Antipredator responses by native mosquitofish to non-native cichlids: an examination of the role of prey naiveté

Material Information

Title:
Antipredator responses by native mosquitofish to non-native cichlids: an examination of the role of prey naiveté
Series Title:
Ethology
Alternate title:
Mosquitofish naiveté to introduced cichlids
Creator:
Rehage, Jennifer S.
Dunlop, Katherine L.
Loftus, William F.
Publisher:
John Wiley & Sons
Publication Date:
Language:
English

Subjects

Subjects / Keywords:
Predation (Biology) -- Florida -- Everglades
Fishes -- Florida -- Everglades
Genre:
article
serial ( sobekcm )
Spatial Coverage:
Everglades (Fla.)
Coordinates:
25.750537 x -80.558111

Notes

Abstract:
The strong impact of non-native predators in aquatic systems is thought to relate to the evolutionary naiveté of prey. Due to isolation and limited dispersal, this naiveté may be relatively high in freshwater systems. In this study, we tested this notion by examining the antipredator response of native mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki, to two non-native predators found in the Everglades, the African jewelfish, Hemichromis letourneuxi, and the Mayan cichlid, Cichlasoma urophthalmus. We manipulated prey naiveté by using two mosquitofish populations that varied in their experience with the recent invader, the African jewelfish, but had similar levels of experience with the longer-established Mayan cichlid. Specifically, we tested these predictions: (1) predator hunting modes differed between the two predators, (2) predation rates would be higher by the novel jewelfish predator, (3) particularly on the naive population living where jewelfish have not invaded yet, (4) antipredator responses would be stronger to Mayan cichlids due to greater experience and weaker and/or ineffective to jewelfish, and (5) especially weakest by the naive population. We assayed prey and predator behavior, and prey mortality in lab aquaria where both predators and prey were free-ranging. Predator hunting modes and habitat domains differed, with jewelfish being more active search predators that used slightly higher parts of the water column and less of the habitat structure relative to Mayan cichlids. In disagreement with our predictions, predation rates were similar between the two predators, antipredator responses were stronger to African jewelfish (except for predator inspections), and there was no difference in response between jewelfish-savvy and jewelfish-naive populations. These results suggest that despite the novelty of introduced predators, prey may be able to respond appropriately if non-native predator archetypes are similar enough to those of native predators, if prey rely on general antipredator responses or predation cues, and/or show neophobic responses.
Citation/Reference:
Rehage, J.S., K.L. Dunlop, W.F. Loftus. 2009. Antipredator Responses by Native Mosquitofish to Non-Native Cichlids: An Examination of the Role of Prey Naivete'. Ethology 115: 1046-1056.

Record Information

Source Institution:
Florida International University
Rights Management:
Please contact the owning institution for licensing and permissions. It is the users responsibility to ensure use does not violate any third party rights.
Resource Identifier:
FI14082548