Presentation Details
| How does mental state impact mass behavior in larval zebrafish? William J Botta, Bansari Mistry, Kristen E Severi, Simon Garnier. New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ, USA |
Abstract
Mass behavior, the rapid adoption of similar behavior by individuals within a group, is a common strategy for behavioral coordination in many species such as schooling fish and flocking birds. Mental states can influence an animal’s response to its social environment, with previous studies suggesting animals may use conspecifics’ mental states to determine their own behavior. Our previous work has suggested that zebrafish larvae in conditions that induce anxiety-like behavior, such as darkness and high density, exhibit more spontaneous mass swimming behavior. Therefore we hypothesized that anxiety may be a driver of this spontaneous behavior. We tested the impact of different pharmaceutically-induced mental states on this mass swimming behavior while in dense groups. Optimal doses of caffeine and fluoxetine were experimentally determined in order to induce anxiety-like or calm behavior respectively in individual larvae. These doses were then administered to groups of larvae to examine the effects of anxiety on mass swimming behavior. Surprisingly, caffeine reduced the occurrence of mass swimming behavior.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author.
Content Locked. Log into a registered attendee account to access this presentation.