Increased Levels of Perceived Competition Decrease Juvenile Kin-Shoaling Preferences in a Cichlid Fish.

Inclusive fitness theory predicts that individuals can increase their indirect fitness by grouping with kin. However, kin grouping also increases competition between kin, which potentially outweighs its benefits. The level of kin competition is contingent on environmental conditions and thus highly variable.

Impact of social rearing-environment on performance in a complex maze in females of a cichlid fish.

Spatial orientation is an important skill as it improves, for example, foraging, localisation of recourses, predator avoidance or navigation. Habitat complexity positively affects spatial abilities in various fish species with a more complex environment promoting learning ability. However, to what extent a complex social environment affects cognitive abilities in fishes has received less attention.

Kinship reinforces cooperative predator inspection in a cichlid fish.

Kin selection theory predicts that cooperation is facilitated between genetic relatives, as by cooperating with kin an individual might increase its inclusive fitness. Although numerous theoretical papers support Hamilton's inclusive fitness theory, experimental evidence is still underrepresented, in particular in noncooperative breeders. Cooperative predator inspection is one of the most intriguing antipredator strategies, as it implies high costs on inspectors.

Social deprivation affects cooperative predator inspection in a cichlid fish.

The social environment individuals are exposed to during ontogeny shapes social skills and social competence in group-living animals. Consequently, social deprivation has serious effects on behaviour and development in animals but little is known about its impact on cooperation. In this study, we examined the effect of social environment on cooperative predator inspection.

Growth and social behavior in a cichlid fish are affected by social rearing environment and kinship.

Living in groups is a widespread phenomenon in many animal taxa. The reduction of predation risk is thought to be an important cause for the formation of groups. Consequently, grouping behavior is particularly pronounced during vulnerable life stages, i.