![]() ![]() This learning can occur through direct experience with a predator (e.g., an unsuccessful strike) and also through conditioning events, which can be facilitated using chemical alarm odours in aquatic taxa. Although some species have demonstrated innate recognition of predators ( Hawkins, Magurran & Armstrong, 2004), for the majority, learning plays an important role in the identification of relevant threats ( Crane & Ferrari, 2013). In order to increase their chance of survival, individuals need to be able to recognise predatory threats, and react in a manner that matches the level of risk experienced ( Helfman, 1989). Furthermore, the types of predators that pose threats to individuals also change with habitat and life history stage ( Lönnstedt & McCormick, 2011). Antipredator behaviours are often energetically costly and detract from other fitness-promoting activities, like foraging ( Werner & Anholt, 1993). ![]() Predation is a major driving force in population and community dynamics ( Pettorelli et al., 2011). This phenomenon could influence predator-induced mortality rates and enable populations to adaptively respond to fluctuations in predator composition and environmental changes. This is the first time transgenerational recognition of a specific predator has been confirmed in any species. This increased reaction to a parentally known predator odour suggests that predator-treated parents passed down relevant threat information to their offspring, via parental effects. Offspring of parents assigned to the predator treatment exhibited a mean increase in heart rate two times greater than that of offspring from parents in herbivore or control treatments. Breeding pairs of damselfish ( Acanthochromis polyacanthus) were subjected to one of three olfactory and visual treatments (predator, herbivore, or control), and their developing embryos were subsequently exposed to five different chemosensory cues. Research suggests that parental exposure to increased predatory threats can affect the development, behaviour, and ultimately, success of their offspring. Recognition of predators can be innate, or learned, and can help increase the chance of survival. In highly biodiverse systems, such as coral reefs, prey species are faced with predatory threats from numerous species.
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