Cleaner personality and client identity have joint consequences on cleaning interaction dynamics

Area of Science:

• Marine Biology
• Behavioral Ecology
• Evolutionary Biology

Background:

• Mutualistic interactions are crucial in ecosystems but the mechanisms maintaining them are not fully understood.
• Partner identity, including species and individual traits, can significantly influence the dynamics of mutualisms.
• Cleaner-client interactions, like those involving the sharknose goby, serve as a model for studying these complex relationships.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how within- and between-species diversity affects a model cleaner-client interaction.
• To quantify the behavioral responses of both cleaner fish and their clients.
• To determine if cleaner fish personality traits influence interaction outcomes and partner choice.

Main Methods:

• Observational study of cleaner fish ( *Elacatinus evelynae* ) and their clients in a natural Caribbean environment.
• Quantification of cleaner fish personality traits, including activity, boldness, and exploratory behavior.
• Analysis of the relationship between cleaner personality, client behavior (posing), and cleaning events, considering client functional identity.

Main Results:

• Sharknose gobies exhibit repeatable individual differences in personality (activity, boldness, exploration).
• Cleaner boldness was linked to client posing, while cleaner activity correlated with cleaning rates.
• Cleaner personality variation influenced interactions based on client functional identity (sociality, mobility, size, trophic level).

Conclusions:

• Partner identity, including individual personality and species traits, significantly impacts mutualistic outcomes.
• Cleaner fish personality variation contributes to context-dependent and heterogeneous interaction patterns at the population level.
• Species and individual differences influence partner choice in cleaner-client interactions, challenging previous assumptions.