Acute exposure to 17α-ethinylestradiol disrupts audience effect on male–female interactions in Betta splendens

Abstract

Endocrine disrupting chemicals can negatively impact the morphology and behavior of organisms inhabiting polluted waters. Male-typical behaviors are often reduced after exposure, suggesting that exposure may have population-level effects. One way in which exposure may exert population-level effects is by interfering with communication within a network of individuals. Acute exposure to the estrogen mimic 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2) disrupts the ability of male Siamese fighting fish, Betta splendens, to modify their behavior during male–male interactions when an audience is present. However, it is unknown whether audience effects during male–female interactions may be similarly altered. To examine this, male–female pairs that were given an acute exposure to EE2 or remained unexposed interacted in the presence of a female, male, or no audience. Sex differences were found between unexposed males and females. More interactant-directed gill flaring was displayed by control males when a male audience was present while control females performed this behavior more in the presence of an audience, regardless of sex. Both males and females in the control group performed more interactant-directed tail beats in the presence of a female audience. EE2 exposure made all audience effects disappear as treated males and females did not differ in their responses between audience types. These results demonstrate that acute exposure to EE2 may disrupt behavioral adjustments to audience type within a social network. This disruption may, in turn, influence population dynamics in this species as both males and females use information obtained from observing interactions in later encounters with the observed individuals.