Aggressive mimicry of the cleaner wrasse by Aspidontus taeniatus functions mainly for small blennies

Abstract

AbstractThe mimic blenny Aspidontus taeniatus Quoy & Gaimard is well known for its resemblance to the juvenile and adult cleaner wrasse Labroides dimidiatus (Valenciennes) in colour and shape. As various reef fishes including piscivores actively approach the cleaner wrasse to solicit cleaning by posing, two types of benefits have been suggested for this resemblance, that is, protective mimicry and aggressive mimicry. In aggressive mimicry, the mimic blenny is supposed to have considerable opportunities to bite the fin of deceived fishes when they pose, but some studies have confirmed that fin biting does not seem to be the main feeding tactic in the blenny in nature. Here, we examined the feeding tactics including fin biting by the mimic blenny in relation to its body size in a field observational survey in the coral reefs of Sesoko Island, Okinawa, Japan. The blenny was observed feeding mainly on four food items: the tentacles of Christmas tree worms, the mantle edges of boring clams, the demersal eggs in damselfishes’ nests and the fins of fishes. The feeding frequency by fin biting significantly decreased with body size, while that by egg predation significantly increased with body size of the blenny. When predating on eggs, the blenny was vigorously attacked by egg‐guarding fish, but often succeeded in raiding their nests by forming a feeding group. When feeding by fin biting, the blenny attacked prey fish without performing any cleaning. The ratio of fin biting was considerably higher in small‐sized blennies, suggesting reliance on this feeding tactic because of a difficulty in conducting a risky egg predation. Thus, our results suggest that the mimic blenny utilizes aggressive mimicry only when it is small as an alternative feeding tactic.