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53 results for “predator defense”
Dissecting the smell of fear from conspecific and heterospecific prey: Investigating the processes that induce anti-predator defenses.
Prey use chemical cues from predation events to obtain information about predation risk to alter their phenotypes. Though we know how many prey respond to predators, we still have a poor understanding of the processes and chemical cues involved during a predation event. We examined how gray treefrog tadpoles (Hyla verisciolor) altered their behavior and morphology when raised with cues from different stages of predator attack, predators fed different amounts of prey, and predators consuming different combinations of treefrog tadpoles or snails (Helisoma trivolvis). We found that starved predators and predators fed snails induced no defensive responses whereas tadpoles exposed to a predator consuming gray treefrogs induced greater hiding, lower activity, and relatively deeper tails. We also found that the tadpoles did not respond to crushed, chewed, or digested conspecifics, but they did respond to consumed (i.e. chewed + digested) conspecifics. When we increased the treefrog biomass consumed by predators, tadpoles frequently increased their defenses when only tadpoles were consumed and always increased their defenses when the total diet biomass was held constant via the inclusion of snails. When predators experienced temporal variation in diet composition, including cues from snails to cause additional digestive cues or chemical noise, there was no effect on tadpole phenotypes. Our results suggest that amphibian prey rely on cues from both chewing and digestion of conspecifics and that the presence of cues from digested heterospecifics play little or no role in adding chemical noise or increased digestive enzymes and by-products that interfere with induced defenses.
Interpreting the smells of predation: How alarm cues and kairomones induce different prey defenses.
1. For phenotypically plastic organisms to produce phenotypes that are well matched to their environment, they must acquire information about their environment. For inducible defences, cues from damaged prey and cues from predators both have the potential to provide important information, yet we know little about the relative importance of these separate sources of information for behavioural and morphological defences. We also do not know the point during a predation event at which kairomones are produced, i.e. whether they are produced constitutively, during prey attack or during prey digestion. 2. We exposed leopard frog tadpoles (Rana pipiens) to nine predator cue treatments involving several combinations of cues from damaged conspecifics or heterospecifics, starved predators, predators only chewing prey, predators only digesting prey or predators chewing and digesting prey. 3. We quantified two behavioural defences. Tadpole hiding behaviour was induced only by cues from crushed tadpoles. Reduced tadpole activity was induced only by cues from predators digesting tadpoles or predators chewing + digesting tadpoles. 4. We also quantified tadpole mass and two size-adjusted morphological traits that are known to be phenotypically plastic. Mass was unaffected by the cue treatments. Relative body length was affected (i.e. there were differences among some treatments), but none of the treatments significantly differed from the no-predator control. Relative tail depth was affected by the treatments and deeper tails were induced only when tadpoles were exposed to cues from predators digesting tadpoles or cues from predators chewing + digesting tadpoles. 5. These results demonstrate that some prey species can discriminate among a diverse set of potential cues from heterospecific prey, conspecific prey and predators. Moreover, the results illustrate that the cues responsible for the full suite of behavioural and morphological defences are not induced by tadpole crushing nor
data for paper: Predator-induced defense decreases growth rate and photoprotective capacity in a nitrogen-limited dinoflagellate
<p>this is the data for paper "Predator-induced defense decreases growth rate and photoprotective capacity in a nitrogen-limited dinoflagellate" </p>
FIGURE 8 in A trilobite cluster from the Silurian Rochester Shale of New York: predation patterns and possible defensive behavior
FIGURE 8. Plot of regressed PC coordinates against log-centroid size and histogram of maximum specimen length, coded for injured and noninjured specimens. A, Regressed PC coordinates against log-centroid size that shows no obvious pattern in injured and noninjured specimens, although many of the larger specimens are injured. B, Histogram of specimen length has an approximately normal distribution with the two largest specimens showing an injury.
FIGURE 1. Slab preserving a in A trilobite cluster from the Silurian Rochester Shale of New York: predation patterns and possible defensive behavior
FIGURE 1. Slab preserving a cluster of 18 fully articulated individuals of Arctinurus boltoni (AMNH- FI-101514–101531) from the mid-Silurian (Wenlock) Rochester Shale, New York state. Stars indicate injured specimens. Scale bar = 10 cm.
