The Locomotor Responses of Male Ictalurus punctatus, the Channel Catfish, to a Pheromone Released by the Ripe Female of the Species

Abstract

Abstract The monitoring of the locomotor movements of ripe male channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) in response to a sexual pheromone released by a ripe female of the species demonstrated a very strong attraction to the source. The specific locomotor responses exhibited in different experimental conditions strongly supported the conclusion that, when the stimulus was at appropriate strength, tropotaxis was the orienting mechanism. When the pheromone was introduced at a point source, the tenacity of the male's response diminished gradually as the relative concentration of the pheromone was decreased, resulting in more widely dispersed locomotor movements which were indicative of “searching” behavior or “alarm” response. When confronted with two point sources of the pheromone of different strengths in an open field, the male was not attracted preferentially by the stronger.