TY - JOUR

T1 - Personality-dependent inter- and intraspecific foraging competition in the invasive round goby, Neogobius melanostomus

AU - Ericsson, Philip

AU - Persson, Anders

AU - Behrens, Jane W.

AU - Brodin, Tomas

AU - Hirsch, Philipp Emanuel

AU - Sundelin, Anna

AU - van Deurs, Mikael

AU - von Friesen, Lisa W.

AU - Nilsson, P. Anders

PY - 2021

Y1 - 2021

N2 - This study examines the impact of boldness on foraging competition of the highly invasive round goby Neogobius melanostomus Pallas 1815. Individual risk tolerance, or boldness, was measured as the time to resume movement after a simulated predation strike. Fish that resumed movement faster were categorized as “bold,” fish that took more time to resume movement were categorized as “shy” and those that fell in between these two categories were determined to have “intermediate” boldness. Competitive impacts of boldness in N. melanostomus were determined in a laboratory foraging experiment in which interspecific (juvenile Atlantic cod Gadus morhua Linnaeus 1758) and intraspecific (intermediate N. melanostomus) individuals were exposed to either bold or shy N. melanostomus competitors. G. morhua consumed fewer prey when competing with bold N. melanostomus than when competing with shy N. melanostomus, whereas intermediately bold N. melanostomus foraging was not affected by competitor boldness. Bold and shy N. melanostomus consumed similar amounts of prey, and the number of interactions between paired fish did not vary depending on the personality of N. melanostomus individuals. Therefore, intraspecific foraging competition was not found to be personality dependent. This study provides evidence that individual differences in boldness can mediate competitive interactions in N. melanostomus; nonetheless, results also show that competition is also governed by other mechanisms that require further study.

AB - This study examines the impact of boldness on foraging competition of the highly invasive round goby Neogobius melanostomus Pallas 1815. Individual risk tolerance, or boldness, was measured as the time to resume movement after a simulated predation strike. Fish that resumed movement faster were categorized as “bold,” fish that took more time to resume movement were categorized as “shy” and those that fell in between these two categories were determined to have “intermediate” boldness. Competitive impacts of boldness in N. melanostomus were determined in a laboratory foraging experiment in which interspecific (juvenile Atlantic cod Gadus morhua Linnaeus 1758) and intraspecific (intermediate N. melanostomus) individuals were exposed to either bold or shy N. melanostomus competitors. G. morhua consumed fewer prey when competing with bold N. melanostomus than when competing with shy N. melanostomus, whereas intermediately bold N. melanostomus foraging was not affected by competitor boldness. Bold and shy N. melanostomus consumed similar amounts of prey, and the number of interactions between paired fish did not vary depending on the personality of N. melanostomus individuals. Therefore, intraspecific foraging competition was not found to be personality dependent. This study provides evidence that individual differences in boldness can mediate competitive interactions in N. melanostomus; nonetheless, results also show that competition is also governed by other mechanisms that require further study.

KW - Behavioural syndrome

KW - Boldness

KW - Competition

KW - Neogobius melanostomus

KW - Personality

U2 - 10.1111/jfb.14652

DO - 10.1111/jfb.14652

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 33345296

AN - SCOPUS:85099422072

VL - 98

SP - 1234

EP - 1241

JO - Journal of Fish Biology

JF - Journal of Fish Biology

SN - 0022-1112

IS - 5

ER -