Species-specific behaviours in amphipods highlight the need for understanding baseline behaviours in ecotoxicology

Kohler, Shanelle A.; Parker, Matthew O.; Ford, Alex T.

doi:10.1016/j.aquatox.2018.07.013

Cited by 32 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…Analysing velocity data in 2-min time bins found no significant differences in swimming speed between the large and medium arenas, whereas the 10-s analysis found that animals reached a significantly faster swimming speed in large arenas compared to medium in the second dark phase. Similar results were also described by Kohler et al [11] in amphipods whereby differences in swimming behaviours between a marine and freshwater amphipod were only observed when data was separated into smaller time bins. With the exception of the 30 s in the second dark phase, no significant differences were observed in swimming speed between medium and large arenas in an 8-min behaviour trial.…”

Section: Baseline Behaviourssupporting

confidence: 89%

“…It is also possible that the reduction of activity of A. franciscana was the result of habituation to the behavioural system. Habituation to behavioural assays has also been reported in a wide range of both vertebrate and invertebrate species [39,70,[83][84][85] and has been demonstrated in E. marinus and G. pulex [10,11]. Repeating the experiment under flow through conditions may help to elucidate weather the reduction in swimming speed observed in A. franciscana was a result of depleted oxygen or habituation to the behavioural assay.…”

Section: Psychotropic Exposuresmentioning

confidence: 80%

“…They concluded that researchers need to establish a basic knowledge about the baseline behavioural characteristics for a model species, as this could influence study outcomes of behavioural ecotoxicology experiments. This was further reinforced by Kohler et al [10,11] who discovered that differences in study design could impact the baseline unconditioned behaviours in amphipods which could in turn implicate the results of ecotoxicology studies.…”

Section: Baseline Behavioursmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…In addition to the standardisation of hardware, understanding the baseline unconditioned behaviours of a model species is also important when performing behavioural studies. It has been shown that behaviours can vary with differences in experimental design such as the shape and size of behavioural arenas both between and within species [10,11]. Performing preliminary experiments to understand the baseline behaviours of a model species would help to both optimise the experimental design and aid the interpretation of results from behavioural assays.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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High-Throughput Screening of Psychotropic Compounds: Impacts on Swimming Behaviours in Artemia franciscana

Kohler¹,

Parker

Ford³

2021

Toxics

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Animal behaviour is becoming increasingly popular as an endpoint in ecotoxicology due to its increased sensitivity and speed compared to traditional endpoints. However, the widespread use of animal behaviours in environmental risk assessment is currently hindered by a lack of optimisation and standardisation of behavioural assays for model species. In this study, assays to assess swimming speed were developed for a model crustacean species, the brine shrimp Artemia franciscana. Preliminary works were performed to determine optimal arena size for this species, and weather lux used in the experiments had an impact on the animals phototactic response. Swimming speed was significantly lower in the smallest arena, whilst no difference was observed between the two larger arenas, suggesting that the small arena was limiting swimming ability. No significant difference was observed in attraction to light between high and low light intensities. Arena size had a significant impact on phototaxis behaviours. Large arenas resulted in animals spending more time in the light side of the arena compared to medium and small, irrespective of light intensity. The swimming speed assay was then used to expose specimens to a range of psychotropic compounds with varying modes of action. Results indicate that swimming speed provides a valid measure of the impacts of behaviour modulating compounds on A. franciscana. The psychotropic compounds tested varied in their impacts on animal behaviour. Fluoxetine resulted in increased swimming speed as has been found in other crustacean species, whilst oxazepam, venlafaxine and amitriptyline had no significant impacts on the behaviours measured. The results from this study suggest a simple, fast, high throughput assay for A. franciscana and gains insight on the impacts of a range of psychotropic compounds on the swimming behaviours of a model crustacean species used in ecotoxicology studies.

