Abstract
Behavioural types (i.e., personalities or temperament) are defined as among individual differences in behavioural traits that are consistent over time and ecological contexts. Behavioural types are widespread in nature and play a relevant role in many ecological and evolutionary processes. In this work, we studied for the first time the consistency of individual aggressiveness in the pearly razorfish, Xyrichtys novacula, using a mirror test: a classic method to define aggressive behavioural types. The experiments were carried out in semi-natural behavioural arenas and monitored through a novel Raspberry Pi-based recording system. The experimental set up allowed us to obtain repeated measures of individual aggressivity scores during four consecutive days. The decomposition of the phenotypic variance revealed a significant repeatability score (R) of 0.57 [0.44–0.60], suggesting high predictability of individual behavioural variation and the existence of different behavioural types. Aggressive behavioural types emerged irrespective of body size, sex and the internal condition of the individual. Razorfishes are a ubiquitous group of fish species that occupy sedimentary habitats in most shallow waters of temperate and tropical seas. These species are known for forming strong social structures and playing a relevant role in ecosystem functioning. Therefore, our work provides novel insight into an individual behavioural component that may play a role in poorly known ecological and evolutionary processes occurring in this species.
Highlights
Like humans, animals often behave in a way that distinguishes them from other members of their species of the same sex and age (Gosling, 2001)
We provide a new experimental protocol that allows for the monitoring of individual razorfish under laboratory conditions without disturbances that can be used for behavioural quantification in other species
To use a single aggressiveness score in the model, we carried out a Principal Component Analysis (PCA) with the three behavioural metrics at their original scale.We considered the values of the Principal Component 1 (PC1) as aggressiveness score for fitting the Generalised Linear Mixed Model (GLMM) (Fig. 3)
Summary
Animals often behave in a way that distinguishes them from other members of their species of the same sex and age (Gosling, 2001). When such behavioural differences are consistent over time and ecological contexts, they can be referred to as behavioural types, known as personalities or temperament (Réale et al, 2007). Behavioural types and syndromes are widespread across taxa (Réale et al, 2007). Behavioural types are described along five major axes: boldness-shyness, exploration-avoidance, aggressiveness, sociability and activity (reviewed in Réale et al, 2007; Conrad et al, 2011). The aggressiveness axis has received major attention due to its relationship with a multitude of ecological processes
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