Warmer temperatures reduce the costs of inducible defences in the marine toad, Rhinella marinus.

Many of the far-reaching impacts of climate change on ecosystem function will be due to alterations in species interactions. However, our understanding of the effects of temperature on the dynamics of interactions between species is largely inadequate. Inducible defences persist in prey populations because defensive traits increase survival in the presence of predators but are costly when they are absent.

Social control of unreliable signals of strength in male but not female crayfish, Cherax destructor.

The maintenance of unreliable signals within animal populations remains a highly controversial subject in studies of animal communication. Crustaceans are an ideal group for studying unreliable signals of strength because their chela muscles are cryptically concealed beneath an exoskeleton, making it difficult for competitors to visually assess an opponent's strength. In this study, we examined the importance of social avenues for mediating the possible advantages gained by unreliable signals of strength in crustaceans.

Reduced size and starvation resistance in adult mosquitoes, Aedes notoscriptus, exposed to predation cues as larvae.

1. Many prey organisms exhibit adaptive phenotypic plasticity in life-history traits that facilitate a better chance of survival in the presence of predators. The evolution of such plastic traits requires that the defensive phenotype incurs a cost in the absence of predation.