Tracing the Battle: Role of mucus trails in information warfare between predator snail and prey limpet

Predator-prey interactions have long been recognized as important selective forces in the evolution and maintenance of multiple traits in both predators and prey. Certain animal species leave information intentionally or unintentionally, in the form of urine, faeces, feeding traces and chemical trails, even after they have moved. This residual information, left behind by animals, has the potential to affect predation efficiency. However, information warfare-the use of information between predator and prey, in which predators exploit prey cues to increase predation efficiency, while prey exploit predator cues to reduce it-remains largely unexplored, especially in the context of residual information. Marine gastropods leave a mucus trail that contains individual information as they crawl. In this study, we investigated the existence of information warfare between the predator snail Reishia clavigera and the prey limpet Siphonaria sirius through mucus trails. We observed the responses of predators and prey to their respective mucus trails under laboratory conditions. The predators followed the prey's mucus trails. In contrast, the prey exhibited movements, such as looping, upon confrontation with the predator's mucus trails. The looping behaviour reduced the probability of the predator reaching the endpoint of the prey's mucus trail. These results suggest a potential strategy whereby predators exploit prey mucus trails for localization, along with a counter-strategy through which prey minimize the risk of detection. Our findings provide novel insights into how information shapes predator-prey interactions, indicating the potential existence of an information-induced arms race.