FIGURE 5 in A trilobite cluster from the Silurian Rochester Shale of New York: predation patterns and possible defensive behavior
FIGURE 5. Specimens of Arctinurus boltoni with injuries to the thorax (A, B) and with reconstruction that mimics an injury (C, D), under plain and UV light. Arrows point to injuries described in the text. Scale bar = 1 mm. A–B, AMNH-FI-101518. C–D, AMNH-FI-101516.
FIGURE 4 in A trilobite cluster from the Silurian Rochester Shale of New York: predation patterns and possible defensive behavior
FIGURE 4. Further specimens of Arctinurus boltoni with injuries to the pygidium, under plain and UV light. Arrows point to injuries described in the text. Scale bar = 1 mm. A–B, AMNH-FI-101529. C–D, AMNH- FI-101530. E–F, AMNH-FI-101531.
FIGURE 3 in A trilobite cluster from the Silurian Rochester Shale of New York: predation patterns and possible defensive behavior
FIGURE 3. Specimens of Arctinurus boltoni with injuries to the pygidium, under plain and UV light (with brighter areas indicating parts of reconstructed exoskeleton). Arrows point to injuries described in the text. Scale bar = 1 mm. A–B, AMNH-FI-101521. C–D, AMNH-FI-101527.
FIGURE 2 in A trilobite cluster from the Silurian Rochester Shale of New York: predation patterns and possible defensive behavior
FIGURE 2. Diagram of 12 landmarks selected to describe the overall shape of the exoskeleton of Arctinurus boltoni.
FIGURE 7 in A trilobite cluster from the Silurian Rochester Shale of New York: predation patterns and possible defensive behavior
FIGURE 7. Principal components analysis of landmark data, with 49.5% variance in the data explained by the first two PCs (PC1=29.7%, PC2=19.8%). PC1 describes the variation in the intersection of the occipital furrow and anterior-posterior axis and junction points between posterior margin of the 11th tergite. PC2 mostly describes variation in cephalic width.
FIGURE 6 in A trilobite cluster from the Silurian Rochester Shale of New York: predation patterns and possible defensive behavior
FIGURE 6. Arctinurus boltoni specimen AMNH-FI-101520 with injuries to the thorax and pygidium, under A, plain and B, UV light. Arrows point to injuries described in the text. Scale bar = 1 mm.
Data from: Predator response to the coloured eyespots and defensive posture of Colombian four-eyed frogs
<p><span>Deimatic displays, where sudden changes in prey appearance elicit aversive predator reactions, have been suggested to occur in many taxa. These (often only putative) displays frequently involve different components that may also serve antipredator functions via other mechanisms (e.g. mimicry, warning signalling, body inflation). The Colombian four-eyed frog, <em>Pleurodema</em> <em>brachyops</em>, has been suggested to gain protection against predation through putative deimatic displays where they inflate and elevate the posterior part of their body revealing eye-like colour markings. We exposed stationary artificial frogs to wild predators to test whether the two components (eyespot/colour markings, defensive posture) of their putative deimatic display, and their combination, provide protection from predation without the sudden change in appearance. We did not detect any obvious additive effect of defensive posture and eyespots/colour markings on predation risk but found a marginally-significant trend for model frogs in the resting posture to be less attacked when displaying eyespots/colour markings than when they were not, suggesting that the presence of colour markings/eyespots may provide some protection on its own. Additionally, we found that models in a resting posture were overall more frequently attacked on the head than models in a defensive posture, indicating that a defensive posture alone could help redirect predator attacks to non-vital parts of the body. The trends found in our study suggest that the different components of <em>P. brachyops</em>' coloration may serve different functions during a deimatic display, but further research is needed to elucidate the role of each component when accompanied by sudden prey movement.</span> </p>
Data from: Predators drive selection for adaptive plasticity in prey defense behavior
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Data from: Predator response to the coloured eyespots and defensive posture of Colombian four-eyed frogs
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Hemipteran defensive odors trigger predictable color biases in jumping spider predators
<p>Multimodal warning displays often pair one signal modality (odor) with a second modality (color) to avoid predation. Experiments with bird predators suggest these signal components interact synergistically, with aversive odors triggering otherwise hidden aversions to particular prey colors. In a recent study, this phenomenon was found in a jumping spider (<em>Habronattus trimaculatus</em>), with the defensive odor from a coreid bug (<em>Acanthocephala femorata</em>) triggering an aversion to red. Here, we explore how generalizable this phenomenon is by giving <em>H. trimaculatus</em> the choice between red or black prey in the presence or absence of defensive odors secreted from (1) eastern leaf-footed bugs (<em>Leptoglossus phyllopus</em>, Hemiptera), (2) grass stinkbugs (<em>Mormidea pama</em>, Hemiptera), (3) Asian ladybird beetles (<em>Harmonia axyridis</em>, Coleoptera), and (4) eastern lubber grasshoppers (<em>Romalea microptera</em>, Orthoptera). As expected, in the presence of the hemipteran odors, spiders were less likely to attack red prey (compared to no odor). Unexpectedly, the beetle and grasshopper odors did not bias spiders away from red. Our results with the hemipteran odors were unique to red; follow-up experiments indicated that these odors did not affect biases for/against green prey. We discuss our findings in the context of generalized predator foraging behavior and the functions of multimodal warning displays. </p>
Data from: Induced phenological avoidance: a neglected defense mechanism against seed predation in plants
<p>1. Flowering phenology is an important life history trait affecting plant reproductive performance and is influenced by various abiotic and biotic factors. Pre-dispersal seed predation and pollination are expected to impose counteracting selection pressure on flowering phenology, with pre-dispersal seed predation expected to favor off-peak flowering and pollination to favor synchronous flowering. <br> 2. Here we studied the effect of pre-dispersal seed predation by the beetle Byturus ochraceus, a specialist seed herbivore, on the flowering phenology of Geum urbanum. This forest understorey plant species is self-pollinating, so that the influence of seed predation can be studied independent from pollination. We measured in detail the timing and predation rate of individual flowers during two consecutive years in more than 60 individuals. We tested the hypotheses that pre-dispersal seed predation exerts selection for within-season compensatory flowering as well as for induced phenological avoidance in the following season.<br> 3. We found no indication for compensatory flowering within a growing season, but plants that experienced predation shifted their flowers to the end of the flowering season the subsequent year. This induced phenological avoidance points to a plastic response to pre-dispersal seed predation that may be adaptive. Importantly, the delay in flower production came at a cost, since flowers later in the season had a reduced seed output, presumably because of increasing light limitation following forest canopy closure. <br> 4. Synthesis: Herbivory by specialist enemies can cause serious fitness decline in hosts. We here show that induced shifts in phenology can form an important defense strategy against pre-dispersal seed predation. The induced mismatches between herbivore and host phenology are anticipated to be adaptive when herbivory is predictable across successive flowering periods.</p>
Data from: Anti-predator defenses are linked with high levels of genetic differentiation in frogs
<p>Predator-prey interactions have been suggested as drivers of diversity in different lineages, and the presence of anti-predator defences in some clades is linked to higher rates of diversification. Warning signals are some of the most widespread defenses in the animal world, and there is evidence of higher diversification rates in aposematic lineages. The mechanisms behind such species richness, however, are still unclear. Here, we test whether lineages that use aposematism as anti-predator defense exhibit higher levels of genetic differentiation between populations, leading to increased opportunities for divergence. We collated from the literature > 3,000 pairwise genetic differentiation values across more than 700 populations from over 60 amphibian species. We find evidence that, given the same geographic distance, populations of species of aposematic lineages exhibit greater genetic divergence relative to species that are not aposematic. Our results support a scenario where the use of warning signals could restrict gene flow, and suggest that anti-predator defences could impact divergence between populations and potentially have effects at a macro-evolutionary scale.</p>
Trophic cascade within and across ecosystems: the role of anti-predatory defenses, predator type, and detritus quality
<ol> <li>Species in one ecosystem can indirectly affect multiple biodiversity components and ecosystem functions of adjacent ecosystems. The magnitude of these cross-ecosystem effects depends on the attributes of the organisms involved in the interactions, including traits of the predator, prey and basal resource. However, it is unclear how predators with cross-ecosystem habitat interact with predators with single-ecosystem habitat to affect their shared ecosystem. Also, unknown is how such complex top-down effects may be mediated by the anti-predatory traits of prey and quality of the basal resource.</li> <li>We used the aquatic invertebrate food webs in tank bromeliads as a model system to investigate these questions. We manipulated the presence of a strictly aquatic predator (damselfly larvae) and a predator with both terrestrial and aquatic habitats (spider) and examined effects on survival of prey (detritivores grouped by anti-predator defense), detrital decomposition (of two plant species differing in litter quality), nitrogen flux and host plant growth. To evaluate the direct and indirect effects of each predator type on multiple detritivore groups and ultimately on multiple ecosystem processes, we used piecewise structural equation models. For each response variable, we isolated the contribution of different detritivore groups to overall effects by comparing alternate model formulations.</li> <li>Alone, damselfly larvae and spiders each directly decreased survival of detritivores and caused multiple indirect negative effects on detritus decomposition, nutrient cycling, and host plant growth. However, when predators co-occurred, the spider caused a negative non-consumptive effect on the damselfly larva, diminishing the net direct and indirect top-down effects on the aquatic detritivore community and ecosystem functioning. Both detritivore traits and detritus quality modulated the strength and mechanism of these trophic cascades. Predator interference was mediated by undefended or partially defended detritivores as detritivores with anti-predatory defenses evaded consumption by damselfly larvae but not spiders. Predators and detritivores affected ecosystem decomposition and nutrient cycling only in the presence of high-quality detritus, as the low-quality detritus was consumed more by microbes than invertebrates.</li> <li>The complex responses of this system to predators from both recipient and adjacent ecosystems highlight the critical role of maintaining biodiversity components across multiple ecosystems. </li> </ol>
Navigating the landscape of fear: Fruit flies exhibit distinct anti-predator and anti-parasite defensive behaviours
<p>Most organisms are at risk of being consumed by a predator or infected by a parasite at some point in their life. Theoretical constructs such as the landscape of fear (perception of risk) and non-consumptive effects (NCEs, costly responses sans predation or infection) have been proposed to describe and quantify anti-predator and anti-parasite responses. How prey/host species identify and respond to these risks determines their survival, reproductive success and, ultimately, fitness. Most studies to date have focused on either predator-prey or parasite-host interactions, yet habitats and ecosystems contain both parasitic and/or predatory species that represent a complex and heterogenous mosaic of risk factors. Here, we experimentally investigated the behavioural responses of a cactophilic fruit fly, <em>Drosophila nigrospiracula</em>, exposed to a range of species that include parasites (ectoparasitic mite), predators (jumping spiders), as well harmless heterospecifics (non-parasitic mites, ants and weevils). We demonstrate that D. nigrospiracula can differentiate between threat and non-threat species, increase erratic movements and decrease velocity in the presence of parasites, but decrease erratic movements and time spent grooming in the presence of predators. Of particular importance, flies could distinguish between parasitic female mites and non-parasitic male mites of the same species, and respond accordingly. We also show that the direction of these non-consumptive effects differ when exposed to parasitic mites (i.e., risk of infection) versus spiders (i.e., risk of predation). Given the opposing effects of predation versus infection risk on fly behaviour, we discuss potential trade-offs between parasite and predator avoidance behaviours. Our findings illustrate the complexity of risk assessment in a landscape of fear and the fine-tuned non-consumptive effects that arise in response. Moreover, this study is the first to examine these behavioural NCEs in a terrestrial system.</p>
FIGURE 3 in Attack and defense in a gamasid-oribatid mite predator-prey experiment - sclerotization outperforms chemical repellency
FIGURE 3: Body size and mass of adults and tritonymphs of Archegozetes longisetosus. Stars indicate significant differences (Welch two-sample t-test, ***p<0.001).
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