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Abstract

When confronted by potential predators, many prey fishes engage in predator inspection behavior. Previous authors have argued that by selectively avoiding the predator's head during an inspection visit (attack cone avoidance), individual inspectors may reduce their local risk of predation. In field trials, we investigated the effects of predator diet cues on the presence of 'attack cone avoidance' during predator inspection visits. Wild, free-ranging finescale dace (Phoxinus neogaeus) were exposed to the combined cues of a model predator and a distilled water control or the odor of a yellow perch (Perca flavescens) fed dace (with alarm pheromone), swordtail (Xiphophorus helleri) (lacking Ostariophysan alarm pheromone), or perch that were food deprived for four days. Finescale dace modified their predator inspection behavior following exposure to the odor of a perch fed dace (fewer dace present, reduced frequency of inspections, and an increased per capita inspection rate) compared to those exposed to the odor of a perch fed swordtails, perch that were food deprived, or a distilled water control. In addition, dace inspected the tail region more often only when the model predator was paired with the odor of a perch fed dace. In all other treatments, dace inspected the head region of the model predator more often. These data suggest that attack cone avoidance of inspecting prey fishes may be more likely to occur in high-risk situations, such as in the presence of conspecific alarm pheromones in the diet of potential predators.

Cross-population responses to conspecific chemical alarm cues in wild Trinidadian guppies, Poecilia reticulata: evidence for local conservation of cue production

“…These guppies exhibited a more risk-aversive inspection pattern when the predator model was paired with alarm cues from Lower Aripo guppies than when the model was paired with a river water control. These results are consistent with our previous laboratory (Brown and Godin 1999b;Brown and Dreier 2002) and field (Brown and Godin 1999a;Brown et al 2001b) studies of chemically mediated predator inspection behaviour. More interesting is the observation that the pattern of inspection behaviour of Lower Aripo guppies in the current study was intermediate when the predator model was paired with the chemical alarm cues of Upper Aripo guppies, suggesting that the alarm cues of a different population were perceived as signaling a lower level of threat locally.…”

Fine-scale behavioural adjustments of prey on a continuum of risk

“…B 286: 20190448 that once predators were active, prey increased swimming speeds within the attack cone of the predator and swam away from its head and towards the relative safety of its tail. These increased speeds may reflect the immediate need to get out of striking distance of the predator and leave the 'attack cone' directly in front of its mouth [28,29,41,57,58]. In this way, prey appear to employ adaptive information gathering behaviours during times of lower risk and shift to safer, more evasive behaviours as predators posed a greater threat.…”

Learning to Overcome a Lack of Evolutionary History: Can an Endangered Fish Learn to Fear an Introduced Predator?

“…As only one identified component of the known alarm substance in Zebrafish, chondroitin sulfate may elicit a weaker antipredator behavior in the BTM as compared to chondroitin coupled with the visual and chemical presence of two nearby predators. Also, the BTM's increased activity in the presence of WMF could be attributed to predator-inspection behavior, which has been documented in many fish species and other taxa as well (e.g., Brown et al, 2001).…”