Overcoming evolutionary history: conditioning the endangered Barrens topminnow to avoid predation by the invasive Western mosquitofish

Organisms use cues to assess their environment; however, environmental changes can create a mismatch between cues and the conditions with which they were historically associated. An evolutionary trap is when past selection pressures shaped cue-response systems that were once adaptive for an organism but no longer are. Invasive species are one cause of evolutionary traps, and the Barrens Topminnow (BTM), Fundulus julisia serves as an example of an imperiled species trapped by the introduction of an invasive predator: the Western Mosquitofish (WMF), Gambusia affinis. This study used conditioning to help the BTM escape its evolutionary trap, and data showed that conditioned fish responded significantly different to the presentation of WMF compared to control fish, and sampling following release of BTMs resulted recapturing exclusively conditioned individuals. These results suggest that conditioning may encourage BTM recognition of WMF as a predator and increase long-term survival of the BTM.

Grantor dc:publisher

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Author dc:creator

• Farnsley, Sarah

Contributors dc:contributor

• Klug, Hope
• Aborn, David; Kuhajda, Bernard
• College of Arts and Sciences

• Barrens topminnow
• Western mosquitofish

Licence

• https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en

Language dc:language

English, eng

Repository record dc:identifier

https://scholar.utc.edu/theses/129

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholar.utc.edu:theses-1129