Predatory behaviour as a personality trait in a wild fish population

Abstract

Consistent inter-individual differences in behaviour (i.e. animal personality variation) can influence a range of ecological and evolutionary processes, including predation. Variation between individual predators in commonly measured personality traits, such as boldness and activity, has previously been linked to encounter rates with their prey. Given the strong selection on predators to respond to prey, individual predators may also vary consistently in their response to prey in a manner that is specific to the context of predation. By studying wild piscivorous fish (pike cichlids, Crenicichla frenata) in their natural environment using experimental presentations of prey and control stimuli, we show that individual predators differ consistently in the amount of time spent near prey. Crucially, these differences were not explained by the behaviour of the same individuals in control presentations (the same apparatus lacking prey), suggesting that variation in the response to prey reflects a 'predator personality trait' which is independent from other individual traits (body size, boldness and/or neophobia) and environmental factors. Pike cichlids which spent more time near prey also attacked prey at a higher rate. These findings imply that the risk posed by individual predators cannot always be adequately predicted from typically studied axes of personality variation.

The measure of spatial position within groups that best predicts predation risk depends on group movement

“…A lack of generalization between groups with different properties could help explain the surprising result in our study of no evidence that prey at the front of a moving group were more at risk, in contrast to other experiments with virtual [9] and real [10] prey. Further differences in the aspects of spatial position important in predicting risk may come from variation between predators, for example, in the attack strategy of different species [21,39], in hunger or experience between individuals of the same species [40], or from consistent personality differences between individuals within the same population [41]. For prey in groups spread over two, rather than three, dimensions, another likely source of variability is whether the predator is attacking in the same, or perpendicular to, the plane of the prey group, which remains a relatively neglected question in predator-prey interactions [5].…”

Impact of exploration behavior, aptitude for pellet consumption, and the predation practice on the performance in consecutive live prey foraging tests in a piscivorous species

“…The studies on foraging behavior mainly focus on the features of the prey in the predator–prey relationship; how prey can avoid predation, and how the characteristics of prey individuals (physiological, behavioral, etc.) affect it (Belgrad and Griffen 2016 ; Szopa Comley et al 2020 ). From the predator aspect, the relationship is less explored, and the behavior of the predator is often considered constant in the studies (Lima 2002 ).…”

Scavengingvshunting affects behavioral traits of an opportunistic carnivore

“…Bold, persistent, and innovative individuals are more likely to succeed when changing foraging strategies as they will be more likely to interact with and solve new foraging problems ( Sol, 2009 ; Sol, Lapiedra & González-Lagos, 2013 ). Such behavioral changes could also lead to cascading effects, including increased human-wildlife conflict ( Barrett, Stanton & Benson-Amram, 2019 ; Brooks, Kays & Hare, 2020 ) and altered predator–prey dynamics ( Szopa-Comley et al, 2020 ). Although abundant research has addressed how prey behavioral traits mediate predator–prey interactions ( Blake & Gabor, 2014 ; Toscano, 2017 ), knowledge regarding the importance of predator traits is lacking (but see Parsons, Newsome & Young, 2022 ).…”

“…Our results provide insights into how foraging behavior is linked with other behavioral traits. Results will improve our understanding of the role hunting plays on individual behavior, which could impact predator–prey dynamics ( Szopa-Comley et al, 2020 ), human-wildlife conflict ( Barrett, Stanton & Benson-Amram, 2019 ), and predator conservation ( Bombieri et al, 2021 ) in wild populations.…”