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Looby A, Bravo S, Juanes F, Rountree R, Riera A, Davies HL, Spriel B, Vela S, Reynolds LK, Martin CW, Cox K. The importance of context in the acoustic behaviors of marine, subtropical fish speciesa). THE JOURNAL OF THE ACOUSTICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2023; 154:3252-3258. [PMID: 37975736 DOI: 10.1121/10.0022412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2023] [Accepted: 10/31/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023]
Abstract
Despite the importance of acoustic signaling in fishes, the prevalence of the behavioral contexts associated with their active (i.e., intentional) sound production remains unclear. A systematized review was conducted to explore documented acoustic behaviors in marine, subtropical fishes and potential influences affecting their relative pervasiveness. Data were collected on 186 actively soniferous fish species studied across 194 publications, identified based on existing FishSounds and FishBase datasets. Disturbance was the most common behavioral context associated with active sound production-reported for 140 species or 75% of the species studied-and then aggression (n = 46 species, 25%) and reproduction (n = 34 species, 18%). This trend, however, somewhat differed when examined by research effort, study environment, and fish family, such as reproductive sounds being more commonly reported by studies conducted in the wild. The synthesis of fish sound production behaviors was in some ways stymied by the fact that many species' sound production did not have discernible associated behavioral contexts and that some investigations did not clearly identify the study environments in which active sound production was observed. These findings emphasize the importance of context-behavioral or otherwise-when studying acoustic behaviors in fishes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Audrey Looby
- Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
| | - Santiago Bravo
- Instituto Oceanográfico, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo 05508-120, Brazil
| | - Francis Juanes
- Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia V8P 3E6, Canada
| | - Rodney Rountree
- Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia V8P 3E6, Canada
| | - Amalis Riera
- Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia V8P 3E6, Canada
| | - Hailey L Davies
- Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia V8P 3E6, Canada
| | - Brittnie Spriel
- Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia V8P 3E6, Canada
| | - Sarah Vela
- MERIDIAN, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 4R2, Canada
| | - Laura K Reynolds
- Soil, Water, and Ecosystem Sciences, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
| | - Charles W Martin
- Nature Coast Biological Station, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Cedar Key, Florida 32625, USA
| | - Kieran Cox
- Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, Canada
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2
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Keith SA, Hobbs JP, Boström-Einarsson L, Hartley IR, Sanders NJ. Rapid resource depletion on coral reefs disrupts competitor recognition processes among butterflyfish species. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20222158. [PMID: 36598015 PMCID: PMC9811634 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.2158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Avoiding costly fights can help conserve energy needed to survive rapid environmental change. Competitor recognition processes help resolve contests without escalating to attack, yet we have limited understanding of how they are affected by resource depletion and potential effects on species coexistence. Using a mass coral mortality event as a natural experiment and 3770 field observations of butterflyfish encounters, we test how rapid resource depletion could disrupt recognition processes in butterflyfishes. Following resource loss, heterospecifics approached each other more closely before initiating aggression, fewer contests were resolved by signalling, and the energy invested in attacks was greater. By contrast, behaviour towards conspecifics did not change. As predicted by theory, conspecifics approached one another more closely and were more consistent in attack intensity yet, contrary to expectations, resolution of contests via signalling was more common among heterospecifics. Phylogenetic relatedness or body size did not predict these outcomes. Our results suggest that competitor recognition processes for heterospecifics became less accurate after mass coral mortality, which we hypothesize is due to altered resource overlaps following dietary shifts. Our work implies that competitor recognition is common among heterospecifics, and disruption of this system could lead to suboptimal decision-making, exacerbating sublethal impacts of food scarcity.
