Description
Predator inspection, where small groups of prey animals approach a potential threat, has been suggested as an example of reciprocal cooperation in fishes. However, most previous work has made use of artificial laboratory settings with only a few freshwater species. Additionally, those studies have almost exclusively studied dyads, which might not resemble predator inspection in the wild. This ongoing field study aimed at investigating whether predator inspection is more widespread than currently believed and whether predator inspection takes place in dyads or bigger groups. This involved testing free-swimming, non-model fish species in the wild, this time in a marine setting. Our experiment presents either a model fish predator, non-threatening fish, or counter-shaded object in rockpools and reactions from wild fish were recorded, including the lesser sand eel (Ammodytes tobianus), juvenile whiting (Merlangius merlangus) and goby (Pomatoschistus microps). Data will be extracted on frequency of predator inspection events, inspecting group size, and direction of approach relative to the head of the model predator. Extracted data will be analysed in R with a generalised linear mixed model with a binary response variable. This will be among the first studies to look for predator inspection in the wild.| Period | 25 Aug 2025 → 30 Aug 2025 |
|---|---|
| Event title | Behaviour 2025 |
| Event type | Conference |
| Location | Kolkata, IndiaShow on map |