Relationship between Feeding Behavior and

Habitat

Of the Opsanus Beta

as an indicator of adaptability

Darius HollisDavis Johnson

TaxonomyCommon Name- Gulf

Toadfish/Orange ToadfishOrder - BatrachoidiformesFamily - BatrachoididaeGenus - OpsanusSpecies - beta

Opsanus Beta

• Head is large, wide, flattened• Lower jaw extending beyond its upper jaw.• Mouth is wide and has many sharp teeth• Males have specialized swim bladder muscles that are used

to produce mating calls.• Darkest, more consistent colored areas are on the head and

body.• Reaches a maximum length of 12.8 inches (Bester, 2011)

Biology

• Reproduction:o Best suited temperatures are around 67ºFo Males attract females with long calls (up to 15 minutes)

of toad-like sounds produced by the swim bladder. (Bester 2011)

o The female will lay her sticky eggs on top of the nest.o The female normally leaves and the male stays to protect

the eggso Eggs will hatch after 1 month

Behavior

Wild: Seagrass beds, sandy and rock rubble bottoms, located in bays, lagoons, and shallows coastal areas, as deep as 820 feet (250 m). (Bester,2011)

Tank:Coarse sand bottom, four porous rocks which create caverns/caves and no actinic light.

Wild Habitat v.s. Tank Habitat

• Prey items of this voracious carnivore include small fishes such as gobies, crustaceans (shrimps and crabs), annelids, and mollusks. (Bester, 2011)

• Very steady feeding schedule. Most Opsanus Beta feed everyday or at least every other day, varying depending upon the amount of prey that wanders close to the Opsanus. (Barimo, 2006)

Opsanus Beta average Feeding

Does the toad fish’s decreased aggression reflect a less territorial nature than average toadfish due to stress or the effects of aquarium domestication, which has decreased the necessity or effectiveness of its predatory nature as an ambush predator?

Can urea be tested for in the water, and if so do the levels of urea change significantly enough in the tank between tests to indicate pulsatile urea excretion?

If the Toadfish is found to be undergoing pulsatile urea excretion, does this automatically mean he is stressed and cortisol levels are high? (pg. 167)

How can we change his environment, eating habits or other aspects of his life in order to encourage more aggressive normal behavior?

How would a new predator fish, such as the lion fish, react with the current tank dynamics?

Would the lionfish perhaps encourage a more territorial nature?

Original Research Questions

How does the Opsanus adapt to changes/additions to its habitat based on feeding?

How does the Opsanus' feeding, activity and location change when the lionfish (potential competition) is present?

Will the Opsanus change its most frequented location when the rocks are rearranged and will the new arrangement alter feeding?

How does the Opsanus interact with the Peppermint Shrimp and does the dynamic change as the habitat is changed?

Research Questions Revised

The Opsanus Beta will eat Mysis Shrimp quicker before changes to its habitat are made, including the rearrangement of rocks and the addition of a Lionfish, demonstrating .

Hypothesis

• Materialso Rubber Lionfisho Rockso Mysis Shrimpo Toadfish(Opsanus Beta) o Peppermint Shