Sensitivity of northern redbelly dace, Phoxinus eos, to chemical alarm cues

2004 ◽  
Vol 82 (3) ◽  
pp. 407-415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angélique Dupuch ◽  
Pierre Magnan ◽  
Lawrence M Dill
Keyword(s):  
Brook Trout ◽  
Salvelinus Fontinalis ◽  
Indirect Evidence ◽  
Alarm Substance ◽  
Skin Extract ◽  
Alarm Cues ◽  
Fright Reaction ◽  
Chemical Alarm Cues ◽  
Risk Of Predation ◽  
Shield Lakes

The northern redbelly dace, Phoxinus eos (Cope, 1862), is subject to predation by brook trout, Salvelinus fontinalis (Mitchill, 1814), in Canadian Shield lakes, particularly when individuals migrate to the pelagic zone at sunset to feed on zooplankton and fish shoals break up into single individuals. The objectives of the present study were to (i) determine whether northern redbelly dace react to skin extracts from conspecifics and thus potentially use chemical alarms to detect predators in nature, (ii) characterize the fright reaction in northern redbelly dace under different concentrations of alarm substance, and (iii) estimate the active space of the alarm substance in this species. Northern redbelly dace responded to skin extracts of conspecifics with a series of antipredator behaviours. The dace moved closer to the substrate and away from the area where the alarm substance was injected, increased both the cohesion and polarization of their schools, and performed more dashing and freezing behaviours. The observed responses were closely correlated with the concentration of the skin extract solution, suggesting that individuals could use this sensitivity to different concentrations of alarm substance to estimate the risk of predation in nature. The dilution experiment allowed us to estimate that 1 cm2 of northern redbelly dace skin contains enough alarm substance to generate a response of individuals in 110 558 L of water, which corresponds to a cube with sides of approximately 4.8 m. Indirect evidence suggests that the northern redbelly dace could use chemical alarm cues to assess the risk of predation by brook trout in nature.

Does habitat complexity influence the ability of fathead minnows to learn heterospecific chemical alarm cues?

2003 ◽  
Vol 81 (5) ◽  
pp. 923-927 ◽  
Author(s):  
M S Pollock ◽  
D P Chivers
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Complexity ◽  
Complex Structure ◽  
Pimephales Promelas ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Habitat Characteristics ◽  
Predatory Fish ◽  
Skin Extract ◽  
Alarm Cues ◽  
Fathead Minnows ◽  
Chemical Alarm Cues

Numerous aquatic animals release chemical cues when attacked by a predator. These cues "warn" other individuals of danger and have been termed alarm cues. Cross-species responses to alarm cues are common and in some cases result from learned recognition. However, little is known about the ecological factors that could influence this learned recognition. The current study focuses on the role of habitat complexity in the learning of heterospecific alarm cues. We introduced brook stickleback (Culaea inconstans) into outdoor pools containing fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) naïve to stickleback. The pools all contained a predatory fish (northern pike, Esox lucius) but varied in habitat characteristics. Pools representing high-complexity habitats had a large amount of structure to obscure the visual environment, while pools representing low-complexity habitats had minimal structure. After 8 days, fish were removed from the pools and behavioural assays were conducted in the laboratory. We tested the minnows for a response to either stickleback skin extract (experimental) or swordtail (Xiphophorus helleri) skin extract (control) and found that minnows conditioned in pools with little structure had learned to recognize stickleback alarm cues, while those from pools with complex structure did not recognize stickleback alarm cues.

Male fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas Rafinesque) retain their fright reaction to alarm substance during the breeding season

1976 ◽  
Vol 54 (12) ◽  
pp. 2230-2231 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. J. F. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Pimephales Promelas ◽  
Field Tests ◽  
Alarm Substance ◽  
Skin Extract ◽  
Fathead Minnows ◽  
Fright Reaction ◽  
Alarm Substance Cells

In laboratory and field tests, breeding male fathead minnows respond to conspecific skin extract with a fright reaction despite their own seasonal loss of alarm substance cells. Their fright reaction is facilitated by the presence of other fatheads.

