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Odour-mediated Interactions Between an Apex Reptilian Predator and its Mammalian Prey. J Chem Ecol 2022; 48:401-415. [PMID: 35233678 PMCID: PMC9079038 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-022-01350-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2021] [Revised: 02/04/2022] [Accepted: 02/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
An important but understudied modality for eavesdropping between predators and prey is olfaction, especially between non-mammalian vertebrate predators and their prey. Here we test three olfactory eavesdropping predictions involving an apex reptilian predator, the sand goanna Varanus gouldii, and several species of its small mammalian prey in arid central Australia: 1) small mammals will recognize and avoid the odour of V. gouldii; 2) V. gouldii will be attracted to the odour of small mammals, especially of species that maximize its energetic returns; and 3) small mammals will be less mobile and will show higher burrow fidelity where V. gouldii is absent compared with where it is present. As expected, we found that small mammals recognized and avoided faecal odour of this goanna, feeding less intensively at food patches where the odour of V. gouldii was present than at patches with no odour or a pungency control odour. Varanus gouldii also was attracted to the odour of small mammals in artificial burrows and dug more frequently at burrows containing the odour of species that were energetically profitable than at those of species likely to yield diminishing returns. Our third prediction received mixed support. Rates of movement of three species of small mammals were no different where V. gouldii was present or absent, but burrow fidelity in two of these species increased as expected where V. gouldii had been removed. We conclude that olfaction plays a key role in the dynamic interaction between V. gouldii and its mammalian prey, with the interactants using olfaction to balance their respective costs of foraging and reducing predation risk. We speculate that the risk of predation from this apex reptilian predator drives the highly unusual burrow-shifting behaviour that characterizes many of Australia's small desert mammals.
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2
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Norbury GL, Price CJ, Latham MC, Brown SJ, Latham ADM, Brownstein GE, Ricardo HC, McArthur NJ, Banks PB. Misinformation tactics protect rare birds from problem predators. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2021; 7:7/11/eabe4164. [PMID: 33692107 PMCID: PMC7946364 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abe4164] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2020] [Accepted: 01/22/2021] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Efficient decision-making integrates previous experience with new information. Tactical use of misinformation can alter choice in humans. Whether misinformation affects decision-making in other free-living species, including problem species, is unknown. Here, we show that sensory misinformation tactics can reduce the impacts of predators on vulnerable bird populations as effectively as lethal control. We repeatedly exposed invasive mammalian predators to unprofitable bird odors for 5 weeks before native shorebirds arrived for nesting and for 8 weeks thereafter. Chick production increased 1.7-fold at odor-treated sites over 25 to 35 days, with doubled or tripled odds of successful hatching, resulting in a 127% increase in modeled population size in 25 years. We demonstrate that decision-making processes that respond to changes in information reliability are vulnerable to tactical manipulation by misinformation. Altering perceptions of prey availability offers an innovative, nonlethal approach to managing problem predators and improving conservation outcomes for threatened species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grant L Norbury
- Manaaki Whenua-Landcare Research, Alexandra 9340, New Zealand.
| | - Catherine J Price
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Nikki J McArthur
- Wildlife Management International Ltd., Blenheim 7201, New Zealand
| | - Peter B Banks
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia
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3
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Garvey PM, Banks PB, Suraci JP, Bodey TW, Glen AS, Jones CJ, McArthur C, Norbury GL, Price CJ, Russell JC, Sih A. Leveraging Motivations, Personality, and Sensory Cues for Vertebrate Pest Management. Trends Ecol Evol 2020; 35:990-1000. [PMID: 32900547 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2020.07.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2020] [Revised: 07/08/2020] [Accepted: 07/13/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Managing vertebrate pests is a global conservation challenge given their undesirable socio-ecological impacts. Pest management often focuses on the 'average' individual, neglecting individual-level behavioural variation ('personalities') and differences in life histories. These differences affect pest impacts and modify attraction to, or avoidance of, sensory cues. Strategies targeting the average individual may fail to mitigate damage by 'rogues' (individuals causing disproportionate impact) or to target 'recalcitrants' (individuals avoiding standard control measures). Effective management leverages animal behaviours that relate primarily to four core motivations: feeding, fleeing, fighting, and fornication. Management success could be greatly increased by identifying and exploiting individual variation in motivations. We provide explicit suggestions for cue-based tools to manipulate these four motivators, thereby improving pest management outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick M Garvey
- Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research, PO Box 69040, Lincoln 7640, New Zealand.
