Open AccessPersonality influences risk of parasitism in fish
Author(s) -
V. N. Mikheev,
A. F. Pasternak,
Jouni Taskinen
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
doklady akademii nauk. rossijskaâ akademiâ nauk
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 0869-5652
DOI - 10.31857/s0869-56524884457-460
Subject(s) - biology , parasitism , personality , fish <actinopterygii> , oncorhynchus , infection rate , predation , parasite hosting , ecology , zoology , host (biology) , persistence (discontinuity) , psychology , social psychology , fishery , medicine , surgery , geotechnical engineering , world wide web , computer science , engineering
Influence of fish personality on infection rate is almost not studied. In the experiments on the young-of-the-year Oncorhynchus mykiss and cercariae of a trematode Diplostomum pseudospathaceum we tested the hypothesis that infection rate differs between more and less active (bold and shy) fish. Will individual differences in infection persist upon re-infection? Fish serve as a second intermediate host for this trematode. A positive correlation was found between the results of consecutive infections. Accumulation of parasites with successive infections leads to an aggregated distribution of D. pseudospathaceum among the hosts, affecting individual fitness and polymorphism in fish populations. Persistent individual differences in parasite burden among fish and, as a result, vulnerability for predators confirms the role of parasites as an important factor of natural selection.