Alarm cue specificity and response ontogeny in juvenile rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

Behaviour ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 154 (3) ◽  
pp. 377-385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marianna E. Horn ◽  
Douglas P. Chivers
Keyword(s):  
Rainbow Trout ◽  
Oncorhynchus Mykiss ◽  
Chemical Cues ◽  
Life Stage ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Alarm Cues ◽  
Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus Mykiss ◽  
Risk Of Predation ◽  
Threat Cues ◽  
Two Age Groups

Many aquatic prey animals release chemical cues upon being captured by a predator. These chemical cues, referred to as alarm cues, may act to warn nearby individuals of danger. For the cues to be useful, fish must be able to discern if they are indicative of a real threat; cues from conspecifics in different age groups may be irrelevant due to size- and habitat-related shifts in predation risk. We test the response of newly-hatched rainbow trout,Oncorhynchus mykiss, to three concentrations of alarm cues from conspecifics from two age groups: newly-hatched versus six-month-old juveniles. Newly-hatched trout demonstrated a significant fright response to all three concentrations of alarm cues, but showed no difference in strength of response based on either concentration or age of the cue donor. We propose that the newly-hatched trout did not respond differently because of the high risk of predation that they face during this life stage.

scholarly journals The effect of a single prerelease exposure to conspecific alarm cue on poststocking survival in three strains of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

2016 ◽  
Vol 94 (9) ◽  
pp. 661-664 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher J. Kopack ◽  
E. Dale Broder ◽  
Eric R. Fetherman ◽  
Jesse M. Lepak ◽  
Lisa M. Angeloni
Keyword(s):  
Rainbow Trout ◽  
Oncorhynchus Mykiss ◽  
Chemical Cues ◽  
Antipredator Behavior ◽  
Control Fish ◽  
Alarm Cues ◽  
Hatchery Fish ◽  
Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus Mykiss ◽  
High Predation ◽  
And Control

Significant resources go toward rearing and stocking fish globally, yet poststocking survival is often low, largely due to high predation rates on hatchery-reared fish. Antipredator behavior has been enhanced in many species through exposure to chemical cues that simulate predation events, but the implementation of such protocols may be logistically challenging. It has been suggested that a single exposure of hatchery fish to chemical cues while en route to stocking locations may be sufficient to enhance antipredator behavior and improve survival. We tested whether a one-time exposure to conspecific alarm cues while en route to a stocking site increased poststocking survival of three strains of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum, 1792)). We found no difference in mortality rates between strains or between treatment fish (exposed to alarm cues) and control fish (not exposed to alarm cues), suggesting that this quick and easy protocol was insufficient and that more complex techniques should be explored to increase poststocking survival.

scholarly journals Acquired predator recognition in juvenile rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss): conditioning hatchery-reared fish to recognize chemical cues of a predator

1998 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
pp. 611-617 ◽  
Author(s):  
Grant E Brown ◽  
R Jan F. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Rainbow Trout ◽  
Oncorhynchus Mykiss ◽  
Chemical Cues ◽  
Antipredator Behaviour ◽  
Skin Extract ◽  
Distilled Water ◽  
Water Control ◽  
Juvenile Rainbow Trout ◽  
Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus Mykiss ◽  
Area Use

In this study, we exposed predator-naive, hatchery-reared juvenile rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) to the chemical stimuli from northern pike (Esox lucius) and either trout skin extract (a chemical alarm signal) or a distilled water control to test for acquired recognition of a novel predator. Trout exposed to conspecific skin extract and pike odour significantly increased antipredator behaviour (i.e., decreased foraging and area use and increased shoaling and freezing), while those exposed to distilled water and pike odour did not. Conditioned trout were exposed to pike odour alone (versus a distilled water control) either 4 or 21 days later. When presented with pike odour 4 days postconditioning, trout significantly increased antipredator behaviour (i.e., decreased foraging and area use and increased time under cover and freezing). Trout tested 21 days postconditioning still exhibited a significant increase in antipredator behaviours when presented with pike odour alone (i.e., decreased foraging and increased freezing). These data are the first to demonstrate that hatchery-reared trout can be conditioned to recognize the chemical cues of a predator and suggest that this may serve as a strategy to train hatchery-reared fish to recognize predators prior to stocking into natural waterways.

scholarly journals Effect of Potential Sea Lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) Repellents on the Distribution of Juvenile Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) in a Laboratory Environment

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-35
Author(s):  
Noelle Stratton ◽  
István Imre ◽  
Richard Di Rocco ◽  
Grant Brown
Keyword(s):  
Rainbow Trout ◽  
Oncorhynchus Mykiss ◽  
Petromyzon Marinus ◽  
Sea Lamprey ◽  
Alarm Cues ◽  
Potential Predator ◽  
Alarm Cue ◽  
Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus Mykiss ◽  
Predator Cue ◽  
Species Specific

Recent studies have begun to consider the use of chemosensory alarm cues as potential repellents of invasive Sea Lamprey (Petromyzon marinus Linnaeus, 1758) in the Great Lakes Basin. An important factor in determining the efficacy of potential P. marinus repellents is whether they are species-specific. To that end, using laboratory stream channels, this study investigated whether a non-target species, the Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss Walbaum, 1792), would change their distribution in response to damage-released P. marinus alarm cues, potential mammalian predator cues, and damage-released conspecific cues. In groups of 10 individuals per replicate, with 10 replicates per stimulus type, subjects were exposed to one of the following treatment types: deionized water (control), P. marinus extract (heterospecific alarm cue), O. mykiss extract (conspecific alarm cue), 2-phenylethylamine hydrochloride (potential predator cue), and human saliva (potential predator cue). None of the stimuli induced a significant avoidance response during the stimulus observation period as compared to the control. These findings provide preliminary support for the species-specific nature of these proposed alternative P. marinus control measures.

Bioavailability and acute toxicity of copper to rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) in the presence of organic acids simulating natural dissolved organic carbon

1999 ◽  
Vol 56 (8) ◽  
pp. 1471-1483 ◽  
Author(s):  
J CA Marr ◽  
J Lipton ◽  
D Cacela ◽  
J A Hansen ◽  
J S Meyer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rainbow Trout ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Acute Toxicity ◽  
Dissolved Organic Carbon ◽  
Oncorhynchus Mykiss ◽  
Failure Time ◽  
Life Stage ◽  
Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus Mykiss ◽  
Organic Complexes ◽  
Inorganic Species

Copper bioavailability and toxicity to early life stage rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) were evaluated by laboratory toxicity testing performed using organic acid mixtures. Geochemical modeling was used to design exposure solutions that simulate dissolved organic carbon (DOC) of a natural aquatic system and to determine the fractions of total Cu present as inorganic species (e.g., Cu2+) and as individual Cu-organic complexes. Failure time modeling indicated that mortality was best predicted by a combination of total inorganic Cu and distinct Cu-organic complexes. The Cu-organic complexes that contributed to toxicity are characterized as low-affinity Cu-ligands, and our results support the hypothesis that Cu toxicity in nature is a function of the binding characteristics of individual ligands. Estimates of time-independent median lethal concentration thresholds determined at widely varying equivalent concentrations of DOC (0-16 mg/L) were constant (7.9-8.6 µg Cu/L) when modeled using the sum of inorganic Cu and Cu bound to the two low-affinity ligands as predictors of toxicity. Our results indicate that Cu bound to organic complexes may be available to fish and that acute toxicity of Cu is determined by the binding affinities of specific DOC components relative to Cu-binding affinity of fish gill.

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