High-predation habitats affect the social dynamics of collective exploration in a shoaling fish.

ABSTRACT: Collective decisions play a major role in the benefits that animals gain from living in groups. Although the mechanisms of how groups collectively make decisions have been extensively researched, the response of within-group dynamics to ecological conditions is virtually unknown, despite adaptation to the environment being a cornerstone in biology. We investigate how within-group interactions during exploration of a novel environment are shaped by predation, a major influence on the behavior of prey species. We tested guppies (Poecilia reticulata) from rivers varying in predation risk under controlled laboratory conditions and find the first evidence of differences in group interactions between animals adapted to different levels of predation. Fish from high-predation habitats showe

SUBMITTER: Ioannou CC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5415332 | biostudies-literature | 2017 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature