scholarly journals Conflict between background matching and social signalling in a colour-changing freshwater fish

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (6) ◽  
pp. 160040 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer L. Kelley ◽  
Gwendolen M. Rodgers ◽  
Lesley J. Morrell
Keyword(s):  
Social Status ◽  
Freshwater Fish ◽  
Colour Change ◽  
Social Encounter ◽  
Background Matching ◽  
Status Signalling ◽  
Visual Background ◽  
Rival Male ◽  
Skin Coloration ◽  
Social Encounters

The ability to change coloration allows animals to modify their patterning to suit a specific function. Many freshwater fishes, for example, can appear cryptic by altering the dispersion of melanin pigment in the skin to match the visual background. However, melanin-based pigments are also used to signal dominance among competing males; thus colour change for background matching may conflict with colour change for social status signalling. We used a colour-changing freshwater fish to investigate whether colour change for background matching influenced aggressive interactions between rival males. Subordinate males that had recently darkened their skin for background matching received heightened aggression from dominant males, relative to males whose coloration had not changed. We then determined whether the social status of a rival male, the focal male's previous social status, and his previous skin coloration, affected a male's ability to change colour for background matching. Social status influenced skin darkening in the first social encounter, with dominant males darkening more than subordinate males, but there was no effect of social status on colour change in the second social encounter. We also found that the extent of skin colour change (by both dominant and subordinate males) was dependent on previous skin coloration, with dark males displaying a smaller change in coloration than pale males. Our findings suggest that skin darkening for background matching imposes a significant social cost on subordinate males in terms of increased aggression. We also suggest that the use of melanin-based signals during social encounters can impede subsequent changes in skin coloration for other functions, such as skin darkening for background matching.

scholarly journals Imperfect camouflage: how to hide in a variable world?

2019 ◽  
Vol 286 (1902) ◽  
pp. 20190646 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Hughes ◽  
Eric Liggins ◽  
Martin Stevens
Keyword(s):  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Colour Change ◽  
Optimal Solution ◽  
Theoretical Work ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Natural Systems ◽  
Visual Background ◽  
Temporal And Spatial ◽  
Critical Overview ◽  
Selection Of

Camouflage is an important anti-predator strategy for many animals and is traditionally thought of as being tightly linked to a specific visual background. While much work focuses on optimizing camouflage against one background, this may not be relevant for many species and contexts, as animals may encounter many different habitats throughout their lives due to temporal and spatial variation in their environment. How should camouflage be optimized when an animal or object is seen against multiple visual backgrounds? Various solutions may exist, including colour change to match new environments or use of behaviour to maintain crypsis by choosing appropriate substrates. Here, we focus on a selection of approaches under a third alternative strategy: animals may adopt (over evolution) camouflage appearances that represent an optimal solution against multiple visual scenes. One approach may include a generalist or compromise strategy, where coloration matches several backgrounds to some extent, but none closely. A range of other camouflage types, including disruptive camouflage, may also provide protection in multiple environments. Despite detailed theoretical work determining the plausibility of compromise camouflage and elucidating the conditions under which it might evolve, there is currently mixed experimental evidence supporting its value and little evidence of it in natural systems. In addition, there remain many questions including how camouflage strategies should be defined and optimized, and how they might interact with other types of crypsis and defensive markings. Overall, we provide a critical overview of our current knowledge about how camouflage can enable matching to multiple backgrounds, discuss important challenges of working on this question and make recommendations for future research.

Background colour matching in a wild population of Alytes obstetricans

2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 253-260 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nuria Polo-Cavia ◽  
José Miguel Oliveira ◽  
Alberto José Redondo Villa ◽  
Rafael Márquez
Keyword(s):  
Colour Change ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Dynamic Changes ◽  
Surrounding Environment ◽  
Quantitative Image ◽  
Central Portugal ◽  
Skin Coloration ◽  
Physiological Colour Change ◽  
Key Aspects ◽  
Alytes Obstetricans

The capacity for physiological colour change has long been described in anuran amphibians. Camouflage against predators seems to be the most relevant function of dynamic changes in skin colour of frogs, but key aspects such as the rate at which these changes occur, or the specific colour components involved are not completely clear. Whereas most research on the topic has been reported on tree frogs in laboratory conditions, studies in other anurans or in the field are much scarcer. Here we show a potentially plastic, adaptive response in coloration of common midwife toads, Alytes obstetricans, from a population of central Portugal, whose pigmentation varied with their natural backgrounds. Using quantitative image analysis, we compared hue, saturation and brightness of dorsal skin coloration of toads and the colour of the area of ground immediately around them. We found a positive correlation between coloration of toads and background colour for the three components of the colour. As well as other anuran species, A. obstetricans might adjust skin coloration to match the surrounding environment, thus benefitting from short-term reversible crypsis strategies against predators. A less supported hypothesis would be that toads accurately select matching backgrounds to improve concealment as an antipredatory strategy.

Status signalling in the market for consumer goods

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
HAIMEI YU ◽  
Edward Vul
Keyword(s):  
Social Status ◽  
Consumer Goods ◽  
Instrumental Variable ◽  
Causal Effect ◽  
Department Stores ◽  
Purchasing Decisions ◽  
Social Signals ◽  
Status Signalling ◽  
Goods Market ◽  
Using Data

People are concerned with signalling their social status to others, and conspicuous consumption may be a prevalent means of signalling, such that purchasing decisions are motivated not only by the direct value of a product, but by the indirect value gained from what the product might communicate to others. Here we measure which products people might use as signals and ask how the signalling potential of products relates to the distribution of product offerings in the consumer goods market. In particular, we asked how the signalling potential of products influences the number, price, and dispersion of prices within and across department stores. Using data scraped from 11 department stores, we found that products with greater signalling potential are available in greater quantity, more expensive within a given store, and that more expensive stores stock more products with higher signalling potential, leading to greater global variance in prices for goods with greater signalling potential. Further, we use product visibility as an instrumental variable to estimate the causal effect of signalling potential on product offerings. Altogether, these results suggest that consumers demand to use visible goods as social signals, and being sensitive to this demand, suppliers of consumer goods position their product offerings to supply ample material for signalling via consumption.

Reduction of spermatogonia and testosterone in rat testes flown on space lab-3

1986 ◽  
Vol 44 ◽  
pp. 248-249
Author(s):  
Delbert E. Philpott ◽  
W. Sapp ◽  
C. Williams ◽  
T. Fast ◽  
J. Stevenson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Social Status ◽  
Population Size ◽  
Physiological Response ◽  
Social Rank ◽  
Reproductive Function ◽  
Testicular Development ◽  
Organ Weights ◽  
Reproductive Maturation ◽  
Metabolic Activities

Space Lab 3 (SL-3) was flown on Shuttle Challenger providing an opportunity to measure the effect of spaceflight on rat testes. Cannon developed the idea that organisms react to unfavorable conditions with highly integrated metabolic activities. Selye summarized the manifestations of physiological response to nonspecific stress and he pointed out that atrophy of the gonads always occurred. Many papers have been published showing the effects of social interaction, crowding, peck order and confinement. Flickinger showed delayed testicular development in subordinate roosters influenced by group numbers, social rank and social status. Christian reported increasing population size in mice resulted in adrenal hypertrophy, inhibition of reproductive maturation and loss of reproductive function in adults. Sex organ weights also declined. Two male dogs were flown on Cosmos 110 for 22 days. Fedorova reported an increase of 30 to 70% atypical spermatozoa consisting of tail curling and/or the absence of a tail.

Adolescent Voice Quality Aberrations: Personality and Social Status

1968 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 576-582 ◽  
Author(s):  
John R. Muma ◽  
Ronald L. Laeder ◽  
Clarence E. Webb
Keyword(s):  
Social Status ◽  
Voice Quality ◽  
Personality Characteristics ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Peer Evaluations ◽  
Adolescent Voice

Seventy-eight subjects, identified as possessing voice quality aberrations for six months, constituted four experimental groups: breathiness, harshness, hoarseness, and nasality. A control group included 38 subjects. The four experimental groups were compared with the control group according to personality characteristics and peer evaluations. The results of these comparisons indicated that there was no relationship between voice quality aberration and either personality characteristics or peer evaluations.

The Effects of Status on Perceived Warmth and Competence

2010 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 82-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Brambilla ◽  
Simona Sacchi ◽  
Federica Castellini ◽  
Paola Riva
Keyword(s):  
Social Status ◽  
Perceived Competence ◽  
Goal Achievement ◽  
Group Status ◽  
The Relationship

Research has shown that perceived group status positively predicts competence stereotypes but does not positively predict warmth stereotypes. The present study identified circumstances in which group status positively predicts both warmth and competence judgments. Students (N = 86) rated one of two groups (psychologists vs. engineers) presented as either being low or high in social status on warmth and competence. Results showed that status positively predicted competence stereotypes for both groups, but warmth stereotypes only for psychologists, for whom warmth traits are perceived to be functional in goal achievement. Moreover, for psychologists perceived warmth mediated the relationship between status and perceived competence. Results are discussed in terms of the contextual malleability of the relationship between perceived status, warmth, and competence.

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