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Risk assessment based on indirect predation cues: revisiting fine-grained variation.
- Source :
-
Ecology & Evolution (20457758) . Oct2015, Vol. 5 Issue 20, p4523-4528. 6p. - Publication Year :
- 2015
-
Abstract
- To adaptively express inducible defenses, prey must gauge risk based on indirect cues of predation. However, the information contained in indirect cues that enable prey to fine-tune their phenotypes to variation in risk is still unclear. In aquatic systems, research has focused on cue concentration as the key variable driving threat-sensitive responses to risk. However, while risk is measured as individuals killed per time, cue concentration may vary with either the number or biomass killed. Alternatively, fine-grained variation in cue, that is, frequency of cue pulses irrespective of concentration, may provide a more reliable signal of risk. Here, we present results from laboratory experiments that examine the relationship between red-eyed treefrog tadpole growth and total cue, cue per pulse, and cue pulse frequency. We also reanalyze an earlier study that examined the effect of fine-grained variation in predator cues on wood frog tadpole growth. Both studies show growth declines with increasing cue pulse frequency, even though individual pulses in high-frequency treatments contained very little cue. This result suggests that counter to earlier conclusions, tadpoles are using fine-grained variation in cue arising from the number of predation events to assess and respond to predation risk, as predicted by consumer-resource theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 20457758
- Volume :
- 5
- Issue :
- 20
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Ecology & Evolution (20457758)
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 110527073
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.1552