Kin Recognition in Guppies Uses Self-Referencing Based on Olfactory Cues

AbstractKin recognition plays an important role in social behavior and evolution, but the proximate mechanisms by which individuals recognize kin remain poorly understood. In many species, individuals form a "kin template" that they compare with conspecifics' phenotypes to assess phenotypic similarity-and, by association, relatedness. Individuals may form a kin template through self-inspection (i.e., self-referencing) and/or by observing their rearing associates (i.e., family referencing). However, despite much interest, few empirical studies have successfully disentangled self-referencing and family referencing. Here, we employ a novel set of breeding crosses using the Trinidadian guppy ( Poecilia reticulata ) to disentangle referencing systems by manipulating exposure to kin from conception onward. We show that guppies discriminate among their full and maternal half siblings, which can be explained only by self-referencing. Additional behavioral experiments revealed no evidence that guppies incorporate the phenotypes of their broodmates or mother into the kin template. Finally, by manipulating the format of our behavioral tests, we show that olfactory communication is both necessary and sufficient for kin discrimination. These results provide robust evidence that individuals recognize kin by comparing the olfactory phenotypes of conspecifics with their own. This study resolves key questions about the proximate mechanisms underpinning kin recognition, with implications for the ontogeny and evolution of social behavior.