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Bshary R, Noë R. A marine cleaning mutualism provides new insights in biological market dynamics. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2023; 378:20210501. [PMID: 36934753 PMCID: PMC10024986 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0501] [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: 09/25/2022] [Accepted: 01/22/2023] [Indexed: 03/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Most mutually beneficial social interactions (cooperation within species, mutualism between species) involve some degree of partner choice. In an analogy to economic theory as applied to human trading practices, biological market theory (BMT) focuses on how partner choice affects payoff distributions among non-human traders. BMT has inspired a great diversity of research, including research on the mutualism between cleaner fish Labroides dimidiatus and other marine fish, their 'clients'. In this mutualism, clients have ectoparasites removed and cleaners obtain food in return. We use the available data on L. dimidiatus cleaner-client interactions to identify avenues for future expansion of BMT. We focus on three main topics, namely how partner quality interacts with supply-to-demand ratios to affect service quality, the role of threats and forms of forceful intervention, and the potential role of cognition. We consider it essential to identify the specifics of each biological market as a basis for the development of more sophisticated BMT models. This article is part of the theme issue 'Half a century of evolutionary games: a synthesis of theory, application and future directions'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Redouan Bshary
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand 11, 2000 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Ronald Noë
- Department of Psychology, Tuk, The Netherlands and Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-1104, USA
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2
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Bshary R, Triki Z. Fish ecology and cognition: insights from studies on wild and wild-caught teleost fishes. Curr Opin Behav Sci 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2022.101174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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3
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Triki Z, Aellen M, van Schaik CP, Bshary R. Relative Brain Size and Cognitive Equivalence in Fishes. BRAIN, BEHAVIOR AND EVOLUTION 2022; 96:124-136. [PMID: 34753141 DOI: 10.1159/000520741] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2021] [Accepted: 11/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Scientists have long struggled to establish how larger brains translate into higher cognitive performance across species. While absolute brain size often yields high predictive power of performance, its positive correlation with body size warrants some level of correction. It is expected that larger brains are needed to control larger bodies without any changes in cognitive performance. Potentially, the mean value of intraspecific brain-body slopes provides the best available estimate for an interspecific correction factor. For example, in primates, including humans, an increase in body size translates into an increase in brain size without changes in cognitive performance. Here, we provide the first evaluation of this hypothesis for another clade, teleost fishes. First, we obtained a mean intraspecific brain-body regression slope of 0.46 (albeit with a relatively large range of 0.26-0.79) from a dataset of 51 species, with at least 10 wild adult specimens per species. This mean intraspecific slope value (0.46) is similar to that of the encephalisation quotient reported for teleosts (0.5), which can be used to predict mean cognitive performance in fishes. Importantly, such a mean value (0.46) is much higher than in endothermic vertebrate species (≤0.3). Second, we used wild-caught adult cleaner fish Labroides dimidiatus as a case study to test whether variation in individual cognitive performance can be explained by body size. We first obtained the brain-body regression slope for this species from two different datasets, which gave slope values of 0.58 (MRI scan data) and 0.47 (dissection data). Then, we used another dataset involving 69 adult cleaners different from those tested for their brain-body slope. We found that cognitive performance from four different tasks that estimated their learning, numerical, and inhibitory control abilities was not significantly associated with body size. These results suggest that the intraspecific brain-body slope captures cognitive equivalence for this species. That is, individuals that are on the brain-body regression line are cognitively equal. While rather preliminary, our results suggest that fish and mammalian brain organisations are fundamentally different, resulting in different intra- and interspecific slopes of cognitive equivalence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zegni Triki
- Behavioural Ecology Laboratory, Faculty of Science, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland.,Institute of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Mélisande Aellen
- Behavioural Ecology Laboratory, Faculty of Science, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Carel P van Schaik
- Department of Anthropology and Anthropological Museum, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Redouan Bshary
- Behavioural Ecology Laboratory, Faculty of Science, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
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Affiliation(s)
- Mélisande Aellen
- Department of Behavioural Ecology University of Neuchâtel Neuchâtel Switzerland
| | - Judith M. Burkart
- Anthropological Institute and Museum University of Zürich Zürich Switzerland
| | - Redouan Bshary
- Department of Behavioural Ecology University of Neuchâtel Neuchâtel Switzerland
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Prat Y, Bshary R, Lotem A. Modelling how cleaner fish approach an ephemeral reward task demonstrates a role for ecologically tuned chunking in the evolution of advanced cognition. PLoS Biol 2022; 20:e3001519. [PMID: 34986149 PMCID: PMC8765642 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2021] [Revised: 01/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
What makes cognition “advanced” is an open and not precisely defined question. One perspective involves increasing the complexity of associative learning, from conditioning to learning sequences of events (“chaining”) to representing various cue combinations as “chunks.” Here we develop a weighted graph model to study the mechanism enabling chunking ability and the conditions for its evolution and success, based on the ecology of the cleaner fish Labroides dimidiatus. In some environments, cleaners must learn to serve visitor clients before resident clients, because a visitor leaves if not attended while a resident waits for service. This challenge has been captured in various versions of the ephemeral reward task, which has been proven difficult for a range of cognitively capable species. We show that chaining is the minimal requirement for solving this task in its common simplified laboratory format that involves repeated simultaneous exposure to an ephemeral and permanent food source. Adding ephemeral–ephemeral and permanent–permanent combinations, as cleaners face in the wild, requires individuals to have chunking abilities to solve the task. Importantly, chunking parameters need to be calibrated to ecological conditions in order to produce adaptive decisions. Thus, it is the fine-tuning of this ability, which may be the major target of selection during the evolution of advanced associative learning. What makes cognition ‘advanced’ is an open and not precisely defined question. In this study, a cognitive model of cleaner fish learning the ephemeral-reward task demonstrates how a critical step in cognitive evolution may be understood as the evolution of chunking and its tuning to fit ecological conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yosef Prat
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
- * E-mail: (YP); (AL)
| | - Redouan Bshary
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Arnon Lotem
- School of Zoology, Faculty of Life Sciences and Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- * E-mail: (YP); (AL)
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Whittaker BA, Consuegra S, Garcia de Leaniz C. Personality profiling may help select better cleaner fish for sea-lice control in salmon farming. Appl Anim Behav Sci 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2021.105459] [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]
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Taborsky
- Behavioural Ecology Division Institute of Ecology and Evolution University of Bern Bern Switzerland
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Gokcekus S, Cole EF, Sheldon BC, Firth JA. Exploring the causes and consequences of cooperative behaviour in wild animal populations using a social network approach. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2021; 96:2355-2372. [DOI: 10.1111/brv.12757] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2020] [Revised: 05/25/2021] [Accepted: 05/27/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Samin Gokcekus
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute University of Oxford 11a Mansfield Road Oxford OX1 3SZ U.K
| | - Ella F. Cole
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute University of Oxford 11a Mansfield Road Oxford OX1 3SZ U.K
| | - Ben C. Sheldon
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute University of Oxford 11a Mansfield Road Oxford OX1 3SZ U.K
| | - Josh A. Firth
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute University of Oxford 11a Mansfield Road Oxford OX1 3SZ U.K
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Triki Z, Emery Y, Teles MC, Oliveira RF, Bshary R. Brain morphology predicts social intelligence in wild cleaner fish. Nat Commun 2020; 11:6423. [PMID: 33349638 PMCID: PMC7752907 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-20130-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2020] [Accepted: 11/12/2020] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
It is generally agreed that variation in social and/or environmental complexity yields variation in selective pressures on brain anatomy, where more complex brains should yield increased intelligence. While these insights are based on many evolutionary studies, it remains unclear how ecology impacts brain plasticity and subsequently cognitive performance within a species. Here, we show that in wild cleaner fish (Labroides dimidiatus), forebrain size of high-performing individuals tested in an ephemeral reward task covaried positively with cleaner density, while cerebellum size covaried negatively with cleaner density. This unexpected relationship may be explained if we consider that performance in this task reflects the decision rules that individuals use in nature rather than learning abilities: cleaners with relatively larger forebrains used decision-rules that appeared to be locally optimal. Thus, social competence seems to be a suitable proxy of intelligence to understand individual differences under natural conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zegni Triki
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand 11, 2000, Neuchâtel, Switzerland.
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Svante Arrheniusväg 18 B, Stockholm, Sweden.
| | - Yasmin Emery
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand 11, 2000, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Magda C Teles
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Rua da Quinta Grande, 6, 2780-156, Oeiras, Portugal
| | - Rui F Oliveira
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Rua da Quinta Grande, 6, 2780-156, Oeiras, Portugal
- ISPA - Instituto Universitário, Rua Jardim do Tabaco 34, 1149-041, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Redouan Bshary
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand 11, 2000, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
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11
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Prétôt L, Mickelberg J, Carrigan J, Stoinski T, Bshary R, Brosnan SF. Comparative performance of orangutans (Pongo spp.), gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla), and drills (Mandrillus leucophaeus), in an ephemeral foraging task. Am J Primatol 2020; 83:e23212. [PMID: 33135209 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23212] [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: 09/13/2019] [Revised: 10/12/2020] [Accepted: 10/13/2020] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
A goal of the comparative approach is to test a variety of species on the same task. Here, we examined whether the factors that helped capuchin monkeys improve their performance in a dichotomous choice task would generalize to three other primate species: orangutans, gorillas, and drill monkeys. In this task, subjects have access to two options, each resulting in an identical food, but one (the ephemeral option) is only available if it is chosen first, whereas the other one (the permanent option) is always available. Therefore, the food-maximizing solution is to choose the ephemeral option first, followed by the permanent option for an additional reward. On the original version (plate task), the options were discriminated by the color and pattern of the plates holding the food, while on two subsequent versions we used altered cues that we predicted would improve performance: (1) the color of the foods themselves (color task), which we hypothesized was relevant to primates, who choose foods rather than substrates on which foods are found when foraging, and (2) patterned cups covering the foods (cup task), which we hypothesized would help primates avoid the prepotent response associated with visible food. Like capuchins, all three species initially failed to solve the plate task. However, while orangutans improved their performance from the plate to the color task, they did not for the cup task, and only a few gorillas and no drills succeeded in either task. Unfortunately, our ability to interpret these data was obscured by differences in the subjects' level of experience with cognitive testing and practical constraints that precluded the use of completely identical procedures across species. Nonetheless, we consider what these results can tell us, and discuss the value of conducting studies across multiple sites despite unavoidable differences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurent Prétôt
- Department of Psychology and Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
| | | | | | - Tara Stoinski
- Zoo Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.,Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
| | - Redouan Bshary
- Department of Behavioral Ecology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Sarah F Brosnan
- Department of Psychology and Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.,Department of Philosophy, Neuroscience Institute, Center for Behavioral Neuroscience, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
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Quiñones AE, Leimar O, Lotem A, Bshary R. Reinforcement Learning Theory Reveals the Cognitive Requirements for Solving the Cleaner Fish Market Task. Am Nat 2020; 195:664-677. [DOI: 10.1086/707519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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Paula JR, Baptista M, Carvalho F, Repolho T, Bshary R, Rosa R. The past, present and future of cleaner fish cognitive performance as a function of CO 2 levels. Biol Lett 2019; 15:20190618. [PMID: 31795852 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2019.0618] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Ocean acidification is one of the many consequences of climate change. Various studies suggest that marine organisms' behaviour will be impaired under high CO2. Here, we show that the cognitive performance of the cleaner wrasse, Labroides dimidiatus, has not suffered from the increase of CO2 from pre-industrial levels to today, and that the standing variation in CO2 tolerance offers potential for adaptation to at least 750 µatm. We acclimated cleaners over 30 days to five levels of pCO2, from pre-industrial to high future CO2 scenarios, before testing them in an ecologically relevant task-the ability to learn to prioritize an ephemeral food source over a permanent one. Fish learning abilities remained stable from pre-industrial to present-day pCO2. While performance was reduced under mid (750 µatm) and high CO2 (980 µatm) scenarios, under the former 36% of cleaners still solved the task. The presence of tolerant individuals reveals potential for adaptation, as long as selection pressure on cognitive performance is strong. However, the apparent absence of high CO2 tolerant fish, and potentially synergistic effects between various climate change stressors, renders the probability of further adaptation unlikely.
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Affiliation(s)
- José Ricardo Paula
- MARE-Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Laboratório Marítimo da Guia, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Av. Nossa Senhora do Cabo, 939, 2750-374 Cascais, Portugal
| | - Miguel Baptista
- MARE-Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Laboratório Marítimo da Guia, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Av. Nossa Senhora do Cabo, 939, 2750-374 Cascais, Portugal
| | - Francisco Carvalho
- MARE-Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Laboratório Marítimo da Guia, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Av. Nossa Senhora do Cabo, 939, 2750-374 Cascais, Portugal
| | - Tiago Repolho
- MARE-Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Laboratório Marítimo da Guia, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Av. Nossa Senhora do Cabo, 939, 2750-374 Cascais, Portugal
| | - Redouan Bshary
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Rui Rosa
- MARE-Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Laboratório Marítimo da Guia, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Av. Nossa Senhora do Cabo, 939, 2750-374 Cascais, Portugal
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Triki Z, Levorato E, McNeely W, Marshall J, Bshary R. Population densities predict forebrain size variation in the cleaner fish Labroides dimidiatus. Proc Biol Sci 2019; 286:20192108. [PMID: 31744435 PMCID: PMC6892052 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2019.2108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2019] [Accepted: 10/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The 'social brain hypothesis' proposes a causal link between social complexity and either brain size or the size of key brain parts known to be involved in cognitive processing and decision-making. While previous work has focused on comparisons between species, how social complexity affects plasticity in brain morphology at the intraspecific level remains mostly unexplored. A suitable study model is the mutualist 'cleaner' fish Labroides dimidiatus, a species that removes ectoparasites from a variety of 'client' fishes in iterative social interactions. Here, we report a positive relationship between the local density of cleaners, as a proxy of both intra- and interspecific sociality, and the size of the cleaner's brain parts suggested to be associated with cognitive functions, such as the diencephalon and telencephalon (that together form the forebrain). In contrast, the size of the mesencephalon, rhombencephalon, and brain stem, assumed more basal in function, were independent of local fish densities. Selective enlargement of brain parts, that is mosaic brain adjustment, appears to be driven by population density in cleaner fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zegni Triki
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand 11, 2000 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Elena Levorato
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand 11, 2000 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - William McNeely
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand 11, 2000 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Justin Marshall
- Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia
| | - Redouan Bshary
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand 11, 2000 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
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Mazzei R, Lampe M, Ohnesorge A, Pajot A, Soares MC, Bshary R. Ecological differences in the facultative Caribbean cleaning goby Elacatinus prochilos do not predict learning performance in discriminatory two-choice tasks. Anim Cogn 2019; 22:1039-1050. [PMID: 31367994 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-019-01295-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2019] [Revised: 07/11/2019] [Accepted: 07/15/2019] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
The ecological approach to comparative cognition emphasizes that the ecological and social environment are important predictors of cognitive performance. We used this approach to test whether differences in habitat use and social behavior in the facultative Caribbean cleaning goby Elacatinus prochilos predict differences in learning performance in two discriminatory two-choice tasks. This species has two behavioral ecotypes: one that frequently engages in cleaning interactions and inhabits corals in male-female pairs (cleaning gobies) and another that rarely engages in cleaning interactions and inhabits barrel sponges in large groups (sponge-dwellers). We predicted that cleaning gobies would outperform sponge-dwellers in a pattern-cued task, which consisted of identifying the pattern on a plate that consistently provided food, while sponge-dwellers would outperform cleaning gobies in a spatial task, which consisted of identifying the location of the plate. Contrary to our predictions, there was no difference in performance between the two ecotypes. Most of the gobies performed poorly in the pattern-cued task and well in the spatial task. A possible explanation for these results is that the association of a pattern with positive and negative reinforcement may not be a pre-requisite for engaging in cleaning interactions, while spatial skills might be equally required in both ecotypes. Alternatively, the two ecotypes can flexibly adjust to new feeding conditions, which would explain their similar performance in the spatial task. Further research should investigate which aspects of E. prochilos' social and ecological environment might impose challenges that require spatial cognition and whether individuals can flexibly adjust to new habitats and feeding conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renata Mazzei
- Eco-Ethologie, Institut de Biologie, Université de Neuchâtel, Rue Emile-Argand 11, 2000, Neuchâtel, Switzerland.
| | - Michelle Lampe
- Department of Animal Ecology and Physiology, Radboud University, PO Box 9010, 6500 GL, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Alica Ohnesorge
- GEOMAR, Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research, Düsternbrooker Weg 20, 24105, Kiel, Germany
- Christian-Albrechts Universität Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 5-9, 24118, Kiel, Germany
| | - Aude Pajot
- Eco-Ethologie, Institut de Biologie, Université de Neuchâtel, Rue Emile-Argand 11, 2000, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Marta C Soares
- CIBIO/InBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos da Universidade do Porto, R. Padre Armando Quintas 7, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
| | - Redouan Bshary
- Eco-Ethologie, Institut de Biologie, Université de Neuchâtel, Rue Emile-Argand 11, 2000, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
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Triki Z, Wismer S, Rey O, Ann Binning S, Levorato E, Bshary R. Biological market effects predict cleaner fish strategic sophistication. Behav Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arz111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Market-like situations emerge in nature when trading partners exchange goods and services. However, how partner choice option contributes to the expression of social strategic sophistication (i.e., the ability to adjust behavior flexibly given the specifics of a situation) is still poorly understood. A suitable study system to explore this question is the “cleaner” fish Labroides dimidiatus. Cleaners trade parasite removal in exchange for food with a variety of “client” species. Previous research documented strong interindividual variation in two features of their strategic sophistication, namely, the ability to adjust service quality to the presence of an audience and to give priority to clients with access to alternative cleaners (“visitor clients”) over clients lacking such choice options (“resident clients”). Here, we sampled various demes (i.e., group of individuals) of the same population of cleaner fish in order to investigate the extent to which factors describing fish densities and cleaning interaction patterns predict the strategic sophistication in two laboratory experiments. These experiments tested whether cleaners could increase their food intake through reputation management and/or learning to provide service priority to a visitor-like ephemeral food plate. We found that high “outbidding competition,” characterized by high densities of cleaners and visitor clients, along with visitor’s behavior promoting such competition, consistently predicted high strategic sophistication in cleaners. A better understanding of the role of learning versus potential genetic factors, interacting with local market conditions to affect strategic sophistication, is needed to clarify how natural selection has promoted the evolution and maintenance of cooperation in this cleaning mutualism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zegni Triki
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Sharon Wismer
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies and College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Olivia Rey
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Sandra Ann Binning
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
- Département de sciences biologiques, Université de Montréal, Centre-ville Station Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Elena Levorato
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Redouan Bshary
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Emile-Argand, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
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Triki Z, Bshary R. Fluctuations in coral reef fish densities after environmental disturbances on the northern Great Barrier Reef. PeerJ 2019; 7:e6720. [PMID: 30993047 PMCID: PMC6459176 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.6720] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2018] [Accepted: 03/04/2019] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Global warming is predicted to increase the frequency and or severity of many disturbances including cyclones, storms, and prolonged heatwaves. The coral reef at Lizard Island, part of the Great Barrier Reef, has been recently exposed to a sequence of severe tropical cyclones (i.e., Ita in 2014 and Nathan in 2015) and a coral bleaching in the year 2016. Reef fishes are an essential part of the coral reef ecosystem, and their abundance is thus a good marker to estimate the magnitude of such disturbances. Here, we examined whether the recent disturbances at Lizard Island had an impact on the coral reef fish communities. To do this, we examined fish survey data collected before and after the disturbances for potential changes in total fish density post-disturbance. Also, by sorting fish species into 11 functional groups based on their trophic level (i.e., diet), we further explored the density changes within each functional group. Our findings showed an overall decline of 68% in fish density post-disturbance, with a significant density decrease in nine of 11 trophic groups. These nine groups were: browsers, corallivores, detritivores, excavator/scrapers, grazers, macro-invertivores, pisci-invertivores, planktivores, and spongivores. The piscivores, on the other hand, were the only "winners," wherein their density showed an increase post-disturbance. These changes within functional groups might have a further impact on the trophodynamics of the food web. In summary, our findings provide evidence that the fish assemblage on the reefs around Lizard Island was considerably affected by extreme weather events, leading to changes in the functional composition of the reef fish assemblage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zegni Triki
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, NE, Switzerland
| | - Redouan Bshary
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, NE, Switzerland
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Maruska K, Soares MC, Lima-Maximino M, Henrique de Siqueira-Silva D, Maximino C. Social plasticity in the fish brain: Neuroscientific and ethological aspects. Brain Res 2019; 1711:156-172. [PMID: 30684457 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2019.01.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2018] [Revised: 01/16/2019] [Accepted: 01/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Social plasticity, defined as the ability to adaptively change the expression of social behavior according to previous experience and to social context, is a key ecological performance trait that should be viewed as crucial for Darwinian fitness. The neural mechanisms for social plasticity are poorly understood, in part due to skewed reliance on rodent models. Fish model organisms are relevant in the field of social plasticity for at least two reasons: first, the diversity of social organization among fish species is staggering, increasing the breadth of evolutionary relevant questions that can be asked. Second, that diversity also suggests translational relevance, since it is more likely that "core" mechanisms of social plasticity are discovered by analyzing a wider variety of social arrangements than relying on a single species. We analyze examples of social plasticity across fish species with different social organizations, concluding that a "core" mechanism is the initiation of behavioral shifts through the modulation of a conserved "social decision-making network", along with other relevant brain regions, by monoamines, neuropeptides, and steroid hormones. The consolidation of these shifts may be mediated via neurogenomic adjustments and regulation of the expression of plasticity-related molecules (transcription factors, cell cycle regulators, and plasticity products).
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen Maruska
- Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, USA
| | - Marta C Soares
- Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos - CIBIO, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, Portugal
| | - Monica Lima-Maximino
- Laboratório de Biofísica e Neurofarmacologia, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, Brazil; Grupo de Pesquisas em Neuropsicofarmacologia e Psicopatologia Experimental, Brazil
| | - Diógenes Henrique de Siqueira-Silva
- Laboratório de Neurociências e Comportamento "Frederico Guilherme Graeff", Universidade Federal do Sul e Sudeste do Pará, Marabá, Brazil; Grupo de Estudos em Reprodução de Peixes Amazônicos, Universidade Federal do Sul e Sudeste do Pará, Marabá, Brazil
| | - Caio Maximino
- Grupo de Pesquisas em Neuropsicofarmacologia e Psicopatologia Experimental, Brazil; Laboratório de Neurociências e Comportamento "Frederico Guilherme Graeff", Universidade Federal do Sul e Sudeste do Pará, Marabá, Brazil.
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Gingins S, Marcadier F, Wismer S, Krattinger O, Quattrini F, Bshary R, Binning SA. The performance of cleaner wrasse, Labroides dimidiatus, in a reversal learning task varies across experimental paradigms. PeerJ 2018; 6:e4745. [PMID: 29761057 PMCID: PMC5949057 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.4745] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2017] [Accepted: 04/20/2018] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Testing performance in controlled laboratory experiments is a powerful tool for understanding the extent and evolution of cognitive abilities in non-human animals. However, cognitive testing is prone to a number of potential biases, which, if unnoticed or unaccounted for, may affect the conclusions drawn. We examined whether slight modifications to the experimental procedure and apparatus used in a spatial task and reversal learning task affected performance outcomes in the bluestreak cleaner wrasse, Labroides dimidiatus (hereafter “cleaners”). Using two-alternative forced-choice tests, fish had to learn to associate a food reward with a side (left or right) in their holding aquarium. Individuals were tested in one of four experimental treatments that differed slightly in procedure and/or physical set-up. Cleaners from all four treatment groups were equally able to solve the initial spatial task. However, groups differed in their ability to solve the reversal learning task: no individuals solved the reversal task when tested in small tanks with a transparent partition separating the two options, whereas over 50% of individuals solved the task when performed in a larger tank, or with an opaque partition. These results clearly show that seemingly insignificant details to the experimental set-up matter when testing performance in a spatial task and might significantly influence the outcome of experiments. These results echo previous calls for researchers to exercise caution when designing methodologies for cognition tasks to avoid misinterpretations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Gingins
- Institut de Biologie, Université de Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland.,Department of Collective Behaviour, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Radolfzell, Germany.,Department of Biology, Universität Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | | | - Sharon Wismer
- Institut de Biologie, Université de Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland.,College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, Australia
| | - Océane Krattinger
- Institut de Biologie, Université de Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Fausto Quattrini
- Institut de Biologie, Université de Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Redouan Bshary
- Institut de Biologie, Université de Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Sandra A Binning
- Institut de Biologie, Université de Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland.,Département de sciences biologiques, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
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Langenhof MR, Komdeur J. Why and how the early-life environment affects development of coping behaviours. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2018; 72:34. [PMID: 29449757 PMCID: PMC5805793 DOI: 10.1007/s00265-018-2452-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2017] [Revised: 01/19/2018] [Accepted: 01/25/2018] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the ways in which individuals cope with threats, respond to challenges, make use of opportunities and mediate the harmful effects of their surroundings is important for predicting their ability to function in a rapidly changing world. Perhaps one of the most essential drivers of coping behaviour of adults is the environment experienced during their early-life development. Although the study of coping, defined as behaviours displayed in response to environmental challenges, has a long and rich research history in biology, recent literature has repeatedly pointed out that the processes through which coping behaviours develop in individuals are still largely unknown. In this review, we make a move towards integrating ultimate and proximate lines of coping behaviour research. After broadly defining coping behaviours (1), we review why, from an evolutionary perspective, the development of coping has become tightly linked to the early-life environment (2), which relevant developmental processes are most important in creating coping behaviours adjusted to the early-life environment (3), which influences have been shown to impact those developmental processes (4) and what the adaptive significance of intergenerational transmission of coping behaviours is, in the context of behavioural adaptations to a fast changing world (5). Important concepts such as effects of parents, habitat, nutrition, social group and stress are discussed using examples from empirical studies on mammals, fish, birds and other animals. In the discussion, we address important problems that arise when studying the development of coping behaviours and suggest solutions.
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Affiliation(s)
- M. Rohaa Langenhof
- Behavioural Physiology and Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Jan Komdeur
- Behavioural Physiology and Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
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Triki Z, Wismer S, Levorato E, Bshary R. A decrease in the abundance and strategic sophistication of cleaner fish after environmental perturbations. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2018; 24:481-489. [PMID: 29134754 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.13943] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2017] [Revised: 08/24/2017] [Accepted: 10/06/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Coral reef ecosystems are declining worldwide and under foreseeable threat due to climate change, resulting in significant changes in reef communities. It is unknown, however, how such community changes impact interspecific interactions. Recent extreme weather events affecting the Great Barrier Reef, that is, consecutive cyclones and the 2016 El Niño event, allowed us to explore potential consequences in the mutualistic interactions involving cleaner fish Labroides dimidiatus (hereafter "cleaner"). After the perturbations, cleaner densities were reduced by 80%, disproportionally compared to the variety of reef fish clients from which cleaners remove ectoparasites. Consequently, shifts in supply and demand yielded an increase in the clients' demand for cleaning. Therefore, clients became less selective toward cleaners, whereas cleaners were able to choose from a multitude of partners. In parallel, we found a significant decline in the ability of cleaners to manage their reputation and to learn to prioritize ephemeral food sources to maximize food intake in laboratory experiments. In other words, cleaners failed to display the previously documented strategic sophistication that made this species a prime example for fish intelligence. In conclusion, low population densities may cause various effects on individual behavior, and as a consequence, interspecific interactions. At the same time, our data suggest that a recovery of population densities would cause a recovery of previously described interaction patterns and cleaner strategic sophistication within the lifetime of individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zegni Triki
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Sharon Wismer
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Elena Levorato
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Redouan Bshary
- Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
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Soares MC. The Neurobiology of Mutualistic Behavior: The Cleanerfish Swims into the Spotlight. Front Behav Neurosci 2017; 11:191. [PMID: 29089876 PMCID: PMC5651018 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2017.00191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2017] [Accepted: 09/29/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
One of the most notorious examples of cooperation between different species happens in the cleaner-client fish mutualism. The best known cleaner fish species, the bluestreak Indo-Pacific cleaner wrasse Labroides dimidiatus has been a model system to study the evolution of cooperation between unrelated animals and between distinct species during the last couple of decades. Given that the cleanerfish mutualism is well-established for behavioral studies of cooperation, it offered an outstanding opportunity to identify the link between cooperation, social cognition, and to undertake proximate studies, which were severely in need. This review surveys the current achievements of several recent studies, pointing towards the potential of the cleanerfish mutualism as a relevant model system for future accomplishments in neuroendocrine research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marta C Soares
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
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Reputation management promotes strategic adjustment of service quality in cleaner wrasse. Sci Rep 2017; 7:8425. [PMID: 28827634 PMCID: PMC5566447 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-07128-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2016] [Accepted: 06/23/2017] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Adjusting one’s behaviour in response to eavesdropping bystanders is considered a sophisticated social strategy, yet the underlying mechanisms are not well studied. Cleaner wrasse, Labroides dimidiatus, cooperate by eating ectoparasites off “client” fishes, or cheat (i.e. bite) and eat client mucus. Image scoring by bystander clients generally causes cleaners from socially-complex (i.e. high cleaner and client abundance; high client species richness) habitats to increase levels of cooperation. However, some individuals may periodically provide tactile stimulation to small resident clients, which attract bystanders close that are bitten, a form of tactical deception. Cortisol injection can reproduce this pattern. Here, we tested whether cleaners from socially-complex versus simple habitats respond differently to cortisol injections in terms of their cleaning interactions with clients. We found that only cleaners from the socially-complex habitat respond to cortisol injection with strategies functioning as tactical deception: i.e. increased tactile stimulation to small clients and increased cheating of large clients relative to small ones. At the socially-simple site, where reputation management is less important, cortisol-treated fish increased their overall levels of cheating, especially of small clients. Thus, strategic adjustments to cooperative behaviour and tactical deception are likely context-dependent, forming part of general reputation management abilities in cleaner wrasse.