Comparative Survival and Growth of Planted Wild, Hybrid, and Domestic Strains of Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) in Ontario Lakes

1981 ◽  
Vol 38 (12) ◽  
pp. 1672-1684 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. M. Fraser
Keyword(s):  
Brook Trout ◽  
Salvelinus Fontinalis ◽  
Wild Strain ◽  
Catostomus Commersoni ◽  
Precambrian Shield ◽  
Wild Hybrid ◽  
Wild Strains ◽  
Competitive Species ◽  
Survival And Growth ◽  
Shield Lakes

Matched plantings of domestic strain and interstrain hybrid (or wild strain) brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) were made annually in nine small Precambrian Shield lakes during 1973–77. Recoveries of planted fish were made by gillnetting and/or angling during 1974–80. In six study lakes, hybrids (and wild strains) were recovered at rates two to four times greater than the domestic strain; in three lakes recoveries were similar. Most domestic strain trout were caught in the year following planting whereas recoveries of hybrids and wild strains were spread over 3–4 yr. Each kilogram of hybrid (or wild) planted yielded 5.6 kg (1.2–12.3); each kilogram of domestic strain planted yielded 0.8 kg (0.2–2.1). Lakes containing only minnows and sticklebacks yielded the highest returns of brook trout; lakes containing competitive species yielded low returns. Rapid growth of brook trout occurred in lakes containing only minnows and sticklebacks; slowest growth was noted in lakes supporting white suckers (Catostomus commersoni). Domestic strain brook trout and the matched hybrid grew at approximately the same rate within a lake and in seven of the nine lakes ate the same food. The performance of the Nipigon × domestic hybrid qualifies it for consideration as a replacement for the domestic brook trout presently planted in Ontario lakes.Key words: planting, brook trout, trout strain, hybrid, Precambrian Shield, survival, stock

Predation costs of impaired chemosensory risk assessment on acid-impacted juvenile Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)

2014 ◽  
Vol 71 (5) ◽  
pp. 756-762 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris K. Elvidge ◽  
Grant E. Brown
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Atlantic Salmon ◽  
Salmo Salar ◽  
Brook Trout ◽  
Predatory Fish ◽  
Alarm Cues ◽  
Compensatory Mechanisms ◽  
Atlantic Salmon Salmo Salar ◽  
Juvenile Atlantic Salmon ◽  
Chemical Alarm Cues

Weak levels of acidification (pH < 6.6) inhibit the ability of fishes to assess predation risk via interference with damage-released chemical alarm cues. While survival benefits associated with behavioural responses to alarm cues have been demonstrated under laboratory conditions, it remains largely unknown whether fishes under natural conditions experience similar benefits. Using hatchery-reared juvenile Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) as a model organism, we conducted a tethering experiment in reaches of neutral (pH ≥ 6.6) and acidic (pH < 6.6) salmon nursery streams, plus one additional stream that varied between pH classes. Despite exposure to fewer predatory fish species, similar availability of physical refugia, and similar threat from terrestrial predators, tethered fish in acidic streams were significantly more likely to be predated over the course of a trial than their counterparts in neutral streams. These results suggest that (i) in the absence of compensatory mechanisms, juvenile Atlantic salmon under acidic conditions may experience greater rates of predation as a result of impaired chemosensory risk assessment, and (ii) brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) appear to play the greatest role in limiting the survival of young-of-the-year (0+) salmon.

scholarly journals Response of pumpkinseed sunfish to conspecific chemical alarm cues: an interaction between ontogeny and stimulus concentration

2003 ◽  
Vol 81 (10) ◽  
pp. 1671-1677 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason P Marcus ◽  
Grant E Brown
Keyword(s):  
Standard Length ◽  
Relative Concentration ◽  
Lepomis Gibbosus ◽  
Skin Extract ◽  
Distilled Water ◽  
Alarm Cues ◽  
Pumpkinseed Sunfish ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Chemical Alarm Cues ◽  
Antipredator Responses

Recent studies have shown that juvenile centrachids undergo ontogenetic shifts in their behavioural response towards conspecific and heterospecific chemical alarm cues based on threat-sensitive trade-offs between the benefits associated with predator avoidance and foraging. We conducted laboratory studies to test the hypothesis that the relative concentration of conspecific alarm cues provides relevant information, allowing individuals to maximize these trade-offs. Juvenile (<40 mm standard length) and subadult (>95 mm standard length) pumpkinseed sunfish (Lepomis gibbosus) were exposed to conspecific skin extracts at stock (undiluted) concentration or diluted 1:1 (50%), 1:3 (25%), or 1:7 (12.5%) with distilled water. Juvenile sunfish exhibited significant antipredator responses (relative to the distilled water controls) when exposed to conspecific skin extracts at a concentration as low as 25%. Juveniles exposed to 12.5% skin extract were not significantly different from the distilled water controls. Subadult sunfish exhibited significant antipredator responses only to the two highest concentrations. In response to the two lowest concentrations (25% and 12.5%), however, subadult sunfish exhibited significant foraging responses. These data demonstrate that the relative concentration of chemical alarm cues provides reliable information and allows individuals to accurately assess local predation risk and hence maximize potential trade-offs.