| | - Peter B Banks
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Justin P Suraci
- Centre for Integrated Spatial Research, Environmental Studies Department, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Thomas W Bodey
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, Penryn Campus, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9EZ, UK
| | - Alistair S Glen
- Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research, Private Bag 92170, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Chris J Jones
- Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research, PO Box 69040, Lincoln 7640, New Zealand
| | - Clare McArthur
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Grant L Norbury
- Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research, PO Box 69040, Lincoln 7640, New Zealand
| | - Catherine J Price
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - James C Russell
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Andrew Sih
- Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA
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4
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The Emergence of a Stable Neuronal Ensemble from a Wider Pool of Activated Neurons in the Dorsal Medial Prefrontal Cortex during Appetitive Learning in Mice. J Neurosci 2019; 40:395-410. [PMID: 31727794 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1496-19.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2019] [Revised: 11/04/2019] [Accepted: 11/06/2019] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals selectively respond to environmental cues associated with food reward to optimize nutrient intake. Such appetitive conditioned stimulus-unconditioned stimulus (CS-US) associations are thought to be encoded in select, stable neuronal populations or neuronal ensembles, which undergo physiological modifications during appetitive conditioning. These ensembles in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) control well-established, cue-evoked food seeking, but the mechanisms involved in the genesis of these ensembles are unclear. Here, we used male Fos-GFP mice that express green fluorescent protein (GFP) in recently behaviorally activated neurons, to reveal how dorsal mPFC neurons are recruited and modified to encode CS-US memory representations using an appetitive conditioning task. In the initial conditioning session, animals did not exhibit discriminated, cue-selective food seeking, but did so in later sessions indicating that a CS-US association was established. Using microprism-based in vivo 2-Photon imaging, we revealed that only a minority of neurons activated during the initial session was consistently activated throughout subsequent conditioning sessions and during cue-evoked memory recall. Notably, using ex vivo electrophysiology, we found that neurons activated following the initial session exhibited transient hyperexcitability. Chemogenetically enhancing the excitability of these neurons throughout subsequent conditioning sessions interfered with the development of reliable cue-selective food seeking, indicated by persistent, nondiscriminated performance. We demonstrate how appetitive learning consistently activates a subset of neurons to form a stable neuronal ensemble during the formation of a CS-US association. This ensemble may arise from a pool of hyperexcitable neurons activated during the initial conditioning session.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Appetitive conditioning endows cues associated with food with the ability to guide food-seeking, through the formation of a food-cue association. Neuronal ensembles in the mPFC control established cue-evoked food-seeking. However, how neurons undergo physiological modifications and become part of an ensemble during conditioning remain unclear. We found that only a minority of dorsal mPFC neurons activated on the initial conditioning session became consistently activated during conditioning and memory recall. These initially activated neurons were also transiently hyperexcitable. We demonstrate the following: (1) how stable neuronal ensemble formation in the dorsal mPFC underlies appetitive conditioning; and (2) how this ensemble may arise from hyperexcitable neurons activated before the establishment of cue-evoked food seeking.
