Role of current and prey odour in the displacement behaviour of the sea star Asterias vulgaris
We performed a factorial experiment to investigate the effects of current and prey odours (mussels) on the displacement behaviour of the sea star Asterias vulgaris (Verrill, 1866). This sea star is a common subtidal predator of sessile and slow-moving animals in the western North Atlantic Ocean. In...
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2004
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crcansciencepubl:10.1139/z04-135 2024-06-23T07:55:10+00:00 Role of current and prey odour in the displacement behaviour of the sea star Asterias vulgaris Drolet, David Himmelman, John H 2004 http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/z04-135 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/z04-135 en eng Canadian Science Publishing http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining Canadian Journal of Zoology volume 82, issue 10, page 1547-1553 ISSN 0008-4301 1480-3283 journal-article 2004 crcansciencepubl https://doi.org/10.1139/z04-135 2024-06-13T04:10:48Z We performed a factorial experiment to investigate the effects of current and prey odours (mussels) on the displacement behaviour of the sea star Asterias vulgaris (Verrill, 1866). This sea star is a common subtidal predator of sessile and slow-moving animals in the western North Atlantic Ocean. In the presence of current and prey odours in a flume, sea stars oriented themselves upstream and 70% succeeded in finding the prey. Also, the degree of orientation toward the prey increased as the sea star approached the prey. In contrast, only 5% of individuals tested in still water found the prey. Thus, for A. vulgaris the presence of macroscale flow is an essential condition for locating distant prey. Sea stars tested in current alone showed rheotactic behaviour, moving diagonally upstream. This behaviour should enhance the probability of encountering prey odour plumes in the field. Sea stars moved faster and straighter in flowing water than in still water. The slow movement of A. vulgaris in still water probably minimizes costs of foraging when there is a low chance of finding prey and the straight diagonal movement in current should ensure that the sea star continuously samples new areas, rather than resampling the same odour-free area. Article in Journal/Newspaper North Atlantic Canadian Science Publishing Canadian Journal of Zoology 82 10 1547 1553 |
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Open Polar |
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Canadian Science Publishing |
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crcansciencepubl |
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English |
description |
We performed a factorial experiment to investigate the effects of current and prey odours (mussels) on the displacement behaviour of the sea star Asterias vulgaris (Verrill, 1866). This sea star is a common subtidal predator of sessile and slow-moving animals in the western North Atlantic Ocean. In the presence of current and prey odours in a flume, sea stars oriented themselves upstream and 70% succeeded in finding the prey. Also, the degree of orientation toward the prey increased as the sea star approached the prey. In contrast, only 5% of individuals tested in still water found the prey. Thus, for A. vulgaris the presence of macroscale flow is an essential condition for locating distant prey. Sea stars tested in current alone showed rheotactic behaviour, moving diagonally upstream. This behaviour should enhance the probability of encountering prey odour plumes in the field. Sea stars moved faster and straighter in flowing water than in still water. The slow movement of A. vulgaris in still water probably minimizes costs of foraging when there is a low chance of finding prey and the straight diagonal movement in current should ensure that the sea star continuously samples new areas, rather than resampling the same odour-free area. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Drolet, David Himmelman, John H |
spellingShingle |
Drolet, David Himmelman, John H Role of current and prey odour in the displacement behaviour of the sea star Asterias vulgaris |
author_facet |
Drolet, David Himmelman, John H |
author_sort |
Drolet, David |
title |
Role of current and prey odour in the displacement behaviour of the sea star Asterias vulgaris |
title_short |
Role of current and prey odour in the displacement behaviour of the sea star Asterias vulgaris |
title_full |
Role of current and prey odour in the displacement behaviour of the sea star Asterias vulgaris |
title_fullStr |
Role of current and prey odour in the displacement behaviour of the sea star Asterias vulgaris |
title_full_unstemmed |
Role of current and prey odour in the displacement behaviour of the sea star Asterias vulgaris |
title_sort |
role of current and prey odour in the displacement behaviour of the sea star asterias vulgaris |
publisher |
Canadian Science Publishing |
publishDate |
2004 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/z04-135 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/z04-135 |
genre |
North Atlantic |
genre_facet |
North Atlantic |
op_source |
Canadian Journal of Zoology volume 82, issue 10, page 1547-1553 ISSN 0008-4301 1480-3283 |
op_rights |
http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1139/z04-135 |
container_title |
Canadian Journal of Zoology |
container_volume |
82 |
container_issue |
10 |
container_start_page |
1547 |
op_container_end_page |
1553 |
_version_ |
1802647634035343360 |