A study on cuttlefish behaviour by Macquarie University researchers has found that male cuttlefish always tell the truth when facing off with other male cuttlefish - if they appear to be about to fight, they are.
Published in Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, male cuttlefish appear to use a specific set of rules when battling with other male cuttlefish, and they perform a discrete sequence of visual displays to communicate a hierarchy, or sequence, of threats to rivals.
Lead author Dr Alex Schnell from the Department of Biological Sciences tested a hierarchical signalling hypothesis to determine the purpose of several display behaviours performed by giant Australian cuttlefish, Sepia apama, to see if a hierarchy of aggressive displays existed.
It was found that male cuttlefish show a number of aggressive behavioural displays in the lead up to a potential battle: the frontal display, shovel display, lateral display and aggressive pushing.
The study found the frontal display enables cuttlefish to assess how their opponents might respond but without too much risk of a fight occurring. But both shovel and lateral displays were produced during later stages of a contest and were strong predictors of aggressive pushing, which communicated a willingness to escalate to physical combat.
“Many animals produce multiple fighting displays during contests, but the roles of these displays were unclear. Our results provide a framework for understanding the reason animals produce different signalling displays when they fight,” said Dr Schnell.
“The findings show that male cuttlefish will display to rivals beginning with low-level aggressive displays and progressing to high-level aggressive displays. Signalling in this manner has most likely evolved so that rivals can communicate varying levels of aggression, providing opponents with a number of opportunities to make tactical decisions about whether to escalate or whether to withdraw from a contest.”
This study highlights the general nature of hierarchical signalling during animal contests.
“A range of diverse animals, including mammals and birds have been shown to also use hierarchical signalling, however these animals are separated from cuttlefish by millions of years of evolution. That such diverse species use hierarchical signalling during contests suggests that there are strong selective pressures for animals to evolve this type of behaviour,” Dr Schnell finished.
Schnell, AK., Smith, CL., Hanlon, RT. Cuttlefish perform multiple agonistic displays to communicate a hierarchy of threats, Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. July 2016. DOI 10.1007/s00265-016-2170-7
Published in Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, male cuttlefish appear to use a specific set of rules when battling with other male cuttlefish, and they perform a discrete sequence of visual displays to communicate a hierarchy, or sequence, of threats to rivals.
Lead author Dr Alex Schnell from the Department of Biological Sciences tested a hierarchical signalling hypothesis to determine the purpose of several display behaviours performed by giant Australian cuttlefish, Sepia apama, to see if a hierarchy of aggressive displays existed.
It was found that male cuttlefish show a number of aggressive behavioural displays in the lead up to a potential battle: the frontal display, shovel display, lateral display and aggressive pushing.
The study found the frontal display enables cuttlefish to assess how their opponents might respond but without too much risk of a fight occurring. But both shovel and lateral displays were produced during later stages of a contest and were strong predictors of aggressive pushing, which communicated a willingness to escalate to physical combat.
“Many animals produce multiple fighting displays during contests, but the roles of these displays were unclear. Our results provide a framework for understanding the reason animals produce different signalling displays when they fight,” said Dr Schnell.
“The findings show that male cuttlefish will display to rivals beginning with low-level aggressive displays and progressing to high-level aggressive displays. Signalling in this manner has most likely evolved so that rivals can communicate varying levels of aggression, providing opponents with a number of opportunities to make tactical decisions about whether to escalate or whether to withdraw from a contest.”
This study highlights the general nature of hierarchical signalling during animal contests.
“A range of diverse animals, including mammals and birds have been shown to also use hierarchical signalling, however these animals are separated from cuttlefish by millions of years of evolution. That such diverse species use hierarchical signalling during contests suggests that there are strong selective pressures for animals to evolve this type of behaviour,” Dr Schnell finished.
Schnell, AK., Smith, CL., Hanlon, RT. Cuttlefish perform multiple agonistic displays to communicate a hierarchy of threats, Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. July 2016. DOI 10.1007/s00265-016-2170-7
