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The Ontogeny of Antipredator Behaviour in Paradise Fish Larvae (Macropodus opercularis) : The Recognition of Eyespots
Author(s) -
Miklósi Ádám,
Berzsenyi Gábor,
Pongrácz Péter,
Csányi Vilmos
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
ethology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.739
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1439-0310
pISSN - 0179-1613
DOI - 10.1111/j.1439-0310.1995.tb00333.x
Subject(s) - eyespot , ontogeny , biology , larva , predator , zoology , aposematism , predation , ecology , genetics
The ontogeny of antipredator behaviour of paradise fish was examined using a simple testing method. The results showed that the ability to recognize eyespots appears in larvae between 15 and 20 days old. At the same time, two horizontally placed eyespots produced the most pronounced effect on the behaviour of the larvae. Testing different inbred strains revealed that the ontogeny of antipredator behaviour is also under broad genetic control, as the response to a model predator was strong in one strain but weak in another. The results suggest that the recognition of eyespots coincides with larvae becoming more conspicuous to predators by the appearance of pigmentation and increasing level of swimming activity (exploration).