The spatiotemporal dynamics of rheotaxis in stream-dwelling fish under different flow and sensory conditions.
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1
Bowling Green State University, Biological Sciences, United States
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2
University of Maryland, Department of Aerospace Engineering, United States
Rheotaxis (orientation to currents) is a robust, multisensory behavior found in many aquatic organisms. Visual (optic flow) cues appear to be sufficient for rheotaxis under many conditions (Lyons, 1904), and the lateral line appears to be necessary for rheotaxis at low (< ~ 1 body length (BL)/s), but not high (> ~2 BLs/s) current speeds (Montgomery et al, 1997; Baker and Montgomery, 1995a). Fish can also use tactile and vestibular cues (Lyons, 1904; Pavlov and Tjurjukov, 1993,1995). In light of the paucity of descriptive data on the spatiotemporal dynamics of rheotactic behavior under varying conditions, the relative contribution of visual and non-visual senses remains poorly understood. In this study, we videotaped (5 fps) the movements, headings and spatial position of individual giant danio (3.5 cm in standard length) in a test arena (25 cm3) at three current speeds (0, 0.8 and 2 BLs/s) and two sensory conditions (in the light with all senses enabled and in the dark with visual senses disabled). For any given flow speed, the strength of the rheotactic response ( % of headings in the upstream direction) was similar for light and dark conditions and significantly different from chance and no-flow (control) levels. However, the spatiotemporal dynamics varied substantially as a function of both flow speed and sensory condition. For example, compared to fish in the dark, fish in the light at the high flow speed maintained longer bouts (up to several minutes) of nearly perfect upstream orientations with little change in crosswise or streamwise positions. In addition, fish moved further upstream and changed positions at higher rates in the dark than in the light. Lowering the flow speed had the effect of reducing the strength of the rheotactic response in both light and dark conditions. Lower speeds in the dark also had the effect of increasing left/right tacking movements at the upstream end of the test arena, resulting in a trimodal shape in the distribution of fish headings with distinct modes at 00 (upstream) and +/-600 of upstream. By contrast, fish in the no-flow condition exhibited either random orientations (flat distributions) or 4 orienting modes that corresponded to the swimming direction of fish as they followed the 4 walls around the perimeter of the tank. Our results clearly demonstrate that the ability of fish to hold upstream orientations and stable positions is reduced at high low compared to low high current speeds and under light dark compared to dark light conditions. While the effects of flow speed may be due, in part, to speed-dependent magnitudes of various sensory cues, they are also likely influenced by the speed-dependent momentum of fish, which makes it easier for fish to stabilize position at higher swim speeds. In addition, the effects of light/dark conditions on fish movements and position during rheotaxis indicate that rheotactic control mechanisms vary according to the available sensory information.
Keywords:
control mechanisms,
fish,
Lateral Line,
multisensory,
rheotaxis,
visual
Conference:
Tenth International Congress of Neuroethology, College Park. Maryland USA, United States, 5 Aug - 10 Aug, 2012.
Presentation Type:
Poster Presentation (see alternatives below as well)
Topic:
Orientation and Navigation
Citation:
Bak-Coleman
J,
Butail
S,
Paley
D and
Coombs
S
(2012). The spatiotemporal dynamics of rheotaxis in stream-dwelling fish under different flow and sensory conditions..
Conference Abstract:
Tenth International Congress of Neuroethology.
doi: 10.3389/conf.fnbeh.2012.27.00364
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Received:
01 May 2012;
Published Online:
07 Jul 2012.
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Correspondence:
Dr. Sheryl Coombs, Bowling Green State University, Biological Sciences, Bowling Green, Ohio, 43403, United States, scoombs@bgnet.bgsu.edu