Odd fish abandon mixed-species groups when threatened

Wolf, Nancy G.

doi:10.1007/bf00299428

Cited by 104 publications

(66 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…In this range of group sizes, Wolf (1985 ) reported that other parrotfish (Sparisoma sp.) and Acanthurus sp.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…Scarus iserti (striped parrotfish) is a common member of the reef fish community in The Bahamas (Humann and DeLoach 2002) and throughout the Caribbean (Ogden and Buckman 1973;Wolf 1985). The juvenile (i.e., striped) phase of this species forms aggregations that sometimes include other species of reef fish (Ogden and Buckman 1973;Wolf 1985).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The juvenile (i.e., striped) phase of this species forms aggregations that sometimes include other species of reef fish (Ogden and Buckman 1973;Wolf 1985). This heterospecific grouping behavior (also known as ''mixedspecies shoaling'') is common in reef fish, suggesting that there are multiple benefits associated with this intriguing behavior (Alevizon 1975;Robertson et al 1976).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This heterospecific grouping behavior (also known as ''mixedspecies shoaling'') is common in reef fish, suggesting that there are multiple benefits associated with this intriguing behavior (Alevizon 1975;Robertson et al 1976). Such benefits may include increased foraging efficiency (Wolf 1987;Overholtzer and Motta 2000), decreased vulnerability to predators (e.g., Ehrlich and Ehrlich 1973;Wolf 1985), and benefits associated with circumventing local territorial fishes (e.g., Robertson et al 1976). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This preferred uniformity promotes the antipredatory response commonly known as the ''confusion effect'' and reduces the ''oddity effect'' (Mueller 1971), in which a phenotypically dissimilar individual in a group may be more likely to be targeted by predators (e.g., Landeau and Terborgh 1986;Theodorakis 1989). For S. iserti, however, the common, heterospecific associates often differ greatly in color and body shape (Wolf 1985).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Size assortment in mixed-species groups of juvenile-phase striped parrotfish (Scarus iserti) in The Bahamas

et al. 2012

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Striped parrotfish (Scarus iserti) often form heterospecific groups with other reef fishes. In this study, we examined the species and body size composition of these groups on reefs in The Bahamas. Groups averaged approximately 4 S. iserti and 2 associated species, with surgeonfish (Acanthurus chirurgus and A. bahianus), slippery dick (Halichoeres bivittatus), and bluehead wrasse (Thalassoma bifasciatum) as the most common associates. Fewer groups than expected had only 1 associate; groups with 3 or more associates were more common than expected. Both the S. iserti and associated species tended to be closely sizematched within a group, perhaps due to benefits of size assortment in lowering predation risk. Likewise, the high frequency of groups with greater than a single associate species suggests that associates may benefit from not being the only phenotypically different individual in a group.

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“…In this range of group sizes, Wolf (1985 ) reported that other parrotfish (Sparisoma sp.) and Acanthurus sp.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Size assortment in mixed-species groups of juvenile-phase striped parrotfish (Scarus iserti) in The Bahamas

et al. 2012

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Mixed‐species associations in cuxiús (genusChiropotes)

Shaffer

Barnett

Gregory

et al. 2015

American J Primatol

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Polyspecific or mixed-species associations, where two or more species come together to forage and travel as a unit, have been reported in many primate species. These associations appear to offer a number of benefits to the species involved including increased foraging efficiency and decreased risk of predation. While several researchers have suggested that cuxiús (genus Chiropotes) form mixed-species associations, previous studies have not identified the circumstances under which cuxiús form associations or whether they form associations more often than would be expected by chance. Here we present data on the formation of mixed-species associations by four species of cuxiús at eight different sites in Brazil, Suriname, and Guyana. We analyzed data from two of the study sites, (Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project (BDFFP), Brazil and the Upper Essequibo Conservation Concession (UECC), Guyana, to assess whether associations occurred more than would be expected by chance encounters and identify the factors influencing their formation. Cuxiús showed a high degree of inter-site variation in the frequency of time spent in association (ranging from 2 to 26% of observation time) and duration of associations (mean duration from 22 min to 2.5 hr). Sapajus apella was the most common association partner at most sites. At BDFFP, cuxiús formed associations more frequently but not for longer duration than expected by chance. For much of the year at UECC, associations were not more frequent or longer than chance. However, during the dry season, cuxiús formed associations with S. apella significantly more often and for longer duration than predicted by chance. Cuxiús at UECC formed associations significantly more often when in smaller subgroups and when foraging for insects, and alarm called significantly less frequently during associations. We suggest cuxiús form mixed-species associations at some sites as an adaptive strategy to decrease predation risk and/or increase foraging efficiency.

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