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Section: Baseline Behaviourssupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Psychotropic Exposuresmentioning

confidence: 80%

Section: Baseline Behavioursmentioning

confidence: 96%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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High-Throughput Screening of Psychotropic Compounds: Impacts on Swimming Behaviours in Artemia franciscana

Kohler¹,

Parker

Ford³

2021

Toxics

Self Cite

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“…Previously, using the intertidal amphipod Echinogammarus marinus, Kohler et al, 2018a found species-specific behavioral responses to light, which was suggested to be a result of adaptation to differing predation between the habitats of the species (Kohler et al, 2018a). The authors also found that E. marinus presents different behaviors when recorded in different shape and sized recording arenas.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Sex Specific Differences Recorded in the Behavior of an Amphipod: Implications for Behavioral Toxicology

2020

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Behavior is a useful endpoint in ecotoxicological research; it links the biochemical effects of contamination with physiology of individuals, which can be applied to higher levels of organization with relevance to ecology. Animals exhibit species-specific and sex specific behaviors. Previous experiments within ecotoxicology using amphipods as models have either not separated by sex or have on the assumption that they may create more variability in the results. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to investigate the effect of time (which controlled light conditions), sex, and the interaction of time and sex on the swimming velocity in males and females of the marine amphipod Echinogammarus marinus. E. marinus exhibited a phototactic response to light, as is consistent with previous findings. It was determined that females swim significantly faster than males and that this response was enhanced during periods when the lights were switched off. This suggests that a greater understanding of the baseline unconditioned behaviors of experimental organisms is needed to avoid impacts of unknown variables on results. The results of this study reveal significant sexual differences in the baseline behavior of E. marinus which has implications for future research in ecotoxicology. It is recommended that in future research specimens be separated by sex prior to experimentation, in order to account for possible behavioral differences such as those observed in the present studies. This study also highlights the need for thorough observation of behavior over shorter time intervals as larger intervals may miss short-term variations.

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Avermectin Toxicity to Benthic Invertebrates is Modified by Sediment Organic Carbon and Chemical Residence Time

Jacova

Kennedy

2022

Enviro Toxic and Chemistry

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Chemicals used in sea lice management strategies in salmonid aquaculture include the avermectin class of compounds that can accumulate and persist in the sediments underneath salmon farms and directly impact nontarget benthic fauna. The effects of sediment organic carbon content and chemical residence time (CRT) on the lethal and sublethal toxicity of emamectin benzoate (EB; formulation: Slice®) and ivermectin (purified) and a combination of both were examined in two benthic invertebrates, the amphipod Eohaustorius estuarius and the polychaete Neanthes virens. In both species, increased sediment organic carbon content significantly reduced lethal toxicity, a modulation that was more pronounced for ivermectin and combination exposures. At a CRT of 4 months, lethal toxicity was reduced in E. estuarius but was unaffected in N. virens. Sublethal toxicity in N. virens (burrowing behavior) was modulated by sediment organic carbon and CRT in a similar manner to the trend in lethal toxicity. Inconsistencies in behavior (phototaxis) in E. estuarius made conclusions regarding toxicity modification by sediment organic carbon or CRT inconclusive. Our results indicate that environmental factors including sediment organic carbon content and the time compounds reside in sediments are important modifiers of chemotherapeutant toxicity in nontarget benthic species and should be considered when regulatory decisions regarding their use are made. Environ Toxicol Chem 2022;41:1918–1936. © 2022 SETAC

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Species-specific behaviours in amphipods highlight the need for understanding baseline behaviours in ecotoxicology

Cited by 32 publications

References 55 publications

High-Throughput Screening of Psychotropic Compounds: Impacts on Swimming Behaviours in Artemia franciscana

High-Throughput Screening of Psychotropic Compounds: Impacts on Swimming Behaviours in Artemia franciscana

Sex Specific Differences Recorded in the Behavior of an Amphipod: Implications for Behavioral Toxicology

Avermectin Toxicity to Benthic Invertebrates is Modified by Sediment Organic Carbon and Chemical Residence Time

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