Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 12, 2025
11:30
Recording Behavioral Responses to Reflection in Crayfish
Published on: May 14, 2010
11.1K
Background choice and immobility as context dependent tadpole responses to perceived predation risk
Paula Cabral Eterovick1, Jéssica Stephanie Kloh2, Cleber Cunha Figueredo2
1Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia de Vertebrados, Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, 30535-610, Brazil. pceterovick@gmail.com.
Scientific Reports
|August 13, 2020
Summary
Tadpoles of Ololygon machadoi exhibit reduced movement for defense in their natural habitat, unlike in lab settings. Previous experiences significantly influence these defensive behaviors, enhancing camouflage effectiveness.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Animal Behavior
- Evolutionary Biology
Background:
- Immobility and camouflage are common defensive strategies in prey animals.
- Previous research on Ololygon machadoi tadpoles showed background selection for camouflage but no movement reduction in response to predator cues.
- Laboratory conditions may not accurately reflect natural anti-predator responses.
Purpose of the Study:
- To experimentally test the defensive behaviors of Ololygon machadoi tadpoles in their natural habitat.
- To investigate if tadpoles reduce movement when choosing backgrounds that enhance camouflage.
- To determine the influence of prior experience on background choice and immobility.
Main Methods:
- Field experiments were conducted in the natural habitat of Ololygon machadoi tadpoles.
- Tadpoles were exposed to predator cues (visual and/or chemical).
- Background selection and movement levels were recorded under natural conditions, considering previous experiences.
Main Results:
- Ololygon machadoi tadpoles demonstrated reduced movement in their natural habitat when selecting backgrounds for improved camouflage.
- This immobility response was more pronounced in the natural environment compared to laboratory settings.
- Prior experience significantly influenced both the choice of camouflage background and the expression of immobility.
Conclusions:
- The natural environment, where selective pressures evolved, elicits stronger anti-predator responses like immobility in Ololygon machadoi tadpoles.
- Laboratory studies may underestimate the full spectrum of defensive behaviors.
- Learned experiences play a crucial role in modulating defensive strategies in prey species.
Related Concept Videos
02:39Predator-Prey Interactions
20.7K
Predators consume prey for energy. Predators that acquire prey and prey that avoid predation both increase their chances of survival and reproduction (i.e., fitness). Routine predator-prey interactions elicit mutual adaptations that improve predator offenses, such as claws, teeth, and speed, as well as prey defenses, including crypsis, aposematism, and mimicry. Thus, predator-prey interactions resemble an evolutionary arms race.
20.7K
01:06Fixed Action Patterns
17.2K
A fixed action pattern (FAP) is a specific, hard-wired sequence of behaviors that occurs in response to an external stimulus, called a sign stimulus. The behavior is “fixed” because it is essentially unchangeable—proceeding similarly across individuals of a species every time it occurs.
17.2K
01:05Instinctive Drift
530
Instinctive drift refers to the tendency of animals to revert to their innate behaviors despite repeated reinforcement. Breland and Breland demonstrated this concept in an experiment with a raccoon. The raccoon was trained to pick up two coins and place them in a container in exchange for food. Initially, the raccoon learned to associate the coins with food, making them a conditioned stimulus or a substitute for food. However, over time, the raccoon became less willing to put the coins into the...
530
01:21Frequency-dependent Selection
22.9K
When the fitness of a trait is influenced by how common it is (i.e., its frequency) relative to different traits within a population, this is referred to as frequency-dependent selection. Frequency-dependent selection may occur between species or within a single species. This type of selection can either be positive—with more common phenotypes having higher fitness—or negative, with rarer phenotypes conferring increased fitness.
22.9K
02:27Background and Environment Affect Phenotype
7.2K
Although the genetic makeup of an organism plays a major role in determining the phenotype, there are also several environmental factors, such as temperature, oxygen availability, presence of mutagens, that can alter an organism’s phenotype.
An example of how genetic background affects phenotype can be seen in horses. The Extension gene in horses is responsible for their coat color. A wild-type gene (EE) produces black pigment in the coat, while a mutant gene (ee) produces red pigment. A...
An example of how genetic background affects phenotype can be seen in horses. The Extension gene in horses is responsible for their coat color. A wild-type gene (EE) produces black pigment in the coat, while a mutant gene (ee) produces red pigment. A...
7.2K
01:20Mate Choice
11.4K
Mate choice—the decision about whom to mate with—is a type of natural selection, since animals must reproduce to pass down their genes. Mate choice is also called intersexual selection because the behavior occurs between the sexes.
11.4K