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Affiliation(s)
- S. A. Keith
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YQ, UK
| | - J-P.A. Hobbs
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4069, Australia
| | | | - I. R. Hartley
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YQ, UK
| | - N. J. Sanders
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
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3
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Fortunato JA, Earley RL. Age-dependent genetic variation in aggression. Biol Lett 2023; 19:20220456. [PMID: 36693426 PMCID: PMC9873472 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2022.0456] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2022] [Accepted: 12/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding the extent to which behavioural variance is underlain by genotypic, environmental and genotype-by-environment effects is important for predicting how behavioural traits might respond to selection and evolve. How behaviour varies both within and among individuals can change across ontogeny, leading to differences in the relative contribution of genetic and environmental effects to phenotypic variation across ages. We investigated among-individual and among-genotype variation in aggression across ontogeny by measuring, twice as juveniles and twice as adults, both approaches and attacks against a three-dimensional-printed model opponent in eight individuals from each of eight genotypes (N = 64). Aggression was only significantly repeatable and heritabile in juveniles. Additionally, how aggression changed between juvenile and adult life-history stages varied significantly among individuals and genotypes. These results suggest that juvenile aggression is likely to evolve more rapidly via natural selection than adult aggression and that the trajectory of behavioural change across the lifespan has the potential to evolve. Determining when genetic variation explains (or does not explain) behavioural variation can further our understanding of key life-history stages during which selection might drive the strongest or swiftest evolutionary response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer A. Fortunato
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, 1325 Hackberry Lane, Box 870344, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
| | - Ryan L. Earley
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, 1325 Hackberry Lane, Box 870344, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
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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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5
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Dong B, Liu JX, Quan RC, Chen Z. Mirror image stimulation could reverse social-isolation-induced aggressiveness in the high-level subsocial lactating spider. Anim Cogn 2022; 25:1345-1355. [DOI: 10.1007/s10071-022-01618-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2021] [Revised: 03/15/2022] [Accepted: 03/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
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Martin KE, Blewett TA, Burnett M, Rubinger K, Standen EM, Taylor DS, Trueman J, Turko AJ, Weir L, West CM, Wright PA, Currie S. The importance of familiarity, relatedness, and vision in social recognition in wild and laboratory populations of a selfing, hermaphroditic mangrove fish. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-022-03147-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
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7
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Impact of genetic relatedness and food competition on female dominance hierarchies in a cichlid fish. Anim Behav 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2021.12.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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8
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Josi D, Frommen JG. Through a glass darkly? Divergent reactions of eight Lake Tanganyika cichlid species towards their mirror image in their natural environment. Ethology 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.13207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Dario Josi
- Department of Natural Sciences Ecology and Environment Research Centre Conservation, Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour Research Group Manchester Metropolitan University Manchester UK
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution Division of Behavioural Ecology University of Bern Hinterkappelen Switzerland
| | - Joachim G. Frommen
- Department of Natural Sciences Ecology and Environment Research Centre Conservation, Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour Research Group Manchester Metropolitan University Manchester UK
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution Division of Behavioural Ecology University of Bern Hinterkappelen Switzerland
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Tison R, Poirier P. Communication as Socially Extended Active Inference: An Ecological Approach to Communicative Behavior. ECOLOGICAL PSYCHOLOGY 2021. [DOI: 10.1080/10407413.2021.1965480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
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10
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John L, Rick IP, Vitt S, Thünken T. Body coloration as a dynamic signal during intrasexual communication in a cichlid fish. BMC ZOOL 2021; 6:9. [PMID: 37170176 PMCID: PMC10127425 DOI: 10.1186/s40850-021-00075-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2020] [Accepted: 04/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Background
Intrasexual competition over access to resources can lead to aggression between individuals. Because overt aggression, i.e. fights, can be costly for contestants, the communication of aggressive motivation prior to engagement in a physical fight is often mediated by conventional signals. Animals of various taxa, including fishes, display visual signals such as body coloration that can dynamically be adjusted depending on the individual’s motivation. Male individuals of the West African cichlid Pelvicachromis taeniatus express a yellow body coloration displayed during courtship but also in an intrasexual competition context.
Results
Within-individual variation in male yellow body coloration, as quantified with standardized digital photography and representation in a CIELab color space, was examined in a mating context by exposing males to a female and in a competitive intrasexual context, i.e. in a dyadic contest. Additionally, spectrometric reflectance measurements were taken to obtain color representations in a physiological color space based on spectral sensitivities of our model species. Exposure to females did not significantly affect male color expression. However, analysis of body coloration revealed a change in within-individual color intensity and colored area after interaction with a male competitor. In dominant males, extension of coloration was positively correlated with restrained aggression, i.e. displays, which in turn explained dominance established between the two contestants.
Conclusion
Body coloration in male P. taeniatus is a dynamic signal that is used in concert with display behavior in communication during intrasexual competition.
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da Silva MC, Canário AVM, Hubbard PC, Gonçalves DMF. Physiology, endocrinology and chemical communication in aggressive behaviour of fishes. JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY 2021; 98:1217-1233. [PMID: 33410154 PMCID: PMC8247941 DOI: 10.1111/jfb.14667] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2020] [Revised: 12/26/2020] [Accepted: 01/05/2021] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
Fishes show remarkably diverse aggressive behaviour. Aggression is expressed to secure resources; adjusting aggression levels according to context is key to avoid negative consequences for fitness and survival. Nonetheless, despite its importance, the physiological basis of aggression in fishes is still poorly understood. Several reports suggest hormonal modulation of aggression, particularly by androgens, but contradictory studies have been published. Studies exploring the role of chemical communication in aggressive behaviour are also scant, and the pheromones involved remain to be unequivocally characterized. This is surprising as chemical communication is the most ancient form of information exchange and plays a variety of other roles in fishes. Furthermore, the study of chemical communication and aggression is relevant at the evolutionary, ecological and economic levels. A few pioneering studies support the hypothesis that aggressive behaviour, at least in some teleosts, is modulated by "dominance pheromones" that reflect the social status of the sender, but there is little information on the identity of the compounds involved. This review aims to provide a global view of aggressive behaviour in fishes and its underlying physiological mechanisms including the involvement of chemical communication, and discusses the potential use of dominance pheromones to improve fish welfare. Methodological considerations and future research directions are also outlined.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melina Coelho da Silva
- CCMAR – Centro e Ciências do MarUniversidade do AlgarveFaroPortugal
- ISE – Institute of Science and EnvironmentUniversity of Saint JosephMacauChina
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12
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Head up displays are a submission signal in the group-living daffodil cichlid. Behav Processes 2020; 181:104271. [PMID: 33053419 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2020.104271] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2020] [Revised: 09/22/2020] [Accepted: 10/04/2020] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Dominance hierarchies can reduce conflict within social groups and agonistic signals can help to establish and maintain these hierarchies. Behaviours produced by subordinates in response to aggression are often assumed to function as signals of submission, however, these behaviours may serve other purposes, for example, defence or escape. For a behaviour to act as a submission signal, the receiver must respond by reducing their likelihood of further aggression towards the signaller. In the current study, we examine the receiver response to a putative signal of submission, the head up display, within established social groups of the cooperatively breeding fish, the daffodil cichlid (Neolamprologus pulcher). We found that when subordinate signallers produce the head up display in response to aggression from the breeder male, he exhibited a longer latency to behave aggressively towards that individual again. We also report that head up displays are rarely produced without being elicited by aggression, and the number of head up displays correlates with the amount of aggression received. Our results demonstrate that the head up display is used as a signal of submission in the daffodil cichlid and provide insight into intragroup communication in an emerging model system for the study of social behaviour.
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Vitt S, Hiller J, Thünken T. Intrasexual selection: Kin competition increases male-male territorial aggression in a monogamous cichlid fish. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:11183-11191. [PMID: 33144958 PMCID: PMC7593200 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6759] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2020] [Revised: 07/31/2020] [Accepted: 08/07/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
During intrasexual competition, individuals of the same sex compete for access to breeding sites and mating partners, often accompanied by aggressive behavior. Kin selection theory predicts different kin-directed social interactions ranging from cooperation to aggression depending on the context and the resource in question. Kin competition reducing indirect fitness might be avoided by actively expelling relatives from territories and by showing higher aggression against kin. The West-African cichlid Pelvicachromis taeniatus is a monogamous cave breeder with males occupying and defending breeding sites against rivals. This species is capable of kin recognition and shows kin-preference during juvenile shoaling and mate choice. However, subadults of P. taeniatus seem to avoid the proximity of same-sex kin. In the present study, we examined territorial aggression of territory holders against intruding related and unrelated males as well as intruder's behavior. We observed higher aggression among related competitors suggesting that related males are less tolerated as neighbors. Avoidance of intrasexual competition with relatives might increase indirect fitness of males in monogamous species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Vitt
- Institute for Evolutionary Biology and EcologyUniversity of BonnBonnGermany
| | - Jenny Hiller
- Institute for Evolutionary Biology and EcologyUniversity of BonnBonnGermany
| | - Timo Thünken
- Institute for Evolutionary Biology and EcologyUniversity of BonnBonnGermany
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Liu J, Zhang Y, Zheng X, He XZ, Wang Q. Combined cues of male competition influence spermatozoal investment in a moth. Funct Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13554] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Junyan Liu
- School of Agriculture and Environment Massey University Palmerston North New Zealand
| | - Yujing Zhang
- Guangxi Key Laboratory of Agric‐Environment and Agric‐Products Safety National Demonstration Center for Experimental Plant Science Education College of Agriculture Guangxi University Nanning China
| | - Xia‐Lin Zheng
- Guangxi Key Laboratory of Agric‐Environment and Agric‐Products Safety National Demonstration Center for Experimental Plant Science Education College of Agriculture Guangxi University Nanning China
| | - Xiong Z. He
- School of Agriculture and Environment Massey University Palmerston North New Zealand
| | - Qiao Wang
- School of Agriculture and Environment Massey University Palmerston North New Zealand
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15
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Schneeberger K, Taborsky M. The role of sensory ecology and cognition in social decisions: Costs of acquiring information matter. Funct Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13488] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Karin Schneeberger
- Behavioural Ecology Division Institute for Ecology and Evolution University of Bern Hinterkappelen/Bern Switzerland
| | - Michael Taborsky
- Behavioural Ecology Division Institute for Ecology and Evolution University of Bern Hinterkappelen/Bern Switzerland
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