Ecological uncertainty influences vigilance as a marker of fear

Laurence E. A. Feyten, Grant E. Brown
2018 Animal Sentience  
We expand on the factors that may shape the predictability of risk and the potential impacts on the links between vigilance and fear, primarily in aquatic prey communities. Uncertainty in predation risks has been shown to induce increased levels of neophobia among prey. As a result of this phenotypically plastic response, prey are faced with risk assessment cues that may vary widely in their reliability. We argue that decomposing predictability may provide useful insights into the relationship
more » ... etween vigilance and fear. Laurence E. A. Feyten is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Biology, Concordia University. She is examining the effects of the uncertainty of public information use on the form and intensity of phenotypically plastic neophobia in Trinidadian guppies. www.researchgate.net/profile/Laurence_Feyten Grant E. Brown is a Behavioural and Cognitive Ecologist in the Department of Biology, Concordia University, focusing on aquatic prey species. Combining laboratory and field experiments, he explores the tactics employed by prey to optimize behavioural decisions under conditions of ecological uncertainty. sites.google.com/site/brownlabhome/
doi:10.51291/2377-7478.1311 fatcat:5vlc42mqkbhsxdzqojh5u5fp7m