Environmental impact on visual perception modulates behavioral responses of schooling fish to looming predators

Author:

Rodriguez-Pinto Ivan I.1ORCID,Rieucau Guillaume2,Handegard Nils Olav3,Boswell Kevin M.1,Theobald Jamie C.1ORCID

Affiliation:

1. Institute of Environment, Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University 1 , Miami, FL 33172 , USA

2. Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium 2 , Chauvin, LA 70344 , USA

3. Institute of Marine Research 3 , P.O. Box 1870 Nordnes, 5817 Bergen , Norway

Abstract

ABSTRACT Aggregation in social fishes has evolved to improve safety from predators. The individual interaction mechanisms that govern collective behavior are determined by the sensory systems that translate environmental information into behavior. In dynamic environments, shifts in conditions impede effective visual sensory perception in fish schools, and may induce changes in the collective response. Here, we consider whether environmental conditions that affect visual contrast modulate the collective response of schools to looming predators. By using a virtual environment to simulate four contrast levels, we tested whether the collective state of minnow fish schools was modified in response to a looming optical stimulus. Our results indicate that fish swam slower and were less polarized in lower contrast conditions. Additionally, schooling metrics known to be regulated by non-visual sensory systems tended to correlate better when contrast decreased. Over the course of the escape response, schools remained tightly formed and retained the capability of transferring social information. We propose that when visual perception is compromised, the interaction rules governing collective behavior are likely to be modified to prioritize ancillary sensory information crucial to maximizing chance of escape. Our results imply that multiple sensory systems can integrate to control collective behavior in environments with unreliable visual information.

Funder

National Science Foundation

US Air Force Office of Scientific Research

Florida Education Fund

Florida International University

Publisher

The Company of Biologists

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