Predation Risk Perception, Food Density and Conspecific Cues Shape Foraging Decisions in a Tropical Lizard

摘要: When foraging, animals can maximize their fitness if they are able to tailor foraging decisions current environmental conditions. making decisions, individuals need assess the benefits of while accounting for potential risks being captured by a predator. However, whether and how different factors interact shape these is not yet well understood, especially in individual foragers. Here we present standardized set manipulative field experiments form assays tropical lizard Anolis cristatellus Puerto Rico. We presented male lizards with opportunities test presence conspecifics, predation-risk perception, abundance food, interactions among determines outcome decisions. In Experiment 1, anoles foraged faster when food was scarce other conspecifics were near feeding tray, took longer feed abundant no present. These results suggest that result complex process which predation risk using information from conspecific taking into account abundance. 2, simulated increase (i.e., distance tray) confirmed relevance perception showing use available perches strongly correlated latency feed. found Rican crested integrate instantaneous ecological about abundance, activity risk, adjust behavior accordingly.