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Can cleanerfish overcome temptation? A selective role for dopamine influence on cooperative-based decision making. Physiol Behav 2017; 169:124-129. [DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2016.11.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2016] [Revised: 11/11/2016] [Accepted: 11/15/2016] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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Wismer S, Grutter A, Bshary R. Generalized rule application in bluestreak cleaner wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus): using predator species as social tools to reduce punishment. Anim Cogn 2016; 19:769-78. [PMID: 27016339 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-016-0975-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2015] [Revised: 03/02/2016] [Accepted: 03/04/2016] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Generalized rule application promotes flexible behavior by allowing individuals to adjust quickly to environmental changes through generalization of previous learning. Here, we show that bluestreak 'cleaner' wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus) uses generalized rule application in their use of predators as social tools against punishing reef fish clients. Punishment occurs as cleaners do not only remove ectoparasites from clients, but prefer to feed on client mucus (constituting cheating). We tested for generalized rule application in a series of experiments, starting by training cleaners to approach one of two fish models in order to evade punishment (by chasing) from a 'cheated' client model. Cleaners learned this task only if the safe haven was a predator model. During consecutive exposure to pairs of novel species, including exotic models, cleaners demonstrated generalization of the 'predators-are-safe-havens' rule by rapidly satisfying learning criteria. However, cleaners were not able to generalize to a 'one-of-two-stimuli-presents-a-safe-haven' rule, as they failed to solve the task when confronted with either two harmless fish models or two predator models. Our results emphasize the importance of ecologically relevant experiments to uncover complex cognitive processes in non-human animals, like generalized rule learning in the context of social tool use in a fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sharon Wismer
- The Institute of Biology, The University of Neuchâtel, 2000, Neuchâtel, Switzerland.
| | - Alexandra Grutter
- The School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Redouan Bshary
- The Institute of Biology, The University of Neuchâtel, 2000, Neuchâtel, Switzerland
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Taborsky B. Opening the Black Box of Developmental Experiments: Behavioural Mechanisms Underlying Long-Term Effects of Early Social Experience. Ethology 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Taborsky
- Behavioural Ecology; Institute of Ecology and Evolution; University of Bern; Hinterkappelen Switzerland
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Relative Brain and Brain Part Sizes Provide Only Limited Evidence that Machiavellian Behaviour in Cleaner Wrasse Is Cognitively Demanding. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0135373. [PMID: 26263490 PMCID: PMC4532450 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0135373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2014] [Accepted: 07/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
It is currently widely accepted that the complexity of a species’ social life is a major determinant of its brain complexity, as predicted by the social brain hypothesis. However, it remains a challenge to explain what social complexity exactly is and what the best corresponding measures of brain anatomy are. Absolute and relative size of the brain and of the neocortex have often been used as a proxy to predict cognitive performance. Here, we apply the logic of the social brain hypothesis to marine cleaning mutualism involving the genus Labroides. These wrasses remove ectoparasites from ‘client’ reef fish. Conflict occurs as wrasse prefer client mucus over ectoparasites, where mucus feeding constitutes cheating. As a result of this conflict, cleaner wrasse show remarkable Machiavellian-like behaviour. Using own data as well as available data from the literature, we investigated whether the general brain anatomy of Labroides provides any indication that their Machiavellian behaviour is associated with a more complex brain. Neither data set provided evidence for an increased encephalisation index compared to other wrasse species. Published data on relative sizes of brain parts in 25 species of the order Perciformes suggests that only the diencephalon is relatively enlarged in Labroides dimidiatus. This part contains various nuclei of the social decision making network. In conclusion, gross brain anatomy yields little evidence for the hypothesis that strategic behaviour in cleaning selects for larger brains, while future research should focus on more detailed aspects like the sizes of specific nuclei as well as their cryoarchitectonic structure and connectivity.
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Abbott A. Animal behaviour: Inside the cunning, caring and greedy minds of fish. Nature 2015; 521:412-4. [DOI: 10.1038/521412a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Arginine vasotocin reduces levels of cooperative behaviour in a cleaner fish. Physiol Behav 2015; 139:314-20. [DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2014.11.052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2014] [Revised: 11/13/2014] [Accepted: 11/14/2014] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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Drew JA, Gumm JM. Learning and Behavior in Reef Fish: Fuel for Microevolutionary Change? Ethology 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Joshua A. Drew
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology; Columbia University; New York NY USA
| | - Jennifer M. Gumm
- Department of Biology; Stephen F. Austin State University; Nacogdoches TX USA
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Social cognition in fishes. Trends Cogn Sci 2014; 18:465-71. [PMID: 24815200 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2014.04.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 96] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2013] [Revised: 04/07/2014] [Accepted: 04/11/2014] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Brain evolution has often been correlated with the cognitive demands of social life. Further progress depends on our ability to link cognitive processes to corresponding brain part sizes and structures, and, ultimately, to demonstrate causality. Recent research suggests that fishes are suitable to test general hypotheses about vertebrate social cognition and its evolution: brain structure and physiology are rather conserved among vertebrates, and fish are able to perform complex decisions in social context. Here, we outline the opportunities for experimentation and comparative studies using fish as model systems, as well as some current shortcomings in fish social cognition research.
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