Predation has critical fitness consequences for organisms, and antipredator behaviors are generally under strong selection. In the Eastern mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki, individuals commonly avoid predators, but at times may approach and "inspect" predators. We evaluated how social dynamics in mosquitofish influence their behavioral responses to the presence of a predator - the largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides. We hypothesized we would observe increased shoaling and predator inspection, typical antipredator responses in mosquitofish. We also predicted that less connected individuals in groups would be more likely to be preyed upon by the bass. To test this, we exposed each group to the bass, first in a confined area of the arena to monitor the social changes in response to the predator’s scent. The bass was then released to swim freely to observe the survival of each fish as they acted as prey.
