The effects of familiarity on escape responses in the Trinidadian guppy (Poecilia reticulata).

ABSTRACT: Predation is the main cause of mortality during early life stages. The ability to avoid and evade potential threats is, therefore, favoured to evolve during the early stages of life. It is also during these early stages that the process of familiarization occurs. It has long been recognized that associating with familiar individuals confers antipredator benefits. Yet gaps in our knowledge remain about how predator evasion is affected by social experience during early stages. In this study, we test the hypothesis that familiarization acquired during early life stages improves escape responses. Using the guppy Poecilia reticulata, we examine the effect of different recent social conditions in the three main components of predator evasion. Using high-speed motion analysis, we compared

SUBMITTER: Wolcott HL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5640977 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature