The Effect of Distance Between Predator and Prey and the Opportunity to Escape on Tonic Immobility in Anolis Carolinensis

The effects of physical environment, time in captivity, and defensive distance on tonic immobility, freezing, and flight behaviors inAnolis carolinensis

“…The present study showed that at 30-cm subjectexperimenter defensive distances, anoles were sensitive to the immediate testing environment, with significantly longer durations of TI in open areas than near foliage. This result replicates the findings of Hennig et al (1976) with anoles, and similar results by O'Brien and Dunlap (1975) with blue crabs on sand and solid surfaces, and by Garrison (1976) with crayfish on sand or mud. There was, however, areversal of the anole's response to the environment by Day 9 in captivity.…”

“…Thus, the immediate testing environment is more important when a potential predator (the experimenter) was nearby, and housing is more important at greater distances and after the first few days of adaptation to the new conditions. These results further support the findings of Ginsburg (1975) with chickens and Hennig et al (1976) with anoles concerning the importance of distance between predator and prey on tonic immobility.…”

“…Hennig et al (1976) showed that the presence of foliage during testing with a nearby potential predator decreased the duration of TI in anoles, while testing in an open area increased the duration of immobility. Hennig and Dunlap (1978) found that foliage in the housing environment similarly decreased the duration of TI in anoles on their 3rd day in captivity, but not on Days 1 or 7.…”

“…Requests for reprints should be sent to Charles W. Hennig, now at the Department of Psychology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma 73019. Gallup, Cummings, & Nash, 1972) and anoles (Edson & Gallup, 1972;Gallup, 1973;Hennig, 1977), by shorter distances between potential predator and prey in the same two species (Ginsburg, 1975;Hennig, Dunlap, & Gallup, 1976), and the environmental opportunity for escape in the blue crab (ü'Brien & Dunlap, 1975), crayfish (Garrison, 1976), and the anole (Hennig et al, 1976).…”

Discrimination of anxiety- versus panic-like behavior in the wall lizard Tropidurus oreadicus.

“…Tonic immobility has been observed in species from all vertebrate taxa (Gallup, 1974) and is usually thought of as a "last resort" in a sequence of antipredator behavior (Ratner, 1967). In anoles, fear-inducing manipulations (e.g., the presence of predators or simulated predation) increase the duration of TI (Edson & Gallup, 1972;Hennig, Dunlap, & Gallup, 1976;Hennig, 1977Hennig, , 1979. In Podarcis hispanica, lesions of the striato-amygdaloid transition area (considered homologous to the mammalian central nucleus of the amygdala) reduce the duration of TI (Davies et al, 2002).…”