title: A complex mode of aggressive mimicry in a scale-eating cichlid fish.
abstract: Aggressive mimicry is an adaptive tactic of parasitic or predatory species that closely resemble inoffensive models in order to increase fitness via predatory gains. Although similarity of distantly related species is often intuitively implicated with mimicry, the exact mechanisms and evolutionary causes remain elusive in many cases. Here, we report a complex aggressive mimicry strategy in Plecodus straeleni, a scale-eating cichlid fish from Lake Tanganyika, which imitates two other cichlid species. Employing targeted sequencing on ingested scales, we show that P. straeleni does not preferentially parasitize its models but—contrary to prevailing assumptions—targets a variety of co-occurring dissimilar looking fish species. Combined with tests for visual resemblance and visual modelling from a prey perspective, our results suggest that complex interactions among different cichlid species are involved in this mimicry system.
authors.affiliation: Zoological Institute, University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Basel 4051, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Nicolas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Boileau
authors.affiliation: Zoological Institute, University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Basel 4051, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Fabio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Cortesi
authors.affiliation: Zoological Institute, University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Basel 4051, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Bernd
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Egger
authors.affiliation: Zoological Institute, University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Basel 4051, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Moritz
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Muschick
authors.affiliation: Zoological Institute, University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Basel 4051, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Adrian
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Indermaur
authors.affiliation: Zoological Institute, University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Basel 4051, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Anya
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Theis
authors.affiliation: Zoological Institute, University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Basel 4051, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Heinz H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Büscher
authors.affiliation: Zoological Institute, University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Basel 4051, Switzerland walter.salzburger@unibas.ch.
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Salzburger
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000067558:Biological Mimicry; D023681:Cichlids / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000235:genetics; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D010858:Pigmentation / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D011235:Predatory Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial
keywords: Lake Tanganyika; Plecodus straeleni; aggressive mimicry; colour vision; lepidophagy; molecular diet analysis