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The selective cleaning behaviour of juvenile blue-headed wrasse (Thalassoma bifasciatum) in the Caribbean.
- Source :
-
Behavioural Processes . Feb2018, Vol. 147, p5-12. 8p. - Publication Year :
- 2018
-
Abstract
- Through the removal of parasites, dead skin and mucus from the bodies of visiting reef fish (clients), cleaner fish have a significant ecosystem function in the ecology of coral reefs. Cleaners gain nutrition from these interactions and through offering a ‘service’ are afforded protection from predators. Given these benefits, it is unclear why more fish do not engage in cleaning, and why part-time cleaning strategies exist. On coral reefs, dedicated species clean throughout their life, whereas some species are facultative, employing opportunistic and/or temporary cleaning strategies. Here, we investigate the cleaning behaviour of a facultative species to assess the relative importance of this interaction to the cleaner. Using a combination of focal and event sampling from a coral reef in Tobago, we show that cleaning is not an essential food source for facultative juvenile blue-headed wrasse ( Thalassoma bifasciatum ), as cleaning rate was unrelated to their foraging rate on the substrate. These wrasse displayed two cleaning strategies: stationary versus wandering cleaning, with cleaning frequency being highest for stationary cleaners. A specific cleaning location facilitated increased cleaning frequency, and wrasse cleaning rate decreased as cleaner or client abundance increased. We also compared juvenile blue-headed wrasse cleaning behaviour to a resident dedicated cleaner, the sharknose goby ( Elacatinus evelynae ), and showed that, in comparison, juvenile wrasse clean a narrower client range, predominately cleaning three species of gregarious free-ranging surgeonfish ( Acanthurus spp.). The wrasse, however, frequently approached these clients without cleaning, which suggests that their selective cleaning strategy may be driven by the acquisition of a particular parasitic food source. Juvenile blue-headed wrasse are generalist foragers, and may thus be limited in their cleaning behaviour by their nutritional requirements, the availability of a suitable cleaning site, and fish density, which ultimately means that they do not adopt more dedicated cleaning roles within the reef community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- *CLEANER fishes
*THALASSOMA
*MARINE organisms
*ECOSYSTEMS
*CORAL reefs & islands
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 03766357
- Volume :
- 147
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Behavioural Processes
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 127137413
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beproc.2017.12.005