Avoidance of areas marked with a chemical alarm substance by fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) in a natural habitat

1992 ◽  
Vol 70 (8) ◽  
pp. 1473-1476 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alicia Mathis ◽  
R. Jan F. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Alarm Pheromone ◽  
Natural Habitat ◽  
Pimephales Promelas ◽  
Alarm Substance ◽  
Apparent Difference ◽  
Fathead Minnows ◽  
Developmental Factors ◽  
Natural Stream ◽  
Risk Of Predation ◽  
Control Versus

If chemical alarm pheromones warn individuals of nearby predation on conspecifics, then individuals should avoid areas where alarm pheromone is present. This hypothesis was tested in a natural stream habitat by exposing fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) to minnow traps that had been marked with either conspecific alarm pheromone or with a control substance (glass-distilled water). The minnows exhibited significant avoidance of traps marked with the alarm pheromone: less than 4% of the minnows that were captured were found in the experimental traps. There was a nonsignificant tendency for minnows in control traps to be larger than those caught in experimental traps, suggesting a possible role of experience or developmental factors in determining the response to alarm pheromone. There was no apparent difference in overall body condition (i.e., length-specific mass) between the minnows that were caught in control versus experimental traps. Detection of the alarm pheromone may allow receivers to avoid areas where risk of predation is high.

scholarly journals Fathead minnows learn to recognize predator odour when exposed to concentrations of artificial alarm pheromone below their behavioural-response threshold

2001 ◽  
Vol 79 (12) ◽  
pp. 2239-2245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Grant E Brown ◽  
James C Adrian, Jr. ◽  
Todd Patton ◽  
Douglas P Chivers
Keyword(s):  
Yellow Perch ◽  
Alarm Pheromone ◽  
Pimephales Promelas ◽  
Behavioural Response ◽  
Response Threshold ◽  
Antipredator Behaviour ◽  
Distilled Water ◽  
Fathead Minnows ◽  
Water Control ◽  
Ostariophysan Fishes

Hypoxanthine-3-N-oxide (H3NO) has been identified as the putative alarm pheromone of ostariophysan fishes. Previously we demonstrated a population-specific minimum behavioural-response threshold in fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) to a H3NO concentration of approximately 0.4 nM. Minnows may, however, perceive low concentrations of H3NO as a predation threat, even though they do not exhibit an overt behavioural response. We conducted a series of laboratory trials to test the hypothesis that minnows can detect the alarm pheromone at concentrations below the minimum behavioural-response threshold. We exposed predator-naïve fathead minnows to H3NO at concentrations ranging from 0.4 to 0.05 nM paired with the odour of a novel predator (yellow perch, Perca flavescens) or distilled water paired with perch odour. We observed significant increases in antipredator behaviour (increased shoal cohesion, movement towards the substrate, a reduction in feeding, and an increase in the occurrence of dashing and freezing behaviour) in shoals of minnows exposed to a combined cue of 0.4 nM H3NO and perch odour (compared with a distilled-water control), but not by shoals exposed to lower concentrations of H3NO paired with perch odour or those exposed to distilled water paired with perch odour. When exposed to perch odour alone 4 days later, minnows initially conditioned to H3NO at concentrations of 0.4–0.1 nM exhibited significant increases in antipredator behaviour. These data demonstrate that minnows attend to the alarm pheromone at concentrations below the minimum behavioural-response threshold and are able to acquire the ability to recognize a novel predator even though they do not exhibit an overt behavioural response.

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.

scholarly journals Familiarity and shoal cohesion in fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas): implications for antipredator behaviour

1995 ◽  
Vol 73 (5) ◽  
pp. 955-960 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas P. Chivers ◽  
Grant E. Brown ◽  
R. Jan F. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Pimephales Promelas ◽  
Northern Pike ◽  
Antipredator Behaviour ◽  
Fathead Minnows ◽  
Fish Predator ◽  
Antipredator Response ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Risk Of Predation ◽  
Chemical Stimuli ◽  
Model Fish

We exposed groups of four fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) that were familiar to each other and had been taken from naturally occurring shoals, and groups of four fish unfamiliar to each other, taken from four separate shoals, to either chemical stimuli from pike or a model fish predator (northern pike, Esox lucius). In response to both chemical stimuli from pike and the pike model, minnows from familiar groups showed greater shoal cohesion than those from unfamiliar groups. Tighter shoal cohesion should result in a higher probability of surviving an encounter with a predator. Fish in familiar shoals also exhibited more dashing, a known antipredator response, than those in unfamiliar groups. In addition, groups of familiar fish showed less freezing behaviour than unfamiliar groups. In response to the model fish predator, familiar shoals exhibited a greater number of predator inspections, and the number of inspectors per inspection visit was greater, than those in unfamiliar groups. These results suggest that preferential shoaling with familiar conspecifics leads to an increase in cooperative antipredator behaviour and may thereby lower a minnow's risk of predation.

Development of apical pits in chloride cells of the gills of Pimephales promelas after chronic exposure to acid water

1983 ◽  
Vol 41 ◽  
pp. 462-463
Author(s):  
Richard L. Leino ◽  
Jon G. Anderson ◽  
J. Howard McCormick
Keyword(s):  
Confidence Interval ◽  
Chronic Exposure ◽  
Lake Superior ◽  
Pimephales Promelas ◽  
Chloride Cells ◽  
Fathead Minnows ◽  
Secondary Lamellae ◽  
Untreated Water ◽  
Water Ph ◽  
Flow Through

Groups of 12 fathead minnows were exposed for 129 days to Lake Superior water acidified (pH 5.0, 5.5, 6.0 or 6.5) with reagent grade H2SO4 by means of a multichannel toxicant system for flow-through bioassays. Untreated water (pH 7.5) had the following properties: hardness 45.3 ± 0.3 (95% confidence interval) mg/1 as CaCO3; alkalinity 42.6 ± 0.2 mg/1; Cl- 0.03 meq/1; Na+ 0.05 meq/1; K+ 0.01 meq/1; Ca2+ 0.68 meq/1; Mg2+ 0.26 meq/1; dissolved O2 5.8 ± 0.3 mg/1; free CO2 3.2 ± 0.4 mg/1; T= 24.3 ± 0.1°C. The 1st, 2nd and 3rd gills were subsequently processed for LM (methacrylate), TEM and SEM respectively.Three changes involving chloride cells were correlated with increasing acidity: 1) the appearance of apical pits (figs. 2,5 as compared to figs. 1, 3,4) in chloride cells (about 22% of the chloride cells had pits at pH 5.0); 2) increases in their numbers and 3) increases in the % of these cells in the epithelium of the secondary lamellae.

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