Félicie Dhellemmes

Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries | IGB · Department of Biology and Ecology of Fishes

Personality traits (i.e. consistent individual differences in behaviour) often covary, forming behavioural syndromes. Such associations, if driven by an underlying proximate mechanism, could limit the independent evolution of each behaviour. In contrast, a behavioural syndrome may be the result of selection favouring the behavioural correlation und...

1. Consistent individual differences in behaviour (i.e. personality) can be explained in an evolutionary context if they are favoured by life history trade-offs as conceptualized in the pace-of-life syndrome (POLS) hypothesis. Theory predicts that faster-growing individuals suffer higher mortality and that this trade-off is mediated through explora...

Billfishes are well-known for their distinctive elongated rostra, a.k.a. bills. The functional significance of billfish rostra has been frequently discussed and the recent discovery of an oil gland (glandula oleofera) at the base of the rostrum in swordfish, Xiphias gladius , has added an interesting facet to this discussion regarding the potential...

In recent years, the incorporation of lower levels of organization to the understanding of population ecology, has led to an increase in interest for animal personality and individual foraging specialization. Despite these topics investigating comparable phenomena, that is, individual consistency in behaviour and in food resource use respectively,...

Many terrestrial group-hunters cooperate to kill prey but then compete for their share with dominance being a strong predictor of prey division. In contrast, little is known about prey division in group-hunting marine predators that predominately attack small, evasive prey (e.g. fish schools). We identified individual striped marlin (Kajikia audax)...

1. Geolocating aquatic animals with acoustic tags has been ongoing for decades, relying on the detection of acoustic signals at multiple receivers with known positions to calculate a 2D or 3D position, and ultimately recreate the path of an aquatic animal from detections at fixed stations. 2. This method of underwater geolocation is evolving with n...

We synthesize a large body of literature involving peer-reviewed work, grey literature and novel data analyses about the small-scale northern pike (Esox lucius) fishery in lagoon ecosystems in the southern Baltic Sea. Based on our comprehensive review that synthesizes ecological as well as social, economic and governance-related literature we deriv...

Acoustic telemetry is a popular and cost-efficient method for tracking the movements of animals in the aquatic ecosystem. But data acquired via acoustic telemetry often contains spurious detections that must be identified and excluded by researchers to ensure valid results. Such data management is difficult as the amount of data collected often sur...

Pike (Esox lucius) populations across the central and southern Baltic Sea have undergone declines in recent decades. The underlying reasons are not fully understood but the loss of access to freshwater habitats in tributaries to brackish lagoons may be one important factor in some localities. Our objective was to synthesize evidence for the presenc...

The open ocean offers a suite of ecological conditions promoting the occurrence of multi-species predator aggregations. These mixed predator aggregations typically hunt large groups of relatively small and highly cohesive prey. However, the mechanisms and functions of these mixed predator aggregations are largely unknown. Even basic knowledge of wh...

Angeln in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern 01/2022, 18-19. The entire issue is freely available online: https://www.lav-mv.de/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Blinker_LAV_MV_2023_01.pdf

The northern pike (Esox lucius) has been intensively studied in terms of behaviour due to its relevance to fisheries and its importance for structuring fish communities in freshwater ecosystems. However, little is known about the behaviour of coastal pike living in brackish lagoons. Freshwater ecosystems, particularly lakes and small rivers, are us...

In behavioural ecology, interest in the study of animal personality (i.e. consistent individual differences in behaviour) has increased in the last two decades as it is believed to have important ecological and evolutionary consequences. These consequences are especially pronounced when personality covaries with other behaviours (i.e. behavioural s...

Understanding space use and movement behavior can benefit conservation and management of species by identifying areas of high importance. However, this can be challenging for highly mobile species, especially those which use a wide range of habitats across ontogeny. The Bahamas is hypothesized to be an important area for tiger sharks, but the utili...

Learning is a process that allows animals to develop adaptive behavioural responses to novel situations within an individual's lifetime. The simplest form of learning, habituation, acts a fundamental filter mechanism, which allows animals to ignore irrelevant recurring stimuli, thereby freeing up fitness-related resources, such as time and energy,...

Abundances of large sharks are reported to have declined worldwide, and in response various levels of fisheries management and conservation efforts have been established. For example, Marine Protected Areas have been suggested as means to protect large expanses of ocean from fishing and other industrial activities (e.g., habitat destruction), and i...

Recent comparative studies of billfishes (Istiophoridae and Xiphiidae) have provided evidence of differences in the form and function of the rostra (bill) among species. Here, we report the discovery of a new structure, lacuna rostralis, on the rostra of sailfish Istiophorus platypterus, which is absent on the rostra of swordfish Xiphias gladius, s...

In behavioural ecology, interest in the study of animal personality (i.e. consistent individual differences in behaviour across time and/or context) has increased in the last two decades as it is believed to have important ecological and evolutionary consequences. These consequences are especially pronounced when a behaviour that is consistent cova...

Our study assessed the influence of leader type (monofilament vs stainless steel cable) and gear strength (i.e., hook size and leader thickness) on species composition, catch rates, and size distribution of sharks captured in a fisheries independent longline survey near Bimini, The Bahamas. A total of 28 surveys were conducted, resulting in 50,400...

In recent years, the incorporation of lower levels of organization to the understanding of population ecology, has led to an increase in interest for animal personality and individual foraging specialization. Despite these topics investigating comparable phenomena, that is, individual consistency in behaviour and in food resource use respectively,...

Wildlife provisioning is popular, economically valuable, and a rapidly growing part of marine tourism, with great potential to benefit conservation. However, it remains controversial due to limited understanding of its implications on the behavior and ecology of target species. In this study, we modeled how various abiotic and biotic factors influe...

Tourism-related feeding of wildlife can result in detrimental, human-induced changes to the spatial distribution, social behaviour and health of target species. The feeding of sharks as part of shark-viewing activities has become increasingly popular in recent years to ensure reliable and consistent encounters. A common limitation in determining ho...

1) Consistent individual differences in behaviour (i.e. personality) can be explained in an evolutionary context if they are favoured by life-history trade-offs as conceptualized in the pace-of-life syndrome (POLS) hypothesis. Theory predicts that faster growing individuals suffer higher mortality and that this trade-off is mediated through explora...

Linking morphological differences in foraging adaptations to prey choice and feeding strategies has provided major evolutionary insights across taxa. Here, we combine behavioural and morphological approaches to explore and compare the role of the rostrum (bill) and micro-teeth in the feeding behaviour of sailfish (Istiophorus platypterus) and strip...

Because of its impact on our understanding of evolution and ecology, animal personality has become an important area of research within behavioral ecology. Indeed, individual variation is no longer considered random noise but as a consistent phenomenon that impacts animal biology. However, research on animal personality and individual differences h...

This study considers novel areas rarely explored, focusing on the link between individual movement ecology in natural conditions and personality traits in juveniles of a top-predator species of elasmobranch. The main aim is to provide an individual-based perspective to better apprehend the relationship between an intrinsic decision-making mechanism...

In recent years, information on animal behavioral traits and consistent individual differences within species and/or populations has been expanding; yet, several aspects, such as the influence of personality on wild behavior, have not been addressed. This study focuses on the influence of personality on the natural space utilization and movement me...

Personality differences are widespread throughout the animal kingdom and can have important ecological and evolutionary consequences. Despite a rapidly increasing body of literature, large (marine) vertebrates remain underrepresented in personality research. Given their unique life history traits (e.g. slow growth rate, slow reproduction rate, long...