life Sciences Bldg., Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, United States of America
| | - Emily J Ray
- Department of Biological Sciences, 202 Life Sciences Bldg., Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, United States of America
| | - Rose Wayne
- Department of Biological Sciences, 202 Life Sciences Bldg., Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, United States of America
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11
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Swank A, Blevins K, Bourne A, Ward J. Do microplastics impair male dominance interactions in fish? A test of the vector hypothesis. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e8620. [PMID: 35222975 PMCID: PMC8848457 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2021] [Revised: 01/16/2022] [Accepted: 01/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Microplastics (MPs) are widespread in aquatic environments and have become a critical environmental issue in recent years due to their adverse impacts on the physiology, reproduction, and survival of aquatic animals. Exposure to MPs also has the potential to induce sub‐lethal behavioral changes that can affect individual fitness, but these effects are understudied. Many plastic additives introduced during the manufacture of MPs are known endocrine‐disrupting chemicals (EDCs) that mimic the action of natural hormones, alter sexual and competitive behavior, and impair reproductive success in fish. In addition, EDCs and other aquatic contaminants may adhere to MPs in the environment, the latter of which may serve as transport vectors for these compounds (i.e., the vector hypothesis). In this study, we staged territorial contests between control males, and males exposed to virgin MP particles or to MPs previously immersed in one of two environmentally relevant concentrations of 17‐alpha ethinyl estradiol (EE2; 5 ng/L and 25 ng/L) to evaluate the independent and synergistic effects of exposure to MPs and a common environmental estrogen on male–male aggression and competitive territory acquisition in a freshwater fish, Pimephales promelas. Short‐term (30 days) dietary exposure to MPs did not impair the ability of males to successfully compete for and obtain a breeding territory. Overall levels of aggression in control and exposed males were also similar across trial series. These results help to fill a critical knowledge gap regarding the direct and indirect (vector‐borne) effects of MPs on the reproductive behavior of aquatic vertebrates in freshwater systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ally Swank
- Department of Biology Ball State University Muncie Indiana USA
| | - Kadijah Blevins
- Department of Biology Ball State University Muncie Indiana USA
| | - Abby Bourne
- Department of Biology Ball State University Muncie Indiana USA
| | - Jessica Ward
- Department of Biology Ball State University Muncie Indiana USA
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12
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Akian DD, Yao K, Parmentier E, Clota F, Baroiller JF, Bégout ML. Familiarity reduces aggression but does not modify acoustic communication in pairs of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and black-chinned tilapia (Sarotherodon melanotheron). JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY 2022; 100:561-573. [PMID: 34842286 DOI: 10.1111/jfb.14967] [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: 07/01/2021] [Revised: 11/15/2021] [Accepted: 11/23/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Reproduction involves multiple complex behaviours, and the effects of familiarity on such social interactions are seldom described in fish. This is particularly true for sound production and communication within aggressive or non-aggressive context. This study explores the effects of a common garden rearing without parental care of two closely related cichlid species (Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus and black-chinned tilapia Sarotherodon melanotheron) on their sound production features and social interactions. After 9 months in common garden rearing, from embryonic stage to first maturity, sound production and associated behaviours were recorded on specimens of the two species in intraspecific and interspecific pairings. The authors found that fish were able to produce the same kind of sounds as those recorded in similar context for their parents. Drum sounds were associated to chasing, lateral attack and courtship in O. niloticus and only to fleeing or avoidance in S. melanotheron. Specific grunts were produced in chasing, after biting and in nest building by O. niloticus, and specific rolling sounds were associated to courtship in S. melanotheron. Sound production and behaviours were not correlated to sex steroid levels, but the number of sounds recorded in aggressive context was correlated to dominance in O. niloticus. The authors conclude that one generation of common garden rearing does not modify sound features, which remain specific and innate in the two cichlids. Despite the familiarity, O. niloticus remained dominant on S. melanotheron, but the aggressiveness between the two species decreased.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dieudonné Djétouan Akian
- Département Eaux, Forêts et Environnement, Institut National Polytechnique Félix Houphouët Boigny, Yamoussoukro, Côte d'Ivoire
- Laboratoire de Biologie et Cytologie Animales, Unité de Formation et de Recherche Science de la Nature, Université NANGUI ABROGOUA, Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire
- MARBEC, Université Montpellier, CNRS, Ifremer, IRD, Palavas-les-Flots, France
| | - Kouakou Yao
- Laboratoire de Biologie et Cytologie Animales, Unité de Formation et de Recherche Science de la Nature, Université NANGUI ABROGOUA, Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire
| | - Eric Parmentier
- Laboratoire de Morphologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, AFFISH, Institut de chimie-B6C, Université de Liège, Liège, Belgium
| | - Frédéric Clota
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, GABI, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Jean-François Baroiller
- Unité Mixte de Recherche 116, Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier, Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement, Campus International de Baillarguet, Montpellier, France
- Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier Centre, National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Marie-Laure Bégout
- MARBEC, Université Montpellier, CNRS, Ifremer, IRD, Palavas-les-Flots, France
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13
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Antioxidant capacity differs across social ranks and with ascension in males of a group-living fish. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2021; 265:111126. [PMID: 34906630 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2021.111126] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2021] [Revised: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 12/07/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Animals that live in groups often form hierarchies in which an individual's behaviour and physiology varies based on their social rank. Occasionally, a subordinate can ascend into a dominant position and the ascending individual must make rapid behavioural and physiological adjustments to solidify their dominance. These periods of social transition and instability can be stressful and ascending individuals often incur large metabolic costs that could influence their oxidative status. Most previous investigations examining the link between oxidative status and the social environment have done so under stable social conditions and have evaluated oxidative status in a single tissue. Therefore, evaluations of how oxidative status is regulated across multiple tissues during periods of social flux would greatly enhance our understanding of the relationship between oxidative status and the social environment. Here, we assessed how antioxidant capacity in three tissues (brain, gonad, and muscle) varied among dominant, subordinate, and ascending males of the group-living cichlid fish, Neolamprologus pulcher. Antioxidant capacity in the brain and muscle of ascending males was intermediate to that of dominant (highest levels) and subordinate males (lowest levels) and correlated with differences in social and locomotor behaviours, respectively. Gonad antioxidant capacity was lower in ascending males than in dominant males. However, gonad antioxidant capacity was positively correlated with the size of ascending males' gonads suggesting that ascending males may increase gonad antioxidant capacity as they develop their gonads. Overall, our results highlight the widespread physiological consequences of social ascension and emphasize the importance of tissue-specific measures of oxidative status.
