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Article Dans Une Revue PLoS ONE Année : 2015

Sun-Compass Orientation in Mediterranean Fish Larvae

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Mortality is very high during the pelagic larval phase of fishes but the factors that determine recruitment success remain unclear and hard to predict. Because of their bipartite life history , larvae of coastal species have to head back to the shore at the end of their pelagic episode , to settle. These settlement-stage larvae are known to display strong sensory and motile abilities, but most work has been focused on tropical, insular environments and on the influence of coast-related cues on orientation. In this study we quantified the in situ orientation behavior of settlement-stage larvae in a temperate region, with a continuous coast and a dominant along-shore current, and inspected both coast-dependent and independent cues. We tested six species: one Pomacentridae, Chromis chromis, and five Sparidae, Boops boops, Diplodus annularis, Oblada melanura, Spicara smaris and Spondyliosoma cantharus. Over 85% of larvae were highly capable of keeping a bearing, which is comparable to the orientation abilities of tropical species. Sun-related cues influenced the precision of bearing-keeping at individual level. Three species, out of the four tested in sufficient numbers , oriented significantly relative to the sun position. These are the first in situ observations demonstrating the use of a sun compass for orientation by wild-caught settlement-stage larvae. This mechanism has potential for large-scale orientation of fish larvae globally.
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hal-01233449 , version 1 (25-11-2015)

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Robin Faillettaz, Agathe Blandin, Claire B. Paris, Philippe Koubbi, Jean-Olivier Irisson. Sun-Compass Orientation in Mediterranean Fish Larvae. PLoS ONE, 2015, 10 (8), pp.e0135213. ⟨10.1371/journal.pone.0135213⟩. ⟨hal-01233449⟩
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