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MEPS
Marine Ecology Progress Series

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MEPS 165:137-144 (1998)  -  doi:10.3354/meps165137

Behavioural responses to chemical cues of predation risk in a three-trophic-level Baltic Sea food chain

Gunilla Ejdung*

Department of Zoology and Department of Systems Ecology**, Stockholm University, S-10691 Stockholm, Sweden
*E-mail:
**Present address

Behavioural responses of 2 Baltic benthic crustaceans to chemical substances from predators were studied using infrared video-recording in the laboratory. This is the first study of behavioural responses to species-specific chemical substances in a 3-trophic-level food chain. Exposure to chemical substances from a predatory fish, the short-horned sculpin Myoxocephalus scorpius (L.), caused the isopod Saduria entomon (L.) to remain buried in the sediment most of the time and decreased its foraging success on the amphipod Monoporeia affinis (Lindström). M. affinis decreased its swimming activity when exposed to water from S. entomon feeding on M. affinis, whereas water from unfed S. entomon had no such effect.


Chemical cues · Three-trophic-level food chain · Monoporeia affinis · Saduria entomon · Fish · Benthos · Behaviour · Baltic Sea


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