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Related Experiment Video

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Investigating Pain-Related Avoidance Behavior using a Robotic Arm-Reaching Paradigm

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Risk-induced neophobia: does sensory modality matter?

Grant E Brown¹, Christopher D Jackson², Brendan J Joyce²

¹Department of Biology, Concordia University, 7141 Sherbrooke St. West, Montreal, QC, H4B 1R6, Canada. grant.brown@concordia.ca.

Animal Cognition

|August 7, 2016

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Prey animals exposed to high predation risk develop neophobia, a generalized fear of novel cues. This predator avoidance response is triggered regardless of whether the risk is perceived through smell or sight.

Keywords:

Behavioural trade-offs Convict cichlids Induced neophobia Phenotypic plasticity Predator–prey interactions Sensory complementarity

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Area of Science:

Behavioral Ecology
Animal Behavior
Sensory Ecology

Background:

High background risk can induce neophobic predator avoidance in prey.
Phenotypic plasticity in predator avoidance may enhance survival in variable environments.
Integration of risk information across sensory modalities for generalized neophobia is poorly understood.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate if risk assessment information from different sensory modalities can be integrated to induce generalized, cross-sensory neophobic responses.
To test whether predator avoidance is cue-specific or a generalized response to perceived risk.

Main Methods:

Juvenile convict cichlids (Amatitlania nigrofasciata) were exposed to high- or low-risk environments.
Risk was manipulated using conspecific alarm cues (chemosensory) or a model avian predator (visual/mechanical).
Subsequent responses to novel chemosensory or visual cues were tested.

Main Results:

Cichlids pre-exposed to high-risk conditions showed increased predator avoidance to novel visual and chemical cues.
Neophobic responses were observed regardless of the sensory modality used to increase perceived risk.
Cichlids in low-risk conditions did not exhibit neophobic responses.

Conclusions:

Induced neophobia in prey animals is not cue-specific.
Neophobia functions as a generalized anti-predator response to perceived predation risk.
Cross-sensory integration of risk information can lead to generalized neophobic responses.