Epidermal club cells are not linked with an alarm response in reedfish, Erpetoichthys (= Calamoichthys) calabaricus

1987 ◽  
Vol 65 (8) ◽  
pp. 2057-2061 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. M. Hugie ◽  
R. J. F. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Alarm Pheromone ◽  
Cross Reaction ◽  
Alarm Substance ◽  
Skin Extract ◽  
Feeding Response ◽  
Brachydanio Rerio ◽  
Alarm Response ◽  
Fright Reaction ◽  
Club Cells ◽  
Alarm Substance Cells

Club cells in the epidermis of reedfish, Erpetoichthys (= Calamoichthys) calabaricus (Pisces, Polypteriformes), are morphologically similar, perhaps homologous, to the "alarm substance cells" found in the skin of cypriniform fishes. Cypriniforms perform a fright reaction when they detect chemicals released from the damaged alarm substance cells of conspecifics. We examined the response of reedfish to conspecific skin extract and checked for a cross reaction to reedfish extract by a cypriniform fish, the zebra danio, Brachydanio rerio. Reedfish responded to conspecific skin extract with an increase in activity but this response did not resemble a fright reaction. Zebra danios responded to reedfish extract with a feeding response. We conclude that reedfish do not show a fright reaction to the skin extract of conspecifics. This suggests that if cypriniform alarm substance cells are homologous to reedfish club cells, their alarm pheromone function is a secondary adaptation.

Avoidance Response By Adult Newts (Cynops Pyrrhogaster and Notophthalmus Viridescens) To Chemical Alarm Cues

Behaviour ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 132 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 95-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glenn A. Marvin ◽  
Victor H. Hutchison
Keyword(s):  
Avoidance Response ◽  
Chemical Cues ◽  
Skin Extract ◽  
Notophthalmus Viridescens ◽  
Alarm Cues ◽  
Alarm Response ◽  
Cynops Pyrrhogaster ◽  
Plethodontid Salamander ◽  
Chemical Alarm Cues ◽  
General Response

AbstractMany fishes and aquatic invertebrates use chemical alarm cues to avoid predation, however relatively little is known about the occurrence of chemical alarm cues in amphibians. We tested the response of adult fire-bellied newts (Cynops pyrrhogaster) and red-spotted newts (Notophthalmus viridescens) to chemical cues from damaged tissues of newts and other salamanders. Both species avoided chemical cues from a conspecific skin extract. Notophthalmus viridescens also avoided chemical cues from C. pyrrhogaster skin extract, but the converse was not true. Neither species avoided chemical cues from a conspecific viscera extract, plethodontid salamander (Desmognathus and Plethodon) skin extracts, or a conspecific skin extract which had been heated. These results indicate that the avoidance behaviour is an alarm response to chemical cues released from damaged newt skin and is not a general response to chemical cues from damaged salamander tissue. This study provides the best evidence to date for an avoidance response by caudate amphibians to chemical alarm cues.

Active space of chemical alarm cue in natural fish populations

Behaviour ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 145 (3) ◽  
pp. 391-407 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Wisenden
Keyword(s):  
Skin Extract ◽  
Alarm Cues ◽  
Fathead Minnows ◽  
Water Control ◽  
Active Space ◽  
Chemical Alarm Cue ◽  
Alarm Cue ◽  
Predator Attack ◽  
Water Traps ◽  
Chemical Alarm Cues

AbstractChemical cues released from injured fish skin during a predator attack provide reliable information about the presence of predation risk. Here, I report estimates of the area avoided by littoral fishes after experimental release of chemical alarm cues in two small lakes in northern Minnesota. Minnow traps were labeled chemically with either water (control) or skin extract (chemical alarm cue) made from 2 cm2 of cyprinid skin (redbelly dace in experiment 1, fathead minnows in experiment 2). Traps labeled with water were placed 1, 2, or 8 m from traps labeled with alarm cue. After 2 h, water-traps that were either 1 or 2 m distant from an alarm-trap caught significantly fewer fish than water-traps 8 m distant from alarm-traps. Conspecific and heterospecific skin extract produced similar area avoidance by fathead minnows. Redbelly dace showed a larger active space in response to conspecific than heterospecific alarm cues. Brook stickleback showed reduced catches within 2 m of skin extract of fathead minnows. Overall, the radius of active space was between 2 and 8 m under lake conditions with average subsurface currents of 0.82 cm/s. These data are the first field estimates of active space of ostariophysan chemical alarm cues.

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