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5
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Towards streamlined bank vole odor preference evaluation using Y-mazes. MAMMAL RES 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s13364-019-00445-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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6
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Lawson RR, Fogarty DT, Loss SR. Use of visual and olfactory sensory cues by an apex predator in deciduous forests. CAN J ZOOL 2019. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2018-0134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Predator–prey interactions influence behaviors and life-history evolution for both predator and prey species and also have implications for biodiversity conservation. A fundamental goal of ecology is to clarify mechanisms underlying predator–prey interactions and dynamics. To investigate the role of predator sensory mechanisms in predator–prey interactions, specifically in predator detection of prey, we experimentally evaluated importance of visual and olfactory cues for an apex predator, the coyote (Canis latrans Say, 1823). Unlike similar studies, we examined use of sensory cues in a field setting. We used trail cameras and four replicated treatments — visual only, olfactory only, visual and olfactory combined, and a control — to quantify coyote visitation rates in North American deciduous forests during fall 2016. Coyote visitation was greatest for olfactory-only and visual-only cues, followed by the combined olfactory–visual cue; all cues attracted more coyotes than the control (i.e., olfactory = visual > olfactory–visual > control). Our results suggest this apex predator uses both olfactory and visual cues while foraging for prey. These findings from a field study of free-roaming coyotes increase understanding of predator foraging behavior, predator–prey interactions, and sensory ecology. Our study also suggests future directions for field evaluations of the role of different sensory mechanisms in predator foraging and prey concealment behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Riley R. Lawson
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, 008C Ag Hall, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, 008C Ag Hall, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA
| | - Dillon T. Fogarty
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, 008C Ag Hall, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA
| | - Scott R. Loss
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, 008C Ag Hall, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, 008C Ag Hall, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA
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7
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Latham MC, Anderson DP, Norbury G, Price CJ, Banks PB, Latham ADM. Modeling habituation of introduced predators to unrewarding bird odors for conservation of ground-nesting shorebirds. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2019; 29:e01814. [PMID: 30312506 DOI: 10.1002/eap.1814] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2017] [Revised: 08/15/2018] [Accepted: 09/05/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Foraging mammalian predators face a myriad of odors from potential prey. To be efficient, they must focus on rewarding odors while ignoring consistently unrewarding ones. This may be exploited as a nonlethal conservation tool if predators can be deceived into ignoring odors of vulnerable secondary prey. To explore critical design components and assess the potential gains to prey survival of this technique, we created an individual-based model that simulated the hunting behavior of three introduced mammalian predators on one of their secondary prey (a migratory shorebird) in the South Island of New Zealand. Within this model, we heuristically assessed the outcome of habituating the predators to human-deployed unrewarding bird odors before the bird's arrival at their breeding grounds, i.e., the predators were "primed." Using known home range sizes and probabilities of predators interacting with food lures, our model suggests that wide-ranging predators should encounter a relatively large number of odor points (between 10 and 115) during 27 d of priming when odor is deployed within high-resolution grids (100-150 m). Using this information, we then modeled the effect of different habituation curves (exponential and sigmoidal) on the probability of predators depredating shorebird nests. Our results show that important gains in nest survival can be achieved regardless of the shape of the habituation curve, but particularly if predators are fast olfactory learners (exponential curve), and even if some level of dishabituation occurs after prey become available. Predictions from our model can inform the amount and pattern in which olfactory stimuli need to be deployed in the field to optimize encounters by predators, and the relative gains that can be expected from reduced predation pressure on secondary prey under different scenarios of predator learning. Habituating predators to odors of threatened secondary prey may have particular efficacy as a conservation tool in areas where lethal predator control is not possible or ethical, or where even low predator densities can be detrimental to prey survival. Our approach is also relevant for determining interaction probabilities for devices other than odor points, such as bait stations and camera traps.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Cecilia Latham
- Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research, PO Box 69040, Lincoln, 7640, New Zealand
| | - Dean P Anderson
- Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research, PO Box 69040, Lincoln, 7640, New Zealand
| | - Grant Norbury
- Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research, PO Box 282, Alexandra, 9340 , New Zealand
| | - Catherine J Price
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, New South Wales, 2006, Australia
| | - Peter B Banks
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, New South Wales, 2006, Australia
| | - A David M Latham
- Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research, PO Box 69040, Lincoln, 7640, New Zealand
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8
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Price CJ, Banks PB. Food quality and conspicuousness shape improvements in olfactory discrimination by mice. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 284:rspb.2016.2629. [PMID: 28123093 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.2629] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2016] [Accepted: 12/21/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
How animals locate nutritious but camouflaged prey items with increasing accuracy is not well understood. Olfactory foraging is common in vertebrates and the nutritional desirability of food should influence the salience of odour cues. We used signal detection analysis to test the effect of nutritional value relative to the conspicuousness of food patches on rates of foraging improvement of wild house mice Mus musculus searching for buried food (preferred peanuts or non-preferred barley). Olfactory cues were arranged to make food patches conspicuous or difficult to distinguish using a novel form of olfactory camouflage. Regardless of food type or abundance, mice searching for conspicuous food patches performed significantly better than mice searching for camouflaged patches. However, food type influenced how mice responded to different levels of conspicuousness. Mice searching for peanuts improved by similar rates regardless of whether food was easy or hard to find, but mice searching for barley showed significant differences, improving rapidly when food was conspicuous but declining in accuracy when food was camouflaged. Our results demonstrate a fundamental tenet of olfactory foraging that nutritional desirability influences rates of improvement in odour discrimination, enabling nutritious but camouflaged prey to be located with increasing efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catherine J Price
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Randwick, New South Wales 2052, Australia
| | - Peter B Banks
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Randwick, New South Wales 2052, Australia
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9
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Fogarty DT, Elmore RD, Fuhlendorf SD, Loss SR. Variation and drivers of airflow patterns associated with olfactory concealment and habitat selection. Ecology 2018; 99:289-299. [DOI: 10.1002/ecy.2102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2017] [Revised: 11/04/2017] [Accepted: 11/20/2017] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Dillon T. Fogarty
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management; Oklahoma State University; 008C Ag Hall Stillwater Oklahoma 74078 USA
| | - R. Dwayne Elmore
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management; Oklahoma State University; 008C Ag Hall Stillwater Oklahoma 74078 USA
| | - Samuel D. Fuhlendorf
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management; Oklahoma State University; 008C Ag Hall Stillwater Oklahoma 74078 USA
| | - Scott R. Loss
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management; Oklahoma State University; 008C Ag Hall Stillwater Oklahoma 74078 USA
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10
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Finnerty PB, Stutz RS, Price CJ, Banks PB, McArthur C. Leaf odour cues enable non‐random foraging by mammalian herbivores. J Anim Ecol 2017; 86:1317-1328. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2017] [Accepted: 08/09/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Patrick B. Finnerty
- School of Life & Environmental SciencesThe University of Sydney Sydney NSW Australia
| | - Rebecca S. Stutz
- School of Life & Environmental SciencesThe University of Sydney Sydney NSW Australia
- Department of ZoologyStockholm University Stockholm Sweden
| | - Catherine J. Price
- School of Life & Environmental SciencesThe University of Sydney Sydney NSW Australia
| | - Peter B. Banks
- School of Life & Environmental SciencesThe University of Sydney Sydney NSW Australia
| | - Clare McArthur
- School of Life & Environmental SciencesThe University of Sydney Sydney NSW Australia
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11
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Fogarty DT, Elmore RD, Fuhlendorf SD, Loss SR. Influence of olfactory and visual cover on nest site selection and nest success for grassland-nesting birds. Ecol Evol 2017; 7:6247-6258. [PMID: 28861229 PMCID: PMC5574794 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3195] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2017] [Revised: 05/22/2017] [Accepted: 05/30/2017] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Habitat selection by animals is influenced by and mitigates the effects of predation and environmental extremes. For birds, nest site selection is crucial to offspring production because nests are exposed to extreme weather and predation pressure. Predators that forage using olfaction often dominate nest predator communities; therefore, factors that influence olfactory detection (e.g., airflow and weather variables, including turbulence and moisture) should influence nest site selection and survival. However, few studies have assessed the importance of olfactory cover for habitat selection and survival. We assessed whether ground-nesting birds select nest sites based on visual and/or olfactory cover. Additionally, we assessed the importance of visual cover and airflow and weather variables associated with olfactory cover in influencing nest survival. In managed grasslands in Oklahoma, USA, we monitored nests of Northern Bobwhite (Colinus virginianus), Eastern Meadowlark (Sturnella magna), and Grasshopper Sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum) during 2015 and 2016. To assess nest site selection, we compared cover variables between nests and random points. To assess factors influencing nest survival, we used visual cover and olfactory-related measurements (i.e., airflow and weather variables) to model daily nest survival. For nest site selection, nest sites had greater overhead visual cover than random points, but no other significant differences were found. Weather variables hypothesized to influence olfactory detection, specifically precipitation and relative humidity, were the best predictors of and were positively related to daily nest survival. Selection for overhead cover likely contributed to mitigation of thermal extremes and possibly reduced detectability of nests. For daily nest survival, we hypothesize that major nest predators focused on prey other than the monitored species' nests during high moisture conditions, thus increasing nest survival on these days. Our study highlights how mechanistic approaches to studying cover informs which dimensions are perceived and selected by animals and which dimensions confer fitness-related benefits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dillon T Fogarty
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management Oklahoma State University Stillwater OK USA.,Present address: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Lincoln NE USA
| | - R Dwayne Elmore
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management Oklahoma State University Stillwater OK USA
| | - Samuel D Fuhlendorf
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management Oklahoma State University Stillwater OK USA
| | - Scott R Loss
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management Oklahoma State University Stillwater OK USA
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12
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Acoustic cues from within the egg do not heighten depredation risk to shorebird clutches. Behav Ecol 2017. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arx040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
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13
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Jones ME, Apfelbach R, Banks PB, Cameron EZ, Dickman CR, Frank A, McLean S, McGregor IS, Müller-Schwarze D, Parsons MH, Sparrow E, Blumstein DT. A Nose for Death: Integrating Trophic and Informational Networks for Conservation and Management. Front Ecol Evol 2016. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2016.00124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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14
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Price CJ, Banks PB. Increased olfactory search costs change foraging behaviour in an alien mustelid: a precursor to prey switching? Oecologia 2016; 182:119-28. [PMID: 27230396 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-016-3660-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2015] [Accepted: 05/11/2016] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
If generalist predators are to hunt efficiently, they must track the changing costs and benefits of multiple prey types. Decisions to switch from hunting preferred prey to alternate prey have been assumed to be driven by decreasing availability of preferred prey, with less regard for accessibility of alternate prey. Olfactory cues from prey provide information about prey availability and its location, and are exploited by many predators to reduce search costs. We show that stoats Mustela erminea, an alien olfactory predator in New Zealand, are sensitive to the search costs of hunting both their preferred rodent prey (mice) and a less desirable alternate prey (locust). We manipulated search costs for stoats using a novel form of olfactory camouflage of both prey, and found that stoats altered their foraging strategy depending on whether mice were camouflaged or conspicuous, but only when locusts were also camouflaged. Stoats gave up foraging four times more often when both prey were camouflaged, compared to when mice were conspicuous and locusts camouflaged. There were no differences in the foraging strategies used to hunt camouflaged or conspicuous mice when locusts were easy to find. Consequently, camouflaged mice survived longer than conspicuous mice when locusts were hard to find, but not when locusts were easy to find. Our results demonstrate that predators can integrate search costs from multiple prey types when making foraging decisions. Manipulating olfactory search costs to alter foraging strategies offers new methods for understanding the factors that foreshadow prey switching.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catherine J Price
- School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Randwick, NSW, 2052, Australia. .,School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia.
| | - Peter B Banks
- School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Randwick, NSW, 2052, Australia.,School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
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15
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Li S, Tan X, Desneux N, Benelli G, Zhao J, Li X, Zhang F, Gao X, Wang S. Innate positive chemotaxis to pollen from crops and banker plants in predaceous biological control agents: towards new field lures? Sci Rep 2015; 5:12729. [PMID: 26235136 PMCID: PMC4522688 DOI: 10.1038/srep12729] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2014] [Accepted: 07/06/2015] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Predator-prey interactions form the core of biological control of arthropod pests. Which tools can be used to monitor and collect carnivorous arthropods in natural habitats and targeted crops? Eco-friendly and effective field lures are urgently needed. In this research, we carried out olfactometer experiments assess innate positive chemotaxis to pollen of seven crop and banker plant by two important predatory biological control agents: the coccinellid Propylea japonica (Thunberg) and the anthocorid Orius sauteri (Poppius). We compared the attractiveness of pollens from crops and banker plants to that of common prey homogenates (aphids and thrips, respectively). Attractiveness of the tested odor sources was checked via field trapping experiments conducted in organic apple orchards and by release-recapture assays in organic greenhouse tomato crops. Maize and canola pollen were attractive to both P. japonica and O. sauteri, in laboratory and field assays. P. japonica was highly attracted by balm mint pollen, whereas O. sauteri was attracted by alfalfa pollen. Our results encourage the use of pollen from crops and banker plants as low-cost and eco-friendly attractors to enhance the monitoring and attraction of arthropod predators in biological control programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shu Li
- Institute of Plant and Environment Protection, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, 100097, China
- Department of Entomology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
| | - Xiaoling Tan
- Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Nicolas Desneux
- French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA), UMR1355-ISA, 06903 Sophia-Antipolis, France
| | - Giovanni Benelli
- Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Jing Zhao
- Institute of Plant and Environment Protection, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, 100097, China
- Department of Entomology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
| | - Xinhai Li
- Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Fan Zhang
- Institute of Plant and Environment Protection, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, 100097, China
| | - Xiwu Gao
- Department of Entomology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
| | - Su Wang
- Institute of Plant and Environment Protection, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, 100097, China
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16
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Stutz RS, Banks PB, Dexter N, McArthur C. Herbivore search behaviour drives associational plant refuge. ACTA OECOLOGICA-INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.actao.2015.05.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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17
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The dilemma of foraging herbivores: dealing with food and fear. Oecologia 2014; 176:677-89. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-014-3076-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2014] [Accepted: 09/02/2014] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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18
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Binz H, Foitzik S, Staab F, Menzel F. The chemistry of competition: exploitation of heterospecific cues depends on the dominance rank in the community. Anim Behav 2014. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2014.05.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Roles of the volatile terpene, 1,8-cineole, in plant–herbivore interactions: a foraging odor cue as well as a toxin? Oecologia 2013; 174:827-37. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-013-2801-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2013] [Accepted: 10/02/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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Bytheway JP, Carthey AJR, Banks PB. Risk vs. reward: how predators and prey respond to aging olfactory cues. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2013. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-013-1494-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Hughes NK, Kelley JL, Banks PB. Dangerous liaisons: the predation risks of receiving social signals. Ecol Lett 2012; 15:1326-1339. [PMID: 22925009 DOI: 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2012.01856.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2012] [Revised: 04/19/2012] [Accepted: 07/23/2012] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nelika K. Hughes
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre; School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences; University of New South Wales; Sydney New South Wales 2052 Australia
| | - Jennifer L. Kelley
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre; School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences; University of New South Wales; Sydney New South Wales 2052 Australia
| | - Peter B. Banks
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre; School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences; University of New South Wales; Sydney New South Wales 2052 Australia
- School of Biological Sciences; University of Sydney; Sydney New South Wales 2006 Australia
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Johannesen A, Dunn AM, Morrell LJ. Olfactory cue use by three-spined sticklebacks foraging in turbid water: prey detection or prey location? Anim Behav 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2012.04.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
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