Abstract
During focal observations carried out in the Olho d’Água River, upper Paraguay River basin, Brazil, we registered the defensive behaviour of one pair of Crenicichla lepidota attempting to protect their offspring from conspecific and non-specific predators. Adults exhibited substrate-guarding behaviour and displayed primary and secondary anti-predation mechanisms. The primary mechanisms (e.g., fin flicking and flaring, gill extending) were ineffective against conspecific predators or against other species. Secondary mechanisms included charging would-be predators of the offspring, and this tactic was successful against non-specifics. This record confirms, in the wild, agonistic behaviour as an effective secondary defence mechanism used in parental care in Crenicichla lepidota.
Highlights
Cichlidae is a diverse and species-rich family of fish, with more than 1,700 species and wide distribution across the Neotropics, Africa, and Asia (Chakrabarty, 2004; Fricke et al, 2020)
We describe behaviours of Crenicichla lepidota defending offspring against potential predators in the wild
The parents instantly exhibited lateral threat-display, displaying the “flickering of fins” (Fig. 1B) thirteen times in an attempt to ward off predators. This was successful in some cases, but in one of the instances that this strategy was applied against another Crenicichla lepidota individual, the aggressor continued the attacks (Fig. 1C)
Summary
Cichlidae is a diverse and species-rich family of fish, with more than 1,700 species and wide distribution across the Neotropics, Africa, and Asia (Chakrabarty, 2004; Fricke et al, 2020) They are known for their extensive repertoire of distinct parental care behaviours, including both ‘substrate guarding’ and mouthbrooding behaviours. While substrate guarding is thought to be an ancestral behaviour, mouth brooding is believed to have evolved independently several times within the cichlid lineage (Goodwin et al, 1998). These two main parental care modes are found among species exhibiting biparental or uniparental strategies (Wisenden & Keenleyside, 1995; Goodwin et al, 1998). Within Neotropical cichlids, the genus Crenicichla Heckel, 1840 is the second most diverse, with almost 100 valid species (Lucena, 2007; Kullander & Varella, 2015; Burress et al, 2017)
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