Comparing remote and hand-held video observation methods for quantifying a cleaning mutualism

Field studies of cleaning mutualisms use a variety of methods to quantify behavioral dynamics. Studies in marine systems typically utilize data recorded by human observers on scuba or snorkel or via remote underwater video. The effects of these different methods on cleaner-client behaviors have not been rigorously assessed. We quantified cleaner-client interactions at 13 bluestreak cleaner wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus) cleaning stations in Moorea, French Polynesia using hand-held and remote videos. We found that cleaning, cheating, and client posing rates, cleaning duration, and client species richness were all greater in the remote than in the hand-held videos, suggesting that human presence disrupts cleaning interactions by inducing antipredator responses among clients. Some metrics, such as the ratio of cleaner chasing to cleaning behavior and the cleaners' benthic feeding rate, were higher for the hand-held than the remote videos, possibly due to limited access of cleaners to clients in the presence of humans. Other metrics, such as cleaner and client chasing rates, the ratio of cleaning to cheating behaviors, and the duration of cleaner chases, did not differ between video types. Finally, piscivorous clients were far more abundant in the remote than the hand-held videos, suggesting that piscivores are particularly sensitive to human presence, likely because they are targeted by fishers. Overall, our study suggests that human presence can bias studies of cleaning behavior and cleaner-client interactions, and that remote cameras should be used to conduct behavioral studies. These potential biases should be considered when interpreting existing behavioral data.