Ocean acidification does not impair predator recognition but increases juvenile growth in a temperate wrasse off CO2seeps

Fish behavioural effects under Ocean Acidification (OA) rely on changes expected to occur in brain function, which can be reversed by gabazine, a GABA-A antagonist. Here, using standard two-channel choice flume, we assessed OA effects on the predator recognition ability of both gabazine-treated and...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine Environmental Research
Main Authors: Cattano, C., Calò, A., Di Franco, A., Firmamento, R., Quattrocchi, F., Sdiri, K., Guidetti, P., Milazzo, M.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Elsevier Ltd 2017
Subjects:
Carbon dioxide
CO2vent
Effects-fish
Global change
pH
Risk assessment
Settlement
Symphodus ocellatu
Animal
Hydrogen-Ion Concentration
Mediterranean Sea
Perciforme
Predatory Behavior
Seawater
Environmental Monitoring
Stress
Physiological
Oceanography
Aquatic Science
Pollution
Settore BIO/07 - Ecologia
Ocean acidification
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10447/263151
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2017.10.013
Description
Summary:Fish behavioural effects under Ocean Acidification (OA) rely on changes expected to occur in brain function, which can be reversed by gabazine, a GABA-A antagonist. Here, using standard two-channel choice flume, we assessed OA effects on the predator recognition ability of both gabazine-treated and -untreated Symphodus ocellatus post-settlers living off CO2seeps in the Mediterranean Sea. To estimate the post-settlers background predation risk we evaluated the density of their predator in the wild and through otolith aging techniques we assessed their post-settlement growth. Results showed that: 1) post-settlers predator recognition was unaffected under OA; 2) post-settlers living in elevated CO2were on average 15% bigger in size than those from ambient conditions. Our results support fish behavioural tolerance to OA, potentially mediated by pre-exposure to high-risk predation levels, and speculate that by increasing body size, juvenile fish might more efficiently avoid their predators.

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