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Freret‐Meurer NV, Andreata JV, Alves MAS. Agonistic behaviour in the long‐snout seahorse: A gentlemanly challenge. Ethology 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.13216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Natalie Villar Freret‐Meurer
- Graduate Program in Ecology and Evolution Roberto Alcantara Gomes Institute of Biology (IBRAG) Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ Rio de Janeiro RJ Brazil
- Laboratory of Animal Behaviour and Conservation Universidade Santa Úrsula Rio de Janeiro RJ Brazil
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15
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Reyes F, Quintana L, Tassino B. Association of androgens and estrogens with agonistic behavior in the annual fish Austrolebias reicherti. Horm Behav 2021; 136:105064. [PMID: 34653914 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2021.105064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2020] [Revised: 09/10/2021] [Accepted: 09/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Agonistic behavior governs the settlement of conflicts among conspecifics for limiting resources. Sex steroids play a critical role in the regulation of agonistic behavior which in turn may produce modulations in hormone titres. In this study we analyzed the association of androgens and estrogens with agonistic behavior in the annual fish Austrolebias reicherti. This native species inhabits temporary ponds that dry out completely during summer, having one of the shortest lifespans among vertebrates. They are highly sexually dimorphic and have a single breeding season during which they reproduce continuously. Here we measured plasma levels of 11-ketotestosterone (11KT) and 17β-estradiol (E2) in adult males after the resolution of a social conflict and assessed the role of the aromatase conversion of testosterone (T) to E2 in male aggression. Winners had higher levels of 11KT than losers yet; winner 11KT levels did not differ from those of males not exposed to a social challenge. E2 levels did not show differences among winners, losers or control males. However, fights under the aromatase inhibitor Fadrozole were overall less aggressive than control fights. Our results suggest an androgen response to losing a conflict and that the conversion of T to E2 is involved in the regulation of aggressive behavior. Annual fish extreme life history may give new insights on hormone-behavior interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federico Reyes
- Sección Etología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Uruguay; Bases Neurales de la Conducta, Departamento de Neurofisiología Molecular y Celular, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Ministerio de Educación y Cultura, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Laura Quintana
- Bases Neurales de la Conducta, Departamento de Neurofisiología Molecular y Celular, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Ministerio de Educación y Cultura, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Bettina Tassino
- Sección Etología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Uruguay.
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16
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Leese JM, Blatt T. Sex Differences in How Territory Quality Affects Aggression in Convict Cichlids. Integr Org Biol 2021; 3:obab028. [PMID: 34671717 PMCID: PMC8522484 DOI: 10.1093/iob/obab028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2021] [Revised: 08/23/2021] [Accepted: 09/28/2021] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
In animal contests, the value an individual assigns to limited resources can directly impact the level of aggression it demonstrates. For territorial species, individuals often assess their territory quality and appropriately modify the time and energy invested in its defense. In this study, male and female convict cichlids, Amatitlania nigrofasciata, were acclimated to one of three territorial treatments representing either a low, medium, or high resource value. Territories with a “Low Value” included substrate alone, “Medium Value” territories included substrate and a nest site, and a “High Value” territory included substrate, a nest site, and constant food source. After three days of acclimation, a size-matched intruder was introduced to elicit territorial aggression and behaviors were observed. Territory quality affected one measure of low-intensity aggression (displays) in residents but had no effect on high-intensity aggression (bites and chases). Moreover, there was a significant effect of sex, with males and females differing in the types of aggressive behaviors demonstrated across all treatments. Females showed more low-intensity aggressive behaviors toward intruders than males did. Additionally, a significant interaction of sex and territory quality was observed on two measures of high-intensity aggressive behavior (bites and chases), with females more likely than males to increase aggressive behaviors along with increasing territory quality. This suggests that females may be more sensitive and/or responsive to changes in the quality of a territory, possibly due to the necessity of a suitable nest site for egg deposition within a territory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph M Leese
- Department of Biology, DeSales University, 2755 Station Avenue, Center Valley, PA 18034, USA
| | - T Blatt
- Department of Biology, DeSales University, 2755 Station Avenue, Center Valley, PA 18034, USA
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17
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Hubená P, Horký P, Slavík O. Fish self-awareness: limits of current knowledge and theoretical expectations. Anim Cogn 2021; 25:447-461. [PMID: 34655023 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-021-01566-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2021] [Revised: 09/15/2021] [Accepted: 10/08/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Animal self-awareness is divided into three levels: bodily, social, and introspective self-awareness. Research has focused mainly on the introspection of so-called higher organisms such as mammals. Herein, we turn our attention to fish and provide opinions on their self-awareness based on a review of the scientific literature. Our specific aims are to discuss whether fish (A) could have a neural substrate supporting self-awareness and whether they display signs of (B) social and (C) introspective self-awareness. The present knowledge does not exclude the possibility that fish could have a simple neocortex or other structures that support certain higher cognitive processes, as the function of the primate cerebral cortex can be replaced by other neurological structures. Fish are known to display winner, loser, and audience effects, which could be interpreted as signs of social self-awareness. The audience effect may be explained not only by ethological cost and benefit theory but also by the concept of public self-awareness, which comes from human studies. The behavioural and neural manifestations of depression may be induced in fish under social subordination and may be viewed as certain awareness of a social status. The current findings on fish introspective self-awareness have been debated in the scientific community and, therefore, demand replication to provide more evidence. Further research is needed to verify the outlined ideas; however, the current knowledge indicates that fish are capable of certain higher cognitive processes, which raises questions and implications regarding ethics and welfare in fish-related research and husbandry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pavla Hubená
- Department of Zoology and Fisheries, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, Prague 6, 165 00, Suchdol, Czech Republic.
| | - Pavel Horký
- Department of Zoology and Fisheries, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, Prague 6, 165 00, Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Ondřej Slavík
- Department of Zoology and Fisheries, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, Prague 6, 165 00, Suchdol, Czech Republic
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Raab T, Bayezit S, Erdle S, Benda J. Electrocommunication signals indicate motivation to compete during dyadic interactions of an electric fish. J Exp Biol 2021; 224:271940. [PMID: 34431494 PMCID: PMC8541736 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.242905] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2021] [Accepted: 08/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Animals across species compete for limited resources. Whereas in some species competition behavior is solely based on the individual's own abilities, other species assess their opponents to facilitate these interactions. Using cues and communication signals, contestants gather information about their opponent, adjust their behavior accordingly, and can thereby avoid high costs of escalating fights. We tracked electrocommunication signals known as ‘rises’ and agonistic behaviors of the gymnotiform electric fish Apteronotus leptorhynchus in staged competition experiments. A larger body size relative to the opponent was the sole significant predictor for winners. Sex and the frequency of the continuously emitted electric field only mildly influenced competition outcome. In males, correlations of body size and winning were stronger than in females and, especially when losing against females, communication and agonistic interactions were enhanced, suggesting that males are more motivated to compete. Fish that lost competitions emitted the majority of rises, but their quantity depended on the competitors’ relative size and sex. The emission of a rise could be costly since it provoked ritualized biting or chase behaviors by the other fish. Despite winners being accurately predictable based on the number of rises after the initial 25 min, losers continued to emit rises. The number of rises emitted by losers and the duration of chase behaviors depended in similar ways on physical attributes of contestants. Detailed evaluation of these correlations suggests that A. leptorhynchus adjusts its competition behavior according to mutual assessment, where rises could signal a loser's motivation to continue assessment through ritualized fighting. Summary: Electric fish adjust their competition behavior according to mutual assessment, where electrocommunication with so-called ‘rises’ could signal a loser's motivation to continue assessment through ritualized fighting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Till Raab
- Institute for Neurobiology, Neuroethology Lab, Eberhard Karls Universität, 72076 Tübingen, Germany.,Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, Eberhard Karls Universität, 72078 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Sercan Bayezit
- Institute for Neurobiology, Neuroethology Lab, Eberhard Karls Universität, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Saskia Erdle
- Institute for Neurobiology, Neuroethology Lab, Eberhard Karls Universität, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Jan Benda
- Institute for Neurobiology, Neuroethology Lab, Eberhard Karls Universität, 72076 Tübingen, Germany.,Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, Eberhard Karls Universität, 72078 Tübingen, Germany.,Bernstein Centre for Computational Neuroscience, Eberhard Karls Universität, 72078 Tübingen, Germany
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19
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Pandolfi M, Scaia MF, Fernandez MP. Sexual Dimorphism in Aggression: Sex-Specific Fighting Strategies Across Species. Front Behav Neurosci 2021; 15:659615. [PMID: 34262439 PMCID: PMC8273308 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.659615] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2021] [Accepted: 06/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Aggressive behavior is thought to have evolved as a strategy for gaining access to resources such as territory, food, and potential mates. Across species, secondary sexual characteristics such as competitive aggression and territoriality are considered male-specific behaviors. However, although female–female aggression is often a behavior that is displayed almost exclusively to protect the offspring, multiple examples of female–female competitive aggression have been reported in both invertebrate and vertebrate species. Moreover, cases of intersexual aggression have been observed in a variety of species. Genetically tractable model systems such as mice, zebrafish, and fruit flies have proven extremely valuable for studying the underlying neuronal circuitry and the genetic architecture of aggressive behavior under laboratory conditions. However, most studies lack ethological or ecological perspectives and the behavioral patterns available are limited. The goal of this review is to discuss each of these forms of aggression, male intrasexual aggression, intersexual aggression and female intrasexual aggression in the context of the most common genetic animal models and discuss examples of these behaviors in other species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matias Pandolfi
- Department of Biodiversity and Experimental Biology, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Maria Florencia Scaia
- Department of Biodiversity and Experimental Biology, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Maria Paz Fernandez
- Department of Neuroscience and Behavior, Barnard College of Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
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20
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Castillo Y, Arce E. Female preference for dominant males in the Mexican mojarra cichlid fish, Cichlasoma istlanum. JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY 2021; 98:189-195. [PMID: 32997364 DOI: 10.1111/jfb.14569] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2020] [Revised: 09/20/2020] [Accepted: 09/28/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
It is widely assumed that female preference and male competition operate simultaneously during sexual selection. Dominance is likely an honest indicator of male quality, and females can identify and choose the dominant male to reproduce with individuals with greater competitive abilities, thus improving the quality and competitiveness of their offspring. In this context, few studies have investigated female preference in relation to male fighting ability. The Mexican mojarra, Cichlasoma istlanum, is a cichlid species native to the Balsas River basin. It is territorial during reproduction and provides parental care. Males commonly engage in territorial defence, whereas females care directly for offspring. This study examined whether females prefer dominant males that exhibit more aggressive behaviour. The authors conducted experiments using groups of two males and one female to test competitive ability in males and female preference. They also quantified the time during which the female associated with the dominant male and the subordinate male after observing the outcome of a fight between the two males. They found that Mexican mojarra females preferred dominant males and that the time females spent associating with males was positively related with their aggressive behaviours during competition. These results indicate that dominant males were more attractive than subordinate males to female Mexican mojarra. The relationship between female preference and male dominance in the Mexican mojarra demonstrates the importance of male competitive ability for future parental care in reproduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuritzi Castillo
- Maestría en Biología Integrativa de la Biodiversidad y la Conservación, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Cuernavaca, Morelos, México
| | - Elsah Arce
- Laboratorio de Acuicultura, Departamento de Hidrobiología, Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Cuernavaca, Morelos, México
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21
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Horita J, Iwasa Y, Tachiki Y. Positive Feedback between Behavioral and Hormonal Dynamics Leads to Differentiation of Life-History Tactics. Am Nat 2020; 196:679-689. [PMID: 33211570 DOI: 10.1086/711414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
AbstractCompetitive interaction among individuals of a single population may result in the differentiation of two or more distinct life-history tactics. For example, although they exhibit unimodal size distribution, male juveniles of salmonids differentiate into those going down to the ocean to grow and returning to the natal stream after several years to reproduce (migratory tactic) and those staying in the stream and reproducing for multiple years (resident tactic). In this study, we developed a simple mathematical model for the positive feedback between hormonal and behavioral dynamics, with the expectation of establishing multiple discrete clusters of hormone levels leading to differentiation of life-history tactics. The assumptions were that probability of winning in fighting depends both on the body size and hormone level of the two contestants. An individual with a higher hormone level would be more likely to win the competition, which further enhanced hormone production, forming a positive feedback loop between hormone level and fighting ability. If the positive feedback was strong but not excessive, discrete clusters of hormone levels emerged from a continuous distribution. In contrast, no clear clustering structure appeared in the distribution of hormone levels if the probability of winning in fighting was controlled by the body size.
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22
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Akian DD, Yao K, Parmentier E, Joassard L, Clota F, Baroiller JF, Lozano P, Chatain B, Bégout ML. Acoustic signals produced by Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus and black-chinned tilapia Sarotherodon melanotheron during intra- and interspecific pairings. ZOOLOGY 2020; 143:125831. [PMID: 32949976 DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2020.125831] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2020] [Revised: 07/20/2020] [Accepted: 07/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
We characterised, for the first-time, the sound production of black-chinned tilapia Sarotherodon melanotheron and show differences with that of Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus in a hybridization pairing context. Although both species were able to produce drum sounds, they showed different acoustic features. Drum sounds were produced in aggressive (chasing or lateral attack) and non-aggressive (courtship) contexts by O. niloticus but only in aggressive situations (fleeing or avoidance) by S. melanotheron. The second type of sounds produced by O. niloticus were grunts, produced in both aggressive (chasing and after biting) and non-aggressive contexts (nest building). The second type of sound produced by S. melanotheron was a rolling sound, produced only during courtship. Each species was able to produce common sounds (drum) and species-specific sounds (grunts and rolling). This implies that species can communicate without being able to understand each other because the sounds emitted may probably have different significance. Drumming corresponded only to aggressivity in S. melanotheron, whereas this was not true for O. niloticus. 11-ketotestosterone (11-kt) levels were significantly higher in male O. niloticus than male S. melanotheron, but there was no significant correlation between 11-kt or estradiol concentrations and the number of sounds produced in aggressive or non-aggressive behavioural contexts in either species. During interspecies interactions, O. niloticus drum sounds are likely considered to be aggressive by S. melanotheron and could potentially constitute a reproductive barrier between the two species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dieudonné Djétouan Akian
- Département Eaux, Forêts et Environnement, Institut National Polytechnique Félix Houphouët Boigny, BP 1313, Yamoussoukro, Cote d'Ivoire; Laboratoire de Biologie et Cytologie Animales, Unité de Formation et de Recherche Science de la Nature, Université Nangui-Abrogoua, 02 BP 801, Abidjan 02, Cote d'Ivoire; Laboratoire Ressources Halieutiques, Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer, L'Houmeau, 17137, France
| | - Kouakou Yao
- Laboratoire de Biologie et Cytologie Animales, Unité de Formation et de Recherche Science de la Nature, Université Nangui-Abrogoua, 02 BP 801, Abidjan 02, Cote d'Ivoire
| | - Eric Parmentier
- Laboratoire de Morphologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, AFFISH, Institut de chimie- B6C, Université de Liège, Sart Tilman, 4000, Liège, Belgium
| | - Lucette Joassard
- Laboratoire Ressources Halieutiques, Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer, L'Houmeau, 17137, France
| | - Frédéric Clota
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, GABI, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Jean-François Baroiller
- Unité Mixte de Recherche 116, Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier, Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement, Montpellier, France
| | - Paul Lozano
- Unité Mixte de Recherche 116, Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier, Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement, Montpellier, France
| | - Béatrice Chatain
- MARBEC, Université Montpellier, CNRS, Ifremer, IRD, Chemin de Maguelone, 34250, Palavas-les-Flots, France
| | - Marie-Laure Bégout
- Laboratoire Ressources Halieutiques, Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer, L'Houmeau, 17137, France; MARBEC, Université Montpellier, CNRS, Ifremer, IRD, Chemin de Maguelone, 34250, Palavas-les-Flots, France.
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23
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Sokołowska E, Gozdowska M, Kulczykowska E. Social context affects aggression and brain vasotocin and isotocin level in the round goby. FISH PHYSIOLOGY AND BIOCHEMISTRY 2020; 46:641-652. [PMID: 31834553 DOI: 10.1007/s10695-019-00741-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2019] [Accepted: 12/02/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
On the wild spawning grounds, the round gobies Neogobius melanostomus are subjected to different social cues, such as sex-separation and high fish density. We designed an experiment to stimulate natural social stress when fish are separated from opposite sex individuals and exposed to close proximity of same-sex conspecifics. We examined the effects of different sex compositions on aggressiveness and brain concentrations of arginine vasotocin (AVT) and isotocin (IT), as AVT and IT are known to be involved in aggressive interactions during reproduction. The round gobies were kept in three experimental groups: same-sex groups broken down into male-only and female-only groups and mixed-sex groups. In this study, males and females from same-sex groups showed overt aggression and competition. Separation stress stimulated aggressive responses in both sexes, but the link between brain AVT and IT concentration and aggressive behavior was evident only in male-only group. In the male-only group, AVT and IT levels were the highest. This study shows that sex composition of the social environment can affect aggressive behavior as well as AVT and IT concentration in the whole brain of the round goby.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ewa Sokołowska
- Department of Genetics and Marine Biotechnology, Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences, ul. Powstańców Warszawy 55, 81-712, Sopot, Poland.
| | - Magdalena Gozdowska
- Department of Genetics and Marine Biotechnology, Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences, ul. Powstańców Warszawy 55, 81-712, Sopot, Poland
| | - Ewa Kulczykowska
- Department of Genetics and Marine Biotechnology, Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences, ul. Powstańców Warszawy 55, 81-712, Sopot, Poland
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24
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Nugent BM, Stiver KA, Hofmann HA, Alonzo SH. Experimentally induced variation in neuroendocrine processes affects male reproductive behaviour, sperm characteristics and social interactions. Mol Ecol 2019; 28:3464-3481. [PMID: 30586201 DOI: 10.1111/mec.14999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2018] [Revised: 11/17/2018] [Accepted: 11/27/2018] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
While extensive research has focused on how social interactions evolve, the fitness consequences of the neuroendocrine mechanisms underlying these interactions have rarely been documented, especially in the wild. Here, we measure how the neuroendocrine mechanisms underlying male behaviour affect mating success and sperm competition in the ocellated wrasse (Symphodus ocellatus). In this species, males exhibit three alternative reproductive types. "Nesting males" provide parental care, defend territories and form cooperative associations with unrelated "satellites," who cheat by sneaking fertilizations but help by reducing sperm competition from "sneakers" who do not cooperate or provide care. To measure the fitness consequences of the mechanisms underlying these social interactions, we used "phenotypic engineering" that involved administering an androgen receptor antagonist (flutamide) to wild, free-living fish. Nesting males treated with flutamide shifted their aggression from sneakers to satellite males and experienced decreased submissiveness by sneaker males (which correlated with decreased nesting male mating success). The preoptic area (POA), a region controlling male reproductive behaviours, exhibited dramatic down-regulation of androgen receptor (AR) and vasotocin 1a receptor (V1aR) mRNA following experimental manipulation of androgen signalling. We did not find a direct effect of the manipulation on male mating success, paternity or larval production. However, variation in neuroendocrine mechanisms generated by the experimental manipulation was significantly correlated with changes in behaviour and mating success: V1aR expression was negatively correlated with satellite-directed aggression, and expression of its ligand arginine vasotocin (AVT) was positively correlated with courtship and mating success, thus revealing the potential for sexual selection on these mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bridget M Nugent
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut.,Department of Integrative Biology, Institute for Neuroscience, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
| | - Kelly A Stiver
- Department of Psychology, Southern Connecticut State University, New Haven, Connecticut
| | - Hans A Hofmann
- Department of Integrative Biology, Institute for Neuroscience, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
| | - Suzanne H Alonzo
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, California
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26
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Scaia MF, Morandini L, Noguera C, Trudeau VL, Somoza GM, Pandolfi M. Can estrogens be considered as key elements of the challenge hypothesis? The case of intrasexual aggression in a cichlid fish. Physiol Behav 2018; 194:481-490. [PMID: 29935215 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2018.06.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2018] [Revised: 06/18/2018] [Accepted: 06/18/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Territorial aggression has been widely studied in males and it has been historically suggested that androgens are key mediators of this behavior. However, more recent evidence suggests that it is the aromatization to estrogens, rather than androgens themselves, that is key to regulating this behavior. Females also display aggressive behaviors, but the physiological regulation of female aggression is still understudied when compared to males. In this context, the challenge hypothesis postulates that male-male aggressive interactions stimulate the production of androgens in males in periods of social instability. Here we determine plasma sex steroid levels in Cichlasoma dimerus to assess whether estrogens are related to aggressive behavior and to test the challenge hypothesis in both males and females. We set-up challenge trials as intrasexual dyadic encounters and determined androgen and estrogen levels before and after the trial in both winners and losers. Even though there were no differences in initial estradiol-17β plasma levels between male winners and losers, initial levels were higher (p = .046) in female winners than in losers, while there were no differences in testosterone or 11-ketotestosterone levels. After trials, both males and females showed elevated levels of estradiol-17β and both androgens, but only males exhibited a significant 1.45, 5.42 and 3.2-fold increase in estradiol-17β, testosterone and 11-ketotestosterone, respectively (p = .023, p = .016, p = .018). Moreover, changes in circulating levels of estradiol-17β in females after the trials do not depend on their reproductive status or on the outcome of the contest. We suggest that female aggression is associated with initial levels of estradiol-17β, and that the challenge hypothesis, originally defined for androgens, could also be extended to estrogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Florencia Scaia
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Auntónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Leonel Morandini
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Auntónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - CristobalAlejandro Noguera
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Auntónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Vance L Trudeau
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario K1N 6N5, Canada
| | - Gustavo Manuel Somoza
- Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas, Instituto Tecnológico de Chascomús (CONICET-UNSAM), Chascomús, Argentina
| | - Matías Pandolfi
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Auntónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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Li CY, Huang SP, Garcia M, Fuller A, Hsu Y, Earley RL. Sexual phenotype drives variation in endocrine responses to social challenge in a quasi-clonal animal. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2018; 5:180002. [PMID: 29765691 PMCID: PMC5936956 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.180002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2018] [Accepted: 02/26/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
In many species, males tend to behave more aggressively than females and female aggression often occurs during particular life stages such as maternal defence of offspring. Though many studies have revealed differences in aggression between the sexes, few studies have compared the sexes in terms of their neuroendocrine responses to contest experience. We investigated sex differences in the endocrine response to social challenge using mangrove rivulus fish, Kryptolebias marmoratus. In this species, sex is determined environmentally, allowing us to produce males and hermaphrodites with identical genotypes. We hypothesized that males would show elevated androgen levels (testosterone and 11-ketotestosterone) following social challenge but that hermaphrodite responses might be constrained by having to maintain both testicular and ovarian tissue. To test this hypothesis, we staged fights between males and between hermaphrodites, and then compared contest behaviour and hormone responses between the sexes. Hermaphrodites had significantly higher oestradiol but lower 11-ketotestosterone than males before contests. Males took longer to initiate contests but tended to fight more aggressively and sustain longer fights than hermaphrodites. Males showed a dramatic post-fight increase in 11-ketotestosterone but hermaphrodites did not. Thus, despite being genetically identical, males and hermaphrodites exhibit dramatically different fighting strategies and endocrine responses to contests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cheng-Yu Li
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, 300 Hackberry Lane, Box 870344, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
| | - Shu-Ping Huang
- Department of Life Science, National Taiwan Normal University, No. 88, Section 4, Tingchou Rd, Taipei 116, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Mark Garcia
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, 300 Hackberry Lane, Box 870344, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
| | - Adam Fuller
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, 300 Hackberry Lane, Box 870344, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
| | - Yuying Hsu
- Department of Life Science, National Taiwan Normal University, No. 88, Section 4, Tingchou Rd, Taipei 116, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Ryan L. Earley
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, 300 Hackberry Lane, Box 870344, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
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Ivy CM, Robertson CE, Bernier NJ. Acute embryonic anoxia exposure favours the development of a dominant and aggressive phenotype in adult zebrafish. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 284:rspb.2016.1868. [PMID: 28077765 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.1868] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2016] [Accepted: 12/05/2016] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Eutrophication and climate change are increasing the incidence of severe hypoxia in fish nursery habitats, yet the programming effects of hypoxia on stress responsiveness in later life are poorly understood. In this study, to investigate whether early hypoxia alters the developmental trajectory of the stress response, zebrafish embryos were exposed to 4 h of anoxia at 36 h post-fertilization and reared to adults when the responses to secondary stressors were assessed. While embryonic anoxia did not affect basal cortisol levels or the cortisol response to hypoxia in later life, it had a marked effect on the responses to a social stressor. In dyadic social interactions, adults derived from embryonic anoxia initiated more chases, bit more often, entered fewer freezes and had lower cortisol levels. Adults derived from embryonic anoxia also performed more bites towards their mirror image, had lower gonadal aromatase gene expression and had higher testosterone levels. We conclude that acute embryonic anoxia has long-lasting consequences for the hormonal and behavioural responses to social interactions in zebrafish. Specifically, we demonstrate that acute embryonic anoxia favours the development of a dominant and aggressive phenotype, and that a disruption in sex steroid production may contribute to the programming effects of environmental hypoxia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catherine M Ivy
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 2W1
| | - Cayleih E Robertson
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 2W1
| | - Nicholas J Bernier
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 2W1
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Gauy ACDS, Boscolo CNP, Gonçalves-de-Freitas E. Less water renewal reduces effects on social aggression of the cichlid Pterophyllum scalare. Appl Anim Behav Sci 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2017.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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Scaia MF, Morandini L, Noguera CA, Ramallo MR, Somoza GM, Pandolfi M. Fighting cichlids: Dynamic of intrasexual aggression in dyadic agonistic encounters. Behav Processes 2017; 147:61-69. [PMID: 29273550 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2017.12.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2017] [Revised: 12/18/2017] [Accepted: 12/18/2017] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Aggression is an extremely complex behaviour and female aggression is understudied when compared to males. Despite the fact that it has been suggested that conflict among females may be more frequently resolved peacefully, in many species females show high levels of aggression. We used Cichlasoma dimerus to describe dynamics and conflict outcome in intrasexual agonistic encounters. We performed encounters of two sex-matched animals in a neutral arena and we recorded agonistic interactions during one hour. All aggressive and submissive behaviours were described and quantified to perform the ethogram. Encounters followed three phases: pre-contest, contest and post-resolution. Latency, time of resolution and frequency of aggressive displays did not differ between sexes. Relative variations in size between female opponents better explained aggression outcome in each contest, since higher levels of aggression occurred in dyads of more similar fish. However, this was not observed in males, suggesting that probably morphological characteristics could be less relevant in male conflict resolution. Altogether these results suggest that in this ethological context, C. dimerus females are as aggressive as males and that they have similar motivation towards territorial aggression, emphasizing the need of deepening the study of aggression in females and not only in males.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Florencia Scaia
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Auntónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Leonel Morandini
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Auntónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Cristobal Alejandro Noguera
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Auntónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Martín Roberto Ramallo
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Auntónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Gustavo Manuel Somoza
- Laboratorio de Ictiofisiología y Acuicultura, Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas- Instituto Tecnológico de Chascomús (IIB-INTECH. CONICET-UNSAM), Chascomús, Argentina
| | - Matías Pandolfi
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Auntónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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Tomkins P, Saaristo M, Bertram MG, Tomkins RB, Allinson M, Wong BBM. The agricultural contaminant 17β-trenbolone disrupts male-male competition in the guppy (Poecilia reticulata). CHEMOSPHERE 2017; 187:286-293. [PMID: 28854383 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2017.08.125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2017] [Revised: 08/18/2017] [Accepted: 08/23/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Despite a growing literature highlighting the potential impact of human-induced environmental change on mechanisms of sexual selection, relatively little is known about the effects of chemical pollutants on male-male competition. One class of environmental pollutant likely to impact male competitive interactions is the endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), a large and heterogeneous group of chemical contaminants with the potential to influence morphology, physiology and behaviour at minute concentrations. One EDC of increasing concern is the synthetic, androgenic steroid 17β-trenbolone, which is used globally to promote growth in beef cattle. Although 17β-trenbolone has been found to cause severe morphological and behavioural abnormalities in fish, its potential impact on male-male competition has yet to be investigated. To address this, we exposed wild male guppies (Poecilia reticulata) to an environmentally realistic concentration of 17β-trenbolone (average measured concentration: 8 ng/L) for 21 days using a flow-through system. We found that, in the presence of a competitor, 17β-trenbolone-exposed males carried out more frequent aggressive behaviours towards rival males than did unexposed males, as well as performing less courting behaviour and more sneak (i.e., coercive) mating attempts towards females. Considering that, by influencing mating outcomes, male-male competition has important consequences for population dynamics and broader evolutionary processes, this study highlights the need for greater understanding of the potential impact of EDCs on the mechanisms of sexual selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick Tomkins
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Victoria, Australia.
| | - Minna Saaristo
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Victoria, Australia; Department of Biosciences, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Michael G Bertram
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Victoria, Australia
| | - Raymond B Tomkins
- Centre for AgriBioscience, Department of Environment and Primary Industries (DEPI), Victoria, Australia
| | - Mayumi Allinson
- Centre for Aquatic Pollution Identification and Management (CAPIM), School of Chemistry, The University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Bob B M Wong
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Victoria, Australia
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Saraiva JL, Keller-Costa T, Hubbard PC, Rato A, Canário AVM. Chemical diplomacy in male tilapia: urinary signal increases sex hormone and decreases aggression. Sci Rep 2017; 7:7636. [PMID: 28794413 PMCID: PMC5550453 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-07558-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2015] [Accepted: 06/30/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Androgens, namely 11-ketotestosterone (11KT), have a central role in male fish reproductive physiology and are thought to be involved in both aggression and social signalling. Aggressive encounters occur frequently in social species, and fights may cause energy depletion, injury and loss of social status. Signalling for social dominance and fighting ability in an agonistic context can minimize these costs. Here, we test the hypothesis of a ‘chemical diplomacy’ mechanism through urinary signals that avoids aggression and evokes an androgen response in receiver males of Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus). We show a decoupling between aggression and the androgen response; males fighting their mirror image experience an unresolved interaction and a severe drop in urinary 11KT. However, if concurrently exposed to dominant male urine, aggression drops but urinary 11KT levels remain high. Furthermore, 11KT increases in males exposed to dominant male urine in the absence of a visual stimulus. The use of a urinary signal to lower aggression may be an adaptive mechanism to resolve disputes and avoid the costs of fighting. As dominance is linked to nest building and mating with females, the 11KT response of subordinate males suggests chemical eavesdropping, possibly in preparation for parasitic fertilizations.
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Affiliation(s)
- João L Saraiva
- Centre of Marine Sciences (CCMAR), University of Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139, Faro, Portugal.
| | - Tina Keller-Costa
- Centre of Marine Sciences (CCMAR), University of Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139, Faro, Portugal
| | - Peter C Hubbard
- Centre of Marine Sciences (CCMAR), University of Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139, Faro, Portugal
| | - Ana Rato
- Centre of Marine Sciences (CCMAR), University of Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139, Faro, Portugal
| | - Adelino V M Canário
- Centre of Marine Sciences (CCMAR), University of Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139, Faro, Portugal
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Akian DD, Yao K, Clota F, Lozano P, Baroiller JF, Chatain B, Bégout ML. Reproductive behaviour of two tilapia species ( Oreochromis niloticus , Linné, 1758; Sarotherodon melanotheron, Rüppel, 1852) in freshwater intra and interspecific pairing context. Appl Anim Behav Sci 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2017.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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34
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Balshine S, Wong MY, Reddon AR. Social motivation and conflict resolution tactics as potential building blocks of sociality in cichlid fishes. Behav Processes 2017; 141:152-160. [DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2017.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2016] [Revised: 12/21/2016] [Accepted: 01/02/2017] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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Ward JL, Cox MK, Schoenfuss H. Thermal modulation of anthropogenic estrogen exposure on a freshwater fish at two life stages. Horm Behav 2017; 94:21-32. [PMID: 28571937 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2017.05.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2016] [Revised: 05/05/2017] [Accepted: 05/28/2017] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Human-mediated environmental change can induce changes in the expression of complex behaviors within individuals and alter the outcomes of interactions between individuals. Although the independent effects of numerous stressors on aquatic biota are well documented (e.g., exposure to environmental contaminants), fewer studies have examined how natural variation in the ambient environment modulates these effects. In this study, we exposed reproductively mature and larval fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) to three environmentally relevant concentrations (14, 22, and 65ng/L) of a common environmental estrogen, estrone (E1), at four water temperatures (15, 18, 21, and 24°C) reflecting natural spring and summer variation. We then conducted a series of behavioral experiments to assess the independent and interactive effects of temperature and estrogen exposure on intra- and interspecific interactions in three contexts with important fitness consequences; reproduction, foraging, and predator evasion. Our data demonstrated significant independent effects of temperature and/or estrogen exposure on the physiology, survival, and behavior of larval and adult fish. We also found evidence suggesting that thermal regime can modulate the effects of exposure on larval survival and predator-prey interactions, even within a relatively narrow range of seasonally fluctuating temperatures. These findings improve our understanding of the outcomes of interactions between anthropogenic stressors and natural abiotic environmental factors, and suggest that such interactions can have ecological and evolutionary implications for freshwater populations and communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- J L Ward
- Department of Biology, Ball State University, Cooper Life Science Building, Muncie, IN 47306, United States.
| | - M K Cox
- Aquatic Toxicology Laboratory, Saint Cloud State University, 720 Fourth Avenue South, Saint Cloud, MN 56301, United States
| | - H Schoenfuss
- Aquatic Toxicology Laboratory, Saint Cloud State University, 720 Fourth Avenue South, Saint Cloud, MN 56301, United States
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36
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Social organization and endocrine profiles of Australoheros facetus, an exotic freshwater fish in southern Portugal. Acta Ethol 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s10211-017-0271-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
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Varela M, Ferreira M, Da Cuña R, Lo Nostro F, Genovese G, Meijide F. Dynamics of ovarian maturation throughout the reproductive cycle of the Neotropical cichlid fishCichlasomadimerus(Teleostei, Cichliformes). CAN J ZOOL 2017. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2016-0198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
In this study, we analyzed gene expression profiles, plasma steroids concentrations, and gonadal morphology throughout the reproductive cycle of female Cichlasoma dimerus (Heckel, 1840), a monogamous cichlid fish exhibiting social hierarchies. Fish were analyzed at six phases encompassing their annual cycle, namely resting (during the nonreproductive period), prespawning, 30 h post spawning, 4 days post spawning, 10 days post spawning, and subordinate (during the reproductive period). The histological and histomorphometric analysis showed that C. dimerus exhibits asynchronous ovarian development. Similar to resting females, subordinate females showed low gonadosomatic index, reduced expression levels of vitellogenin (vtgAb), zona pellucida (zpB), gonadal aromatase (cyp19a1A), and low concentrations of plasma sex steroids, thus indicating that social intimidation by dominant conspecifics elicited reproductive arrest. In reproductively active females, a direct positive correlation between plasma estradiol, vtgAb expression, percentage of late vitellogenic oocytes, and gonadosomatic index was observed. These parameters were maximal at the prespawning phase, decreased at 30 h post spawning and 4 days post spawning, and then reached a peak at 10 days post spawning. Our results indicate that female C. dimerus become spawning capable after 10 days post spawning, coincidently with the shortest time interval between successive spawns recorded in captivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- M.L. Varela
- Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología Acuática, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires & Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) – Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), C1428EGA, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología Acuática, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires & Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) – Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), C1428EGA, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - M.F. Ferreira
- Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología Acuática, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires & Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) – Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), C1428EGA, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología Acuática, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires & Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) – Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), C1428EGA, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - R.H. Da Cuña
- Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología Acuática, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires & Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) – Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), C1428EGA, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología Acuática, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires & Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) – Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), C1428EGA, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - F.L. Lo Nostro
- Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología Acuática, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires & Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) – Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), C1428EGA, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología Acuática, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires & Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) – Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), C1428EGA, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - G. Genovese
- Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología Acuática, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires & Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) – Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), C1428EGA, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología Acuática, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires & Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) – Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), C1428EGA, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - F.J. Meijide
- Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología Acuática, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires & Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) – Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), C1428EGA, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Laboratorio de Ecotoxicología Acuática, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires & Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) – Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), C1428EGA, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Bayani DM, Taborsky M, Frommen JG. To pee or not to pee: urine signals mediate aggressive interactions in the cooperatively breeding cichlid Neolamprologus pulcher. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-016-2260-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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Nugent BM, Stiver KA, Alonzo SH, Hofmann HA. Neuroendocrine profiles associated with discrete behavioural variation in
Symphodus ocellatus
, a species with male alternative reproductive tactics. Mol Ecol 2016; 25:5212-5227. [DOI: 10.1111/mec.13828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2015] [Revised: 08/15/2016] [Accepted: 08/23/2016] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- B. M. Nugent
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Yale University 165 Prospect St. New Haven CT 06520 USA
- Department of Integrative Biology Center for Computational Biology and Bioinformatics The University of Texas at Austin 2415 Speedway Austin TX 78712 USA
| | - K. A. Stiver
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Yale University 165 Prospect St. New Haven CT 06520 USA
- Department of Psychology Southern Connecticut State University 501 Crescent St. New Haven CT 06515 USA
| | - S. H. Alonzo
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Yale University 165 Prospect St. New Haven CT 06520 USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of California Santa Cruz 1156 High St. Santa Cruz CA 95064 USA
| | - H. A. Hofmann
- Department of Integrative Biology Center for Computational Biology and Bioinformatics The University of Texas at Austin 2415 Speedway Austin TX 78712 USA
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Ramallo MR, Birba A, Honji RM, Morandini L, Moreira RG, Somoza GM, Pandolfi M. A multidisciplinary study on social status and the relationship between inter-individual variation in hormone levels and agonistic behavior in a Neotropical cichlid fish. Horm Behav 2015; 69:139-51. [PMID: 25647157 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2015.01.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2014] [Revised: 01/10/2015] [Accepted: 01/12/2015] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Social animals with hierarchal dominance systems are particularly susceptible to their social environment. There, interactions with conspecifics and hierarchal position can greatly affect an individual's behavior, physiology and reproductive success. Our experimental model, Cichlasoma dimerus, is a serially-monogamous Neotropical cichlid fish with a hierarchical social system, established and sustained through agonistic interactions. In this work, we aimed to describe C. dimerus social structure and its association with hormonal profiles and testicular cellular composition. We recorded and quantified agonistic interactions from the territorial pair, i.e. the top ranked male and female, and the lowest ranked male of stable social groups. Plasma levels of 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT), testosterone, 17β-estradiol (E2) and cortisol were measured by ELISA. Results show that territorial pairs cooperatively guarded the territory, but rarely attacked in synchrony. Territorial males had higher testosterone and 11-KT plasma levels than non-territorial males, while E2 and an index of its metabolization from testosterone were higher in non-territorial males. No difference was observed in cortisol levels. Plasma 11-KT and an index of the conversion of testosterone to 11-KT, positively correlated with the frequency of aggressiveness, while E2 showed the opposite pattern. Territorial males had a higher gonadosomatic index than non-territorial males. The quantification of testicular cellular types revealed that the percentage of spermatocytes and spermatids was higher in non-territorial males, while territorial males showed a greater percentage of spermatozoa. Thus, C. dimerus male social position within a stable hierarchy is associated with distinct behaviors, steroid levels and testicular degree of development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martín R Ramallo
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biologia Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Agustina Birba
- Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biologia Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Renato M Honji
- Departamento de Fisiologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, Rua do Matão, Trav. 14 n°321, Cidade Universitária, São Paulo 05508-090, Brazil
| | - Leonel Morandini
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biologia Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Renata G Moreira
- Departamento de Fisiologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, Rua do Matão, Trav. 14 n°321, Cidade Universitária, São Paulo 05508-090, Brazil
| | - Gustavo M Somoza
- Laboratorio de Ictiofisiología y Acuicultura, Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas-Instituto Tecnológico de Chascomús (IIB-INTECH. CONICET-UNSAM), Chascomús, Argentina
| | - Matías Pandolfi
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biologia Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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41
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Heintz MM, Brander SM, White JW. Endocrine Disrupting Compounds Alter Risk-Taking Behavior in Guppies (Poecilia reticulata). Ethology 2015. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Melissa M. Heintz
- Department of Biology and Marine Biology; University of North Carolina Wilmington; Wilmington NC USA
| | - Susanne M. Brander
- Department of Biology and Marine Biology; University of North Carolina Wilmington; Wilmington NC USA
| | - James W. White
- Department of Biology and Marine Biology; University of North Carolina Wilmington; Wilmington NC USA
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Odreitz U, Sefc KM. Territorial competition and the evolutionary loss of sexual size dimorphism. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2015; 69:593-601. [PMID: 25798023 PMCID: PMC4359285 DOI: 10.1007/s00265-014-1870-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2014] [Revised: 12/29/2014] [Accepted: 12/29/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Non-sexual social selection can underlie the evolution of sexually monomorphic phenotypes. A causal relationship between territorial competition and sexual monomorphism predicts that male and female competitors should employ similar contest behavior and that contest outcome should depend on the same traits in males and females. We test this prediction in a sexually monomorphic cichlid fish of the genus Tropheus, in which males and females defend individual feeding territories. Lineages basal to Tropheus are sexually dimorphic and have non-territorial females, suggesting that a switch to female territoriality and loss of sexual dimorphism occurred in the Tropheus lineage. We compare rates of agonistic behavior and the effects of body size asymmetries on competitive success between male-male and female-female contests in an experimental setup. Body size asymmetry had the same effect in male and female contests, being negatively correlated with contest duration and positively correlated with the probability of winning. Male and female winners employed the same rates of frontal and lateral displays as well as charges against their opponents. Contest duration was longer in females. In tied contests, females displayed more than males. Our data suggest that intraspecific contest competition for territories selects for large body size in both sexes and support a link between the evolution of female territoriality and the loss of sexual size dimorphism in Tropheus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ulrike Odreitz
- Institute of Zoology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Kristina M. Sefc
- Institute of Zoology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010 Graz, Austria
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43
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Boulton K, Couto E, Grimmer AJ, Earley RL, Canario AVM, Wilson AJ, Walling CA. How integrated are behavioral and endocrine stress response traits? A repeated measures approach to testing the stress-coping style model. Ecol Evol 2015; 5:618-33. [PMID: 25691986 PMCID: PMC4328767 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2014] [Accepted: 12/15/2014] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
It is widely expected that physiological and behavioral stress responses will be integrated within divergent stress-coping styles (SCS) and that these may represent opposite ends of a continuously varying reactive–proactive axis. If such a model is valid, then stress response traits should be repeatable and physiological and behavioral responses should also change in an integrated manner along a major axis of among-individual variation. While there is some evidence of association between endocrine and behavioral stress response traits, few studies incorporate repeated observations of both. To test this model, we use a multivariate, repeated measures approach in a captive-bred population of Xiphophorus birchmanni. We quantify among-individual variation in behavioral stress response to an open field trial (OFT) with simulated predator attack (SPA) and measure waterborne steroid hormone levels (cortisol, 11-ketotestosterone) before and after exposure. Under the mild stress stimulus (OFT), (multivariate) behavioral variation among individuals was consistent with a strong axis of personality (shy–bold) or coping style (reactive–proactive) variation. However, behavioral responses to a moderate stressor (SPA) were less repeatable, and robust statistical support for repeatable endocrine state over the full sampling period was limited to 11-ketotestosterone. Although post hoc analysis suggested cortisol expression was repeatable over short time periods, qualitative relationships between behavior and glucocorticoid levels were counter to our a priori expectations. Thus, while our results clearly show among-individual differences in behavioral and endocrine traits associated with stress response, the correlation structure between these is not consistent with a simple proactive–reactive axis of integrated stress-coping style. Additionally, the low repeatability of cortisol suggests caution is warranted if single observations (or indeed repeat measures over short sampling periods) of glucocorticoid traits are used in ecological or evolutionary studies focussed at the individual level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kay Boulton
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh West Mains Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3JT, U.K
| | - Elsa Couto
- CCMar, University of Algarve Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139, Faro, Portugal
| | - Andrew J Grimmer
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter Cornwall Campus, Treliever Road, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9EZ, U.K
| | - Ryan L Earley
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama 300 Hackberry Lane, Box 870344, SEC Building, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, 35487
| | | | - Alastair J Wilson
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter Cornwall Campus, Treliever Road, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9EZ, U.K
| | - Craig A Walling
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh West Mains Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3JT, U.K
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Stiver KA, Harris RM, Townsend JP, Hofmann HA, Alonzo SH. Neural Gene Expression Profiles and Androgen Levels Underlie Alternative Reproductive Tactics in the Ocellated Wrasse,Symphodus ocellatus. Ethology 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12324] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Kelly A. Stiver
- Psychology Department; Southern Connecticut State University; New Haven CT USA
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; Yale University; New Haven CT USA
| | - Rayna M. Harris
- Department of Integrative Biology; Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology; Center for Computational Biology and Bioinformatics; The University of Texas at Austin; Austin TX USA
| | | | - Hans A. Hofmann
- Department of Integrative Biology; Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology; Center for Computational Biology and Bioinformatics; The University of Texas at Austin; Austin TX USA
| | - Suzanne H. Alonzo
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; Yale University; New Haven CT USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Earth and Marine Sciences Building; University of California Santa Cruz; Santa Cruz CA USA
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Social status and GnRH soma size in female convict cichlids (Amatitlania nigrofasciatus). Behav Brain Res 2014; 272:205-8. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2014.06.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2014] [Revised: 06/11/2014] [Accepted: 06/14/2014] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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Maruska KP. Social regulation of reproduction in male cichlid fishes. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2014; 207:2-12. [PMID: 24859257 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2014.04.038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2014] [Revised: 04/25/2014] [Accepted: 04/30/2014] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Social interactions and relative positions within a dominance hierarchy have helped shape the evolution of reproduction in many animals. Since reproduction is crucial in all animals, and rank typically regulates access to reproductive opportunities, understanding the mechanisms that regulate socially-induced reproductive processes is extremely important. How does position in a dominance hierarchy impact an individual's reproductive behavior, morphology, and physiology? Teleost fishes, and cichlids in particular, are ideally-suited models for studying how social status influences reproduction on multiple levels of biological organization. Here I review the current knowledge on the reproductive behavioral and physiological consequences of relative position in a dominance hierarchy, with a particular focus on male cichlids. Dominant and subordinate social status is typically associated with distinct differences in activity along the entire hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. Further, when transitions in social status occur between subordinate and dominant individuals, there are plastic changes from whole-organism behavior to molecular-level gene expression modifications that occur quickly. These rapid changes in behavior and physiology have allowed cichlids the flexibility to adapt to and thrive in their often dynamic physical and social environments. Studies in cichlid fishes have, and will continue, to advance our understanding of how the social environment can modulate molecular, cellular, and behavioral outcomes relevant to reproductive success. Future studies that take advantage of the extreme diversity in mating systems, reproductive tactics, and parental care strategies within the cichlid group will help generate hypotheses and careful experimental tests on the mechanisms governing the social control of reproduction in many vertebrates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen P Maruska
- Department of Biological Sciences, 202 Life Sciences Bldg., Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, United States.
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Almeida O, Canário AVM, Oliveira RF. Castration affects reproductive but not aggressive behavior in a cichlid fish. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2014; 207:34-40. [PMID: 24681190 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2014.03.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2013] [Revised: 03/15/2014] [Accepted: 03/17/2014] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Gonads are the main source of sex steroids, which have been implicated in the regulation of sexually differentiated behavior, such as reproductive and aggressive displays. In the Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) territorial males have higher androgen levels than non-territorials, express reproductive behavior and use a urine-borne pheromone to signal their social status towards conspecifics. Here we investigated the effects of gonadectomy on the circulating levels of androgens and cortisol, and on the expression of aggressive and reproductive behavior (nest building, courtship behavior, and nuptial coloration). Males were either castrated, urine bladder damaged, or sham-operated and visually exposed to a group of females during 8 consecutive days and subsequently to a male on day 9. The urine bladder damaged treatment was included in the experimental design because a full castration procedure in this species causes quite often damage to the urine bladder. Gonadectomy lowers dramatically the circulating levels of androgens measured at 4 and 8days post-castration and abolishes the expression of nest building, courtship behavior and nuptial coloration, but has no effect on the expression of aggressive behavior. These results confirm the gonads as the main source of androgens in this species and show that androgens are necessary for the expression of reproductive behaviors. However, the expression of aggressive behavior seems to be decoupled from gonadal steroids, namely androgens, suggesting the action of independent central mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olinda Almeida
- Unidade de Investigação em Eco-Etologia, ISPA - Instituto Universitário, Rua Jardim do Tabaco, 34, 1149-041 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Adelino V M Canário
- CCMAR - Centro de Ciências do Mar, Universidade do Algarve, Gambelas, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal
| | - Rui F Oliveira
- Unidade de Investigação em Eco-Etologia, ISPA - Instituto Universitário, Rua Jardim do Tabaco, 34, 1149-041 Lisboa, Portugal; Champalimaud Neuroscience Programme, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Rua da Quinta Grande 6, 2780-156 Oeiras, Portugal.
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Ramallo MR, Morandini L, Alonso F, Birba A, Tubert C, Fiszbein A, Pandolfi M. The endocrine regulation of cichlids social and reproductive behavior through the eyes of the chanchita, Cichlasoma dimerus (Percomorpha; Cichlidae). ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014; 108:194-202. [PMID: 25159924 DOI: 10.1016/j.jphysparis.2014.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2014] [Revised: 05/06/2014] [Accepted: 08/13/2014] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Sociobiology, the study of social behavior, calls for a laboratory model with specific requirements. Among the most obvious is the execution of social interactions that need to be readily observable, quantifiable and analyzable. If, in turn, one focuses on the neuroendocrinological basis of social behavior, restrictions grow even tighter. A good laboratory model should then allow easy access to its neurological and endocrine components and processes. During the last years, we have been studying the physiological foundation of social behavior on what we believe fits all the aforementioned requirements: the so called "chanchita", Cichlasoma dimerus. This Neotropical cichlid fish exhibits biparental care of the eggs and larvae and presents a hierarchical social system, established and sustained through agonistic interactions. The aim of the current article is to review new evidence on chanchita's social and reproductive behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martín Roberto Ramallo
- Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, IBBEA-Conicet, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Universitaria (C1428EHA), CABA, Argentina; Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Universitaria (C1428EHA), CABA, Argentina
| | - Leonel Morandini
- Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, IBBEA-Conicet, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Universitaria (C1428EHA), CABA, Argentina; Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Universitaria (C1428EHA), CABA, Argentina
| | - Felipe Alonso
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Universitaria (C1428EHA), CABA, Argentina
| | - Agustina Birba
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Universitaria (C1428EHA), CABA, Argentina
| | - Cecilia Tubert
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Universitaria (C1428EHA), CABA, Argentina
| | - Ana Fiszbein
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Universitaria (C1428EHA), CABA, Argentina
| | - Matías Pandolfi
- Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, IBBEA-Conicet, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Universitaria (C1428EHA), CABA, Argentina; Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Universitaria (C1428EHA), CABA, Argentina.
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Hattori T, Wilczynski W. Differences in forebrain androgen receptor expression in winners and losers of male anole aggressive interactions. Brain Res 2014; 1582:45-54. [PMID: 25069090 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2014.07.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2014] [Revised: 07/16/2014] [Accepted: 07/17/2014] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Size matched male green anoles (Anolis carolinensis) were paired in a neutral setting and allowed to engage in aggressive displays. Winners and losers were apparent in each pair within 90min, resulting in stable dominant/subordinate dyads. Androgen receptor (AR) expression was assessed at three time points after the initial pairing, 2h, 3 days, and 10 days in dominants, subordinates, and two groups of control males housed alone or with a female for an equal period of time. Expression was quantified in three forebrain areas that have been implicated in aggression and reproductive social behavior in this species, the preoptic area (POA), the anterior hypothalamus (AH), septal area (SEP), and ventromedial nucleus of the posterior division of the dorsal ventricular ridge (PDVRVM ). There were significant overall group differences in AR mRNA expression in the POA and AH that appeared to result from higher POA AR expression in dominant males compared to other groups, and generally lower AR expression in subordinate males. Pairwise comparison revealed that dominants' AR mRNA expression in the POA was significantly higher in the 2h and 3 day groups compared to that of subordinates, with a similar, but nonsignificant, difference in the 10 day group. Dominants had significantly higher AR mRNA expression in the AH compared to that of subordinates in the 2h group, but differences were not significant at later times. The results suggest that POA and AH sensitivity to androgens is increased in dominants compared to subordinates, and that the difference can be seen soon after the agonistic interaction establishing winners and losers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomoko Hattori
- Department of Psychology and Institute for Neuroscience, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA.
| | - Walter Wilczynski
- Department of Psychology and Institute for Neuroscience, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, PO Box 5010, Atlanta, GA 30302-5010, USA.
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50
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Mirror, mirror on the wall: the predictive value of mirror tests for measuring aggression in fish. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2014. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-014-1698-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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