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Differential responses of male and female red swordtails to chemical alarm cues
Author(s) -
Mirza R. S.,
Scott J. J.,
Chivers D. P.
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
journal of fish biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.672
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1095-8649
pISSN - 0022-1112
DOI - 10.1111/j.1095-8649.2001.tb02375.x
Subject(s) - minnow , pimephales promelas , xiphophorus , biology , guppy , poecilia , cyprinodontiformes , zoology , poeciliidae , phoxinus , lymnaea stagnalis , ecology , anatomy , fishery , fish <actinopterygii> , snail
Male and female red swordtails Xiphophorus helleri exposed in the laboratory to swordtail skin extract, fathead minnow Pimephales promelas skin extract and distilled water, significantly decreased activity in response to conspecific skin extract compared to minnow skin extract or distilled water. Moreover, males and females responded differentially to conspecific skin extract. Males tended to occupy the top compartment of the tank, whereas females tended to occupy the bottom compartment and seek shelter more. In a second experiment swordtails reduced activity significantly more in response to swordtail skin extract compared to closely related guppy Poecilia reticulata skin extract, minnow skin extract or distilled water. Swordtails also reduced activity significantly more to guppy skin extract compared to minnow skin and distilled water. However, males and females did not respond differentially to guppy skin extract. This suggests that chemical alarm cues are partially conserved within the Poeciliidae, but the level of response is of lower intensity to heterospecific skin extracts.