Behavioral patterns in the early-stage antipredator response change after tail autotomy in adult wall lizards.

Abstract

Autotomy is a drastic antipredator defense consisting of the voluntary shedding of a body part to escape from the predators. The loss of a body part may impair locomotion, feeding or mating, so animals may face a higher predation risk shortly after autotomy. Thus, until regeneration is completed, prey may adjust their behavior to reduce predation risk, and this could involve secondary costs. We assessed the effect of tail loss on the antipredator behavior of wall lizards (Podarcis muralis), comparing the behavior of tailed and tailless individuals exposed to a predatory snake (Coronella austriaca) scent, under controlled experimental conditions. Tailless lizards spent significantly more time performing behaviors with antipredatory significance (e.g., moving slowly), whereas tailed individuals performed exploratory walking for significantly more time. Moreover, tailless lizards spent more time basking, which probably increases the effectiveness of their cryptic design and decreases detection by predators. Lizards intensified the tongue flick rates when exposed to a pungent control or snake scents, as compared to their response to a neutral control. Besides, both tailed and tailless lizards intensified some aspects of their antipredator behavior (walking slowly and avoiding refuge use) when exposed to snake scent, which indicates discrimination of the smell of predatory snakes. Lizards decreased refuge use when exposed to predator scents, probably because the refuges are evaluated as unsafe due to a high concentration of snake scents. To conclude, our experiments showed that, after losing their tails, wall lizards modify their behavior in a way that likely minimizes predation risk.