Context-dependent effects of complex environments on behavioral plasticity

Abstract

Complex environments exert variable effects on feeding and boldness behaviors. We manipulated 2 environmental factors that often vary simultaneously in nature (temperature and food availability) in corn snakes. These 2 factors independently affected feeding behavior, but they interacted to influence boldness (risk taking in an open arena). Examining individual environmental factors such as temperature or food availability may be an overly simplistic approach to understanding how animals respond to rapidly changing environments.