Even zooplankton can not be utilized directly by human being; it is an important food source for numerous economical fishes. Zooplankton¡¦s predator-prey interactions can affect not only global carbon fixation, but also fisheries yields directly. Copepods and ciliates are the targets of the current study, which act as critical links between classical diatom-copepod-fish webs and microbial food webs. Analyzing their predator-prey interactions can help us understand more about marine food production. The objective of this study is to investigate the differences in swimming behavior of copepods and ciliates under two environments, which are disturbances and no disturbances of predator-prey. We use five locomotive indicators (NGDR, turning rate, diffusion coefficient, kinetic energy and fractal dimension) to quantify swimming patterns. The trajectories of copepods in the undisturbed situation show circuitous, larger turning angle, and more diffusive behavior, which associate with a lower kinetic energy. The patterns of copepod movement with the presence of prey (ciliates) are contrary to the previous situation. The patterns of ciliates in the undisturbed situation are similar to those of copepods in undisturbed situation, except smaller turning angles. The trajectories of ciliates in terms of the turning and diffusive movement when predators (copepods) show up are different from those of copepods when preys (ciliates) are present. In addition to indicators, this study develops a new encoding scheme for accommodating the spatial-temporal information embedded in the original data. By analyzing the encoded data through some data mining techniques, the predator-prey interactive behaviors in the spatial scale can be easily perceived.

Worldwide declines in populations of large elasmobranchs and the potential cascading effects on marine ecosystems have garnered considerable attention. Far less appreciated are the potential ecological impacts of changes in abundances of small to medium bodied elasmobranchs mesopredators. Crucial to elucidating the role of these elasmobranchs is an understanding of their habitat use and foraging ecology in pristine conditions. I investigated the trophic interactions and factors driving spatiotemporal variation in abundances of elasmobranch mesopredators in the relatively pristine ecosystem of Shark Bay, Australia. First, I describe the species composition and seasonal habitat use patterns of elasmobranch mesopredator on the sandflats of Shark Bay. Juvenile batoids dominated this diverse community and were extremely abundant in nearshore microhabitats during the warm season. Stomach content analysis and stable isotopic analysis revealed that there is a large degree of dietary overlap between common batoid species. Crustaceans, which tend to be found in seagrass habitats, dominated diets. Despite isotopic differences between many species, overlap in isotopic niche space was high and there was some degree of individual specialization. I then, investigated the importance of abiotic (temperature and water depth) and biotic (prey and predator abundance) factors in shaping batoid habitat use. Batoids were most abundant and tended to rest in shallow nearshore waters when temperatures were high. This pattern coincides with periods of large shark abundance suggesting batoids were seeking refuge from predators rather than selecting optimal temperatures. Finally, I used acoustic telemetry to examine batoid residency and diel use of the sandflats. Individual batoids were present on the sandflats during both the warm and cold seasons and throughout the diel cycle, suggesting lower sandflat densities during the cold season were a result of habitat shifts rather than migration out of Shark Bay. Combined, habitat use and dietary results suggest that batoids have the potential to seasonally impact sandflat dynamics through their presence, although foraging may be limited on the sandflats. Interestingly, my results suggest that elasmobranch mesopredators in pristine ecosystems probably are not regulated by food supply and their habitat use patterns and perhaps ecosystem impacts may be influenced by their predators.

No description available.

In the study, we determined if corridor structures use by carnivores is influenced by habitat features or prey quantity. We found that predator utilization of corridors are primarily driven by abundances of its principal prey rather than corridor characteristics but this relationship between prey abundance and carnivore distribution is species-specific. None of the measured habitat features affected the probability of carnivore detection.

Orientador: Denise de Cerqueira Rossa-Feres / Resumo: As interações entre espécies influenciam a estrutura de comunidades, a dinâmica das populações, a morfologia, a fisiologia e o comportamento das espécies. A mortalidade é um efeito direto promovido pelo predador, mas também há outros efeitos indiretos decorrentes da presença do predador, como alterações no comportamento da presa. Nos ambientes aquáticos a presa pode detectar o risco de predação por meio de sinais visuais, mecânicos e químicos. Ao detectar o predador, a presa pode usar estratégias, como formação de cardume, mudança no padrão de uso de habitat e diminuição da atividade natatória para reduzir a predação. Apesar de diminuir a taxa de predação, as estratégias antipredatórias tem custos para as presas e configuram um trade-off. Os comportamentos que aumentam a chance de escapar do predador prejudicam a atividade e o forrageamento dos girinos, diminuindo seu crescimento e suas chances de sobrevivência. Os aspectos morfológicos e fisiológicos são importantes na ocupação da coluna d’água por girinos, mas, será que a predação também é uma pressão que determina o modo como os girinos ocupam a coluna d’água? Entender como a predação influencia o comportamento dos girinos pode elucidar aspectos da dinâmica populacional e estruturação de comunidades, bem como dos mecanismos que regulam o padrão evolutivo dos anuros. Nesse contexto, esta dissertação, apresentada na forma de manuscrito, apresenta um estudo no qual foi testado experimentalmente como um predador aquático (náia... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Interactions between species influence community structure, population dynamics, morphology, physiology and species’ behavior. Mortality is a direct effect caused by the interaction with a predator, but even the simple presence of predators can lead to other indirect effects such as alterations on prey’s behavior. In aquatic environments, prey may detect predation risk by visual, mechanical, and chemical cues. When detecting a predator, the prey can use strategies to escape predation such as shoal formation, changes on habitat use pattern, and reduction on swimming activity. Despite decreasing predation rates, the antipredatory strategies have costs for the prey and set up a trade-off. For example, the same behavior that raises the prey’s chance to escape from a predator, decreases its foraging activity, leading thus to a reduction in the prey’s growth and survivorship. Among tadpoles, morphological and physiological aspects are important to determine water column occupation. But could predation also be an important pressure that determines the way tadpoles occupy the water column? Understanding how predation influences tadpoles’ behavior may elucidate populational dynamics and community structuring aspects, as well as the mechanisms that regulate anuran evolutionary patterns. In this sense, this dissertation presents a study, in a manuscript form, that tested experimentally the influence of an aquatic predator (Odonata water nymph; Micrathyria sp.) on the use of space, activ... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

Daily rhythms occur in numerous physiological and behavioral processes across an immense diversity of taxa, but there remain few cases in which mechanistic links between rhythms of trait expression and organismal fitness have been established. We construct a dynamic optimization model to determine whether risk allocation provides an adaptive explanation for the daily foraging rhythm observed in many species using the orb-weaving spider Cyclosa turbinata as a case study. Our model predicts that female C. turbinata should generally start foraging at lower levels of energy reserves (i.e., should be less bold) during midday when predators are most abundant. We also find that individuals’ foraging efficacy determines whether daily rates of encounters with predators or prey more strongly influences boldness under high risk. The qualitative model predictions are robust to variation in our parameter estimates and likely apply to a wide range of taxa. The predictions are also consistent with observed patterns of foraging behavior under both laboratory and field conditions. We discuss the implications of our study for understanding the evolution of daily rhythms and the importance of model predictions for interpreting empirical studies and generating additional hypotheses regarding behavioral evolution.

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(理学) / 甲第18827号 / 理博第4085号 / 新制||理||1587(附属図書館) / 31778 / 京都大学大学院理学研究科生物科学専攻 / (主査)准教授 森 哲, 教授 沼田 英治, 教授 高橋 淑子 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Science / Kyoto University / DFAM

<p>In this thesis I investigate predator-induced effects on behavioural and life-history characteristics of prey. At any moment a given predator is capable of attacking a small number of prey. However, the mere presence of a predator may impact a much larger number of individuals, as prey implement various behavioural and developmental mechanisms to reduce the risk of predation. It has become increasingly clear that predator induced responses have the potential to affect patterns of species abundance and distribution as well as individual fitness of prey. I study these responses by incorporating field surveys, semi-field experiments and laboratory experiments. All experiments were done in an aquatic environment using fish or large odonate larvae as predators and damselfly-or diving beetle larvae as prey.</p><p>My work highlights the importance of monitoring prey behaviour when studying life-history characteristics. I show that fish presence is an important factor for determining species abundance and distribution of odonates, and that prey behaviour may be a good predictor for fish vulnerability. Larval damselflies react behaviourally to predator presence by reducing activity and/or restricting habitat use. I confirm that such anti-predator responses have positive effects on prey survival in the presence of a predator but negative effects on growth and development of prey. In addition, my results suggest that the increase in per capita food resources for surviving prey following a predation episode (i.e. thinning) can have a stronger positive effect on prey growth and development than the negative effect of anti-predator responses. I also show that the strength of an anti-predator response is dependent on resource availability of the prey, with prey responding less strongly when resources are scarce. My results also indicate that the strength of the anti-predator response of damselfly larvae depends on predator diet and larval age. Predators feeding on prey conspecifics induce a stronger behavioural response in young larva than predators that feed on prey heterospecifics do. This diet-effect was not found in larvae late in ontogeny, due to an increased activity of larva where predators consumed damselflies. Such increased larval activity can be explained as a reaction to a time-constraint. Finally, I found that activity of damselfly larvae is genetically determined and that this has lead to a behavioural syndrome that might limit larval plasticity to a certain activity-range. This phenomenon may have implications for how well larvae are able to react to both biotic and abiotic changes in the environment.</p>

In this thesis I investigate predator-induced effects on behavioural and life-history characteristics of prey. At any moment a given predator is capable of attacking a small number of prey. However, the mere presence of a predator may impact a much larger number of individuals, as prey implement various behavioural and developmental mechanisms to reduce the risk of predation. It has become increasingly clear that predator induced responses have the potential to affect patterns of species abundance and distribution as well as individual fitness of prey. I study these responses by incorporating field surveys, semi-field experiments and laboratory experiments. All experiments were done in an aquatic environment using fish or large odonate larvae as predators and damselfly-or diving beetle larvae as prey. My work highlights the importance of monitoring prey behaviour when studying life-history characteristics. I show that fish presence is an important factor for determining species abundance and distribution of odonates, and that prey behaviour may be a good predictor for fish vulnerability. Larval damselflies react behaviourally to predator presence by reducing activity and/or restricting habitat use. I confirm that such anti-predator responses have positive effects on prey survival in the presence of a predator but negative effects on growth and development of prey. In addition, my results suggest that the increase in per capita food resources for surviving prey following a predation episode (i.e. thinning) can have a stronger positive effect on prey growth and development than the negative effect of anti-predator responses. I also show that the strength of an anti-predator response is dependent on resource availability of the prey, with prey responding less strongly when resources are scarce. My results also indicate that the strength of the anti-predator response of damselfly larvae depends on predator diet and larval age. Predators feeding on prey conspecifics induce a stronger behavioural response in young larva than predators that feed on prey heterospecifics do. This diet-effect was not found in larvae late in ontogeny, due to an increased activity of larva where predators consumed damselflies. Such increased larval activity can be explained as a reaction to a time-constraint. Finally, I found that activity of damselfly larvae is genetically determined and that this has lead to a behavioural syndrome that might limit larval plasticity to a certain activity-range. This phenomenon may have implications for how well larvae are able to react to both biotic and abiotic changes in the environment.

No description available.