JournalTOCs

acta ethologica
Journal Prestige (SJR): 0.769

Citation Impact (citeScore): 1
Number of Followers: 7

Hybrid journal (It can contain Open Access articles)
ISSN (Print) 1437-9546 - ISSN (Online) 0873-9749
Published by Springer-Verlag

[2468 journals]

Do it like the otter—data on the amphibian skinning behaviour in the
Eurasian badger (Meles meles L., 1758)
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: The European badger Meles meles (Carnivora: Mustelidae) is a widely distributed mammal across Europe. This is a highly adaptive species, which is capable of exploiting a wide variety of habitats and food resources. The European badger is a threatened species, and knowledge on all aspects of its ecology and behaviour may provide important information concerning the environmental factors driving its distribution and population density. In the present study, we report on a specific predatory behaviour in M. meles. At Nature Park “Shumensko plato” (NE Bulgaria), the badgers were detected to feed on common toads (Bufo bufo) and fire salamanders (Salamandra salamandra). Both amphibians are known to produce highly toxic secrets which cover the surface of the skin and are generally avoided as prey by the majority of mammal predators. During the prey manipulation phase of the feeding process, the European badger removed the poisonous skin of the captured amphibians and in most cases consumed the rest of the body (except the eggs of the toads). This skinning behaviour appears to be rather similar to that described in another mustelid—the European otter (Lutra lutra). This behaviour could potentially benefit the badgers in using broader spectrum of food resources, especially in case of limited food availability.
  PubDate: 2023-05-16
Novel observation of play behaviour between a harem holder and a bachelor
group of Przewalski’s horses in the wild
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: Przewalski’s horses live in stable nonterritorial families (harem) of one or more harem stallions, several mares, and their offspring. The harem stallion typically behaves aggressively towards any male intruder approaching the harem. Play behaviour is frequently observed among the group members in horses. For stallions, the most common, well-known cases of play behaviour are found between members of bachelor groups (groups of young stallions) and between the harem stallion and his offspring. The play between the harem stallion and members of the bachelor groups is, on the other hand, seemingly much rarer as a description of such events in the literature is anecdotal. In this note, we present our observation conducted in the Great Gobi B Strictly Protected Area (Mongolia) and describe the play behaviour between a Przewalski’s horse harem stallion and members of a bachelor group. The observation was done as a part of broader research during which selected Przewalski’s horses’ groups were located by binoculars in daily monitoring routines and filmed from a close distance (from 150 to 800 m). Behavioural Observation Research Interactive Software (BORIS) was used to extract data from the video recordings. The observation described in this note lasted for ∼ 180 min, during which the horses engaged in three separate bouts of play and repeated inter-group association. During the whole study (241.5 h of video recordings), this was the only observation including inter-group interactions. We observed two other events during which two harems approached each other (but never merged). Our observation is the first video recording of such an event and raises the question of how prevalent this behaviour is in the Przewalski’s horses’ restored natural populations. We conclude that this behaviour is unusual or has not been sufficiently studied in wild or feral harems. Further technological advances may help reveal more information on this topic.
  PubDate: 2023-05-10
Correction to: The environment matters: season and female contact affect
the behavior of captive Addax nasomaculatus male antelope
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  PubDate: 2023-05-09
Experimental evidence that toe-tapping behavior in the green-and-black
poison frog (Dendrobates auratus) is related to prey detection
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: Toe-tapping, the quick movement of the middle toes of the hind legs, has been observed in many frogs and toads, and is usually associated with feeding, calling, or courtship behaviors. While plenty of observations of toe-tapping exist for different species, experimental evidence regarding the stimuli triggering this behavior is almost non-existent. Here, we systematically tested the influence of different stimuli on the toe-tapping behavior in the green-and-black poison frog (Dendrobates auratus, Dendrobatidae) from a captive colony in the Zoo Frankfurt. We found that, compared to a control, both big and small prey animals (crickets and fruit flies) elicited much more toe-tapping behavior, and that toe-tapping was positively correlated to feeding events. Playback advertisement calls in contrast did not trigger toe-tapping. We further showed that also juvenile frogs already toe-tap, but less frequently than adults. Our results support the observation-based data that toe-tapping is associated with hunting behaviors. While the auditory part of courtship does not seem to trigger toe-tapping, experimental evidence regarding visual and/or tactile courtship stimuli is still lacking.
  PubDate: 2023-05-06
Differences in locomotor performances between two sympatric species of
freshwater turtles
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: Animals whose ecological niches largely overlap within a habitat can get into intra-specific and/or inter-specific competition for some of the limited resources available. We hypothesise that differences in locomotor abilities might be a key component deciding which individual will gain the resource, especially in animals with limited agility, such as turtles. To address this hypothesis, we tested self-righting ability and releasing from a vegetation alike rope in two sympatric populations of turtles: Emys orbicularis and Mauremys rivulata. All individuals managed to complete the tests promptly (≤ 103 s). When overturned on their carapace, E. orbicularis had shorter inspecting time, as well as overturning time, indicating slight advantage in self-righting. On the other hand, both species were equally efficient to release from a rope attached to the front of their plastron. The inter-specific morphological differences indicate that muscular strength might be a good predictor of competitive relations among syntopic turtle species.
  PubDate: 2023-05-06
The environment matters: season and female contact affect the behavior of
captive Addax nasomaculatus male antelope
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: The addax antelope (Addax nasomaculatus) is a species under serious threat of extinction, as it is more abundant in captivity than in the wild. However, little is known about its basic biology. The aims of this study were to determine how locomotor, feeding, aggressive, marking, and sexual behavior of male addax allocated in all-male groups vary with season and with female contact (i.e., biostimulation). The study was conducted in captive conditions, in two groups of adult males: one with no-physical contact with females, aside from visual and olfactory interactions (CF group, n = 4), and another group completely isolated from females (IF group, n = 4). The frequency of behaviors was recorded during the daytime, 4 days per season (total time of observation = 256 h). Lying, standing, walking, aggressive, marking, grazing, and ruminating behaviors as well as water and supplement consumptions varied with season (all p < 0.05). The lying, walking, marking, grazing, and ruminating behaviors were more frequently observed for CF than IF males (all p < 0.05). Also, all behaviors, except for marking, varied with the interaction between the group and seasons (all p < 0.05). Sexual behavior was extremely scarce, so it was not possible to analyze how it varied with seasons and the group. The present study suggests that management program and housing conditions, especially in ex situ breeding plans, should consider the influence of the season and the sociosexual context on the behavior of addax males.
  PubDate: 2023-04-06
Unique spatial behavior of the Japanese serow (Capricornis crispus) in the
open mountains of Mt. Fuji
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: The Japanese serow (Capricornis crispus) exhibits spatial behavior adapted to forest habitats with relatively stable food supply and climatic conditions, such as sedentary habits, small home ranges, and little seasonal variation in habitat selection. However, investigations have not previously been conducted in open mountainous habitats with high seasonal variability. Therefore, I examined spatial behavior of the Japanese serow in an open mountainous region of Mt. Fuji, central Japan, based on GPS location data. These mountain-dwelling serows had much larger annual home ranges (female: 316.5 ha, male: 373.1 ha) compared with forest-dwelling populations. Spring and summer home range sizes were the largest, and winter home range size was the smallest, ranging from 20.3%–56.1% of maximum. Limited forage and harsh climatic conditions in winter seemed to drive such energy-minimizing behavioral strategies. Selection of vegetation types and elevation varied seasonally, likely because of changes in forage availability and climate conditions. These spatial behaviors in mountain-dwelling serows resemble those of several related mountain ungulates, implying that these behaviors are adaptations to highly seasonal open mountainous habitats. My findings suggest that the main factors affecting spatial behavior are habitat characteristics, such as climate, forage abundance, and seasonality. These findings provide support for an ecological pattern in ungulate spatial behavior whereby closed habitats promote small and stable home ranges, whereas open habitats promote large and seasonally fluctuating home ranges.
  PubDate: 2023-03-23
Individual features influence the choice to attack in the southern lapwing
Vanellus chilensis, but the opponent type dictates how the interaction
goes
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: The fight or flight decision (i.e., engage in or evade from an interaction) is one of the most important for animals, occurring in many different ecological contexts and dictating the occurrence of agonistic encounters that could lead to injuries or even death. The southern lapwing Vanellus chilensis is one of the most conspicuous bird species from South America, living in the natural grasslands but frequently found in rural and urban area. The species is known by its typical vocalization and its patterns of aggression and territoriality, considered exaggerated, creating a cultural prejudice towards the species. To better understand the agonistic interaction process in the species, we used general linear models to verify the influence of individual characteristics, environmental characteristics, and opponent features on five different response variables related to the interactions: the time of alert behavior display, probability to attack and evade, total duration of the interaction, and the Behavioral Diversity Index (BDI) of each interaction. Despite the models showing that for each response variables the predictors had different importance and weights, it was possible to note that individual features like age, breeding status, and month impact directly the probability to evade or attack, while the opponent species and distance better explained the other variables related to the interaction. The results also showed that the southern lapwings increase the intensity of responses and sensibility to intruder during the breeding season, displaying a trade-off between self-preservation and the protection of the offspring that is present in other bird species.
  PubDate: 2023-03-11
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-023-00416-6
Epimeletic behavior in a free-ranging female Risso’s dolphin
(Grampus griseus)
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: Here, we describe the epimeletic behavior of an adult Risso’s dolphin towards a deceased newborn calf of the same species across several days with photographs, acoustic monitoring, and video recordings. Boat-based observation surveys were conducted from April 2014 to October 2021 along the southern coast of Galicia (northwest Spain) as part of a longitudinal study on the ecology of cetacean species. On September 21, 2020, an adult Risso’s dolphin was observed carrying a dead newborn calf in coastal waters. This presumed mother was further sighted with her deceased calf on September 23 and 24 (20 km and 40 km from the first observation site, respectively) and with other adult individuals on September 30, probably after having lost or finally abandoned the carcass. The presumed mother supported the corpse for at least 5 days, which may have had potential consequences for the female health. As direct observations are scarce in the wild, this type of report provides valuable information to better document the occurrence of care-giving behavior in highly mobile marine top predators.
  PubDate: 2023-03-06
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-023-00417-5
Non-aggressive inter-group interactions in wild Northern Gray gibbons
(Hylobates funereus)
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: Gibbons exhibit territorial behavior, and mated pairs defend exclusive territories. However, reports on contacts with neighbors near or outside the respective range boundaries are scarce because observing unhabituated neighboring groups is difficult. Studies of encounters have yielded a wide range of observations (aggressive, neutral, communicative, or affiliative) across gibbon species and geographic regions. As it is important to understand behavioral ecology and social relationships among gibbon groups, we studied three Northern Gray gibbon groups (Hylobates funereus) in the Danum Valley Conservation Area (DVCA), Malaysia and observed their interactions with neighboring groups. From 2001 to 2020, three groups were followed for 162 days (2236.4 h), and we observed 30 instances of encounters at the range boundary or intrusions between a study group and a respective neighboring group. Neutral or communicative encounters were observed in most cases, with the exception of one instance of aggressive encounter (chasing). Gibbons interacted through particular vocalizations (termed songs) in many cases. We report details of some characteristic interactions among gibbon groups during encounters at the range boundary or intrusions. Regarding intrusions, we observed an unusual instance where a neighboring group intruded deep into the study group’s territory, and the neighboring group did not respond to the songs of the resident group. Considering that no physical fighting occurred during encounters or intrusions, gibbon groups in the DVCA seem to be non-aggressive toward each other. We briefly discuss possible explanations for such non-aggressive relationships among gibbon groups.
  PubDate: 2023-02-17
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-023-00415-7
Underground environment increases the differentiation of personality
traits between male and female plateau zokors (Eospalax baileyi)
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: Animal personality is defined as behavior that is consistent across time and context. Ecological and evolutionary pressures might exert sexually dimorphic effects on personality traits. In this study, variations in docility and exploratory behaviors of male and female plateau zokor (Eospalax baileyi) in two populations from different geographical sites were quantified during their breeding season, using bag and open field test. We observed significant repeatability of behaviors in the bag and open field test, except for sniffing behavior in zokors from TZ site. We found that sex influences the personality traits of plateau zokors more than geographical variation in both the bag and open field test. Females had a higher docility than males in the bag test. The findings of this study emphasize the importance of considering plateau zokors’ sex and personality traits when assessing their fitness, behavior, or suitability for behavioral future research work.
  PubDate: 2023-02-13
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-023-00414-8
Changes in salivary cortisol and testosterone levels in male chimpanzees
during the process of reunion with group members
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: The impact of re-introduction of a temporally separated individual to a group on social integration and hormone levels is an important topic in terms of the management and welfare of captive animals. Using two cases in which a temporally separated male re-joined an all-male group of captive chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes, we investigated how social reunion affected social interactions and salivary steroid hormone levels (C, cortisol; T, testosterone). In both cases, social reunion was conducted over three stages, separation, acclimation, and reunion. In both cases, behavioral observations revealed increased agonism and tension reduction after the reunion, suggesting that the reunion induced reformation of social relationships. In both cases, the separated male showed an increased C level at the acclimation stage, in which the separated male was moved to its original indoor room and released solely into an outdoor compound. The T level did not vary among males or stages, but increased for the re-joined male after reunion in one of the two cases. This study suggests that the relationships between hormones and behavior during a reunion could be affected by multiple factors and that special attention should be paid to the acclimation rather than characteristics of social reunion, to ensure the success of member reunion.
  PubDate: 2023-02-10
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-023-00412-w
A conceptual framework for the analysis of animal behaviour: an
hierarchical script-episodes-gestures structure
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  PubDate: 2023-02-08
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-023-00413-9
Altruistic behavior in mother-calf pairs of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops
truncatus) and the possible role of the social bond: a preliminary study
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: In this study, we tested two mother-calf pairs of bottlenose dolphins in a helping task. Specifically, we provided dolphins with an enrichment tool based on the rope-pulling task paradigm to obtain a resource. The calves were unable to solve the task and get the resource on their own, and then we evaluated whether their mothers helped them. Moreover, we also evaluated whether the social bond strength among mother and calf, measured with the simple ratio index, may play an important role in determining altruistic behaviors. Our findings show that mothers performed altruistic behaviors toward their calves only when they had a strong social bond with them. Indeed, only a mother had a strong social bond with her calf, and only she acted altruistically. Moreover, as her calf grew, their social bond weakened and the mother stopped performing altruistic behaviors. As a result, our data seem to suggest the strength of social bonds has an important role in determining altruism.
  PubDate: 2023-01-25
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-023-00411-x
Testing the environmental buffering hypothesis of cooperative breeding in
the Seychelles warbler
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: Species are facing environmental challenges caused by rapidly changing environments. Globally, extreme weather events, like droughts or extreme rainfall, are increasing in frequency. Natural selection usually acts slowly, while adaptations through phenotypic plasticity are limited. Therefore, organisms may utilise other mechanisms to cope with such rapid change. Cooperative breeding is hypothesised to be one such mechanism, as helpers could increase survival probabilities of offspring, especially in harsh years. Rainfall is a cue for onset of breeding in many tropical species, to ensure young are born when food abundance is highest. Using 21 years of data, we investigate the effect of rainfall on social behaviour and life history in the insectivorous Seychelles warbler (Acrocephalus sechellensis), a facultative cooperative breeder. We found that low rainfall is associated with reduced reproductive output and possibly with decreased survival. However, there were no statistical differences in response between groups with helpers, groups with only non-helping subordinates, and breeding pairs without subordinates. With low rainfall, more sons (the sex less likely to help) were produced, and those subordinate males already present were less likely to help. Thus, in contrast to expectations, cooperative breeding does not seem to buffer against harsh environments in Seychelles warblers, indicating that group living may be costly and thus not a mechanism for coping with changing environments. Our study showed that the interaction between the environment and life histories, including social behaviour, is complex, but that this interaction is important to consider when studying the impact of changing environments on species survival.
  PubDate: 2023-01-13
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-022-00408-y
The unique case of marking behaviour in juvenile lynx
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: Active scent marking with urine has been described in a number of mammal species, including felids. In Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), scent marking plays a role in intra-sexual competition and territory defence as well as in attracting sexual partners during the mating season. Marking is most frequent during the mating season and least frequent during the period when females give birth and lactate. Males generally mark more frequently than females and resident animals mark more frequently than dispersers. Juveniles have never been recorded actively marking. Here, however, we present a well-documented case of an actively marking juvenile lynx. Lynx females Koka and Baronka were born in 2019 to mother Nela, who disappeared in December 2019. Nela’s territory stayed vacant, with her juvenile daughters being the only females recorded there. On the 30th March 2020, during the mating season, Koka was recorded on a camera trap video actively marking with urine, rubbing her face and again marking with urine on a rock. On the following day, she again marked with urine on the same marking site. After that, Koka left the area and the former territory of Nela was taken over by Baronka. In the BBA lynx population, juvenile lynx females were documented to successfully reproduce. This poses the question of whether their adult-like marking behaviour should be explained in the context of early reproduction, or if it has other reasons. Neither Koka nor Baronka successfully reproduced with the local male during their first year of life, but that does not mean they did not try to attract him by marking. Also, juveniles’ competition over the territory left vacant by their mother is a feasible explanation. We suggest that high population turnover may result in unusual social situations, with juveniles consequently performing unusual behaviour. This does not have to be related to early reproduction.
  PubDate: 2023-01-07
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-022-00410-4
First report of visual displays in the Neotropical treefrog Dendropsophus
carnifex
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: Abstract Visual communication is apparently widespread among anurans, but these behaviours in many Neotropical species remain unstudied. We provide the first descriptions of visual displays in males of the Neotropical treefrog Dendropsophus carnifex (Hylidae) from three populations at Mindo, in northwestern Ecuador. We describe hind-foot lifting, foot-flagging, arm waving, toe trembling, body raising, and throat exposure for D. carnifex. All visual displays include exposure of flash colours in hidden surfaces of body and legs. Vocalisations were not emitted simultaneously with visual displays but were intercalated.
  PubDate: 2022-12-26
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-022-00407-z
Vermilion flycatchers avoid singing during sudden peaks of anthropogenic
noise
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: In many animals, vocalizations are necessary for social interactions to occur; however, anthropic noise can pose a problem as it can disrupt acoustic communication. Oscine birds display a variety of strategies to presumably increase the chances of detection in noisy habitats. On the other hand, suboscines, a group of birds with arguably less vocal flexibility, have been less studied, and we have a poor understanding of the strategies that they may use to cope with noise. Anecdotal evidence suggests that vermilion flycatchers (Pyrocephalus rubinus), a suboscine that produces song bouts, interrupts its bouts in the presence of sudden urban noise (SUN, e.g., when a car passes by), avoiding peak noise. To test this idea, we conducted a playback experiment on 27 free-living males. We recorded the song bouts of each individual: before playback, during SUN playback, and after playback. Ambient noise and artificial light at night (ALAN) have been shown to influence bird singing. To evaluate if there is an association between these pollutants and birds’ response to SUN, we also measured mean ambient noise, ambient noise coefficient of variation, and ALAN in the males’ territories. We found that birds sang shorter bouts during the SUN treatment. Song bout length during the SUN treatment was not associated with mean noise levels or coefficient of variation in males’ territories; however, it was positively associated with ALAN. This result was dependent upon an influential point and should be taken cautiously. We found no association between singing recovery (latency to sing and song bout length after SUN relative to before SUN) and mean ambient noise, ambient noise coefficient of variation, and ALAN. Our results show SUN-induced temporal singing flexibility and suggest that vermilion flycatchers are well adapted to acoustically polluted environments, with males living in territories with more light pollution possibly being less affected by traffic noise peaks. A previous study showed that song bout length is an important signal during intra-sexual interactions; interrupting this acoustic component may have important consequences during social interactions.
  PubDate: 2022-12-26
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-022-00409-x
Fruit scent as an indicator of ripeness status in ‘bat fruits’ to
attract ‘fruit bats’: chemical basis of chiropterochory
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: In the tropics, animal-mediated seed dispersal is the most frequently occurring dispersal syndrome, which includes traits that aid in attracting both diurnal and nocturnal dispersers. However, some plants bear fruits with special traits that make them less conspicuous to diurnal frugivores to make them exclusively available to nocturnal frugivores such as bats, which are called ‘bat fruits’. Since these fruits remain drab green in colour throughout their phases of ontogeny, the difference in scent compounds is predicted to help bats to assess their ripeness status. In this study, we specifically examined the behavioural repertoires associated with fruit removal such as ‘search latency’ and ‘number of attempts’ taken by two small-sized fruit bats (Cynopterus sphinx and Rousettus leschenaulti) that feed ex situ and a large-sized fruit bat (Pteropus giganteus) that feed in situ on a bat fruit (Madhuca indica). No fruit was removed on the ‘first’ attempt itself by both the bats; instead, they made multiple (two to six) repeated search attempts to the same bunch of fruits, which is presumably a behavioural mechanism underlying assessing the ripeness status to increase the chance of removal of ripe fruits. The emission of scent compounds was examined using a high-sensitivity headspace proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometer in real time without any pre-treatment. As predicted, the fruits at the predispersal (unripe) and dispersal (ripe) phases differed significantly from each other in terms of concentration (intensity) of volatile compounds although no difference was inferred in terms of their composition. This study, thereby, highlights the underlying chemical basis of the foraging behaviour of fruit bats while foraging on bat fruits that finally effectuate its seed dispersal (chiropterochory).
  PubDate: 2022-10-24
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-022-00405-1
Interaction between vasotocin and gonadal hormones in the regulation of
reproductive behavior in a cichlid fish
- Free pre-print version: Loading...
  Rate this result: What is this?
  
  Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating.
  A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
  
  Abstract: Vasotocin (VT) has been associated with the regulation of different aspects of social behavior (e.g., mating and aggression). Given the fact that androgens are also known to regulate reproductive behavior, we hypothesized that VT and androgens could be interacting, rather than acting independently, in the regulation of reproductive behavior. In the present study, we aimed to understand the effect of VT and its interaction with gonadal hormones (putatively androgens) on different aspects of reproductive behavior of a polygynous and territorial cichlid fish, the Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus). Using a within-subject design, we treated territorial males, that were previously castrated or sham-operated, with different dosages of VT as well as with a V1A receptor antagonist (Manning compound) and subsequently analyzed their behavior towards females and towards an intruder male. Our results showed that VT affected the behavior of territorial males towards females but not towards males. Specifically, VT-treated males interacted less with females (i.e., spent less time touching the transparent partition that allowed visual contact with females) and were less aggressive towards females than saline-treated males. Moreover, in sham-operated males, blocking V1A receptors increased the frequency of bites towards females in comparison to saline-treated males, but not in castrated males. This result suggests that VT down-regulates aggressiveness towards females through the action of V1A receptors in the gonads (putatively decreasing androgen secretion), and that androgens up-regulate this behavior. In summary, our results suggest that VT may modulate social behavior, through an interaction with gonadal hormones.
  PubDate: 2022-10-13
  DOI: 10.1007/s10211-022-00404-2