interaction among species predator prey

Protective resemblance / crypsis

resemblance of an animal to its env → blend w substrate and become hidden from enemies

Filefish

• prey on coral polyps

• hide in coral branches at night

• take on smell of coral to camouflage themselves

Cuttlefish

use chromatophores and papillae to change appearance

mimicry

diff colour variation, depending on which angel fish is common in the area

prey traits

• crypsis

• mimicry

• active defense

• activity pattern

• schooling

• nutritional composition

• size

cryptobenthic reef fishes

• adult fishes typically <5cm

• visually/behaviorally cryptic

• live near / within seabed

• 17 fams

• high mass-specific metabolic rate

• high mortality rates

Archer fish

Famous for their unique ability to shoot jets of water to knock insects off overhanging plants into the water for feeding.

trumpetfish behavioral crypsis

hunt for cryptobenthic fishes

→ use large herbivores as camouflage

Hamlets

mimic harmless damselfish to get closer to prey

Batesian mimicry

a harmless organism mimicking a toxic one

trophic cascades

ecological phenomenon triggered by the addition or removal of top predators and involving reciprocal changes in the relative populations of predator and prey through a food chain, which often results in dramatic changes in ecosystem structure and nutrient cycling.