
Figure
5. In these experiments we examined the possibility that Acartia
spp. are responding to the presence of chemical exudates (or kairomones)
of zooplanktivorous fish (threespine sticklebacks, Gasterosteus aculeatus).
Recent studies have shown several species of zooplankton to respond to
predator exudates, including cladocerans (Dodson, 1988; Ringelberg, 1991a;1991b;
Dawidowicz and Loose, 1992; De Meester, 1993; Loose, 1993; Loose et al.,
1993), chaoborid larvae (Dawidowicz et al., 1990; Tjossem, 1990; Dawidowicz,
1993), brine shrimp larvae (Forward and Hettler, 1992; Forward and Rittschof,
1993) and freshwater copepods (Neill, 1990; 1992). Our past work (Bollens
and Frost 1989, Bollens et al. 1994, 1995), however, implicated visual
or mechanical cues, not chemical exudates, as responsible for triggering
changes in vertical distribution and migration in Acartia. In our
more recent experiments utilizing this new experimental system (Fig.
5), we found no differences in the vertical distribution of Acartia
spp. in the presence or absence of caged fish. These results corroborate
our earlier findings on Acartia.