Lateral line analogue aids vision in successful predator evasion for the brief squid, Lolliguncula brevis

Cephalopods have visual and mechanoreception systems that may be employed to sense and respond to an approaching predator. While vision presumably plays the dominant role, the importance of the lateral line analogue for predator evasion has not been examined in cephalopods. To test the respective roles of vision and the lateral line analogue, brief squid, Lolliguncula brevis, were observed in the presence of summer flounder, Paralichthys dentatus, under light and dark conditions with their lateral line analogue intact and ablated. Hair cell ablation was achieved through a pharmacological technique used for the first time on a cephalopod. The proportion of predator-prey interactions survived was significantly higher in the light non-ablated and light ablated groups compared with the dark ablated group. The mean number of interactions survived varied across treatment groups with the light non-ablated group having significantly more success than the light ablated, dark non-ablated and dark ablated groups. These findings demonstrate that although vision is the primary sense, the lateral line analogue also contributes to predator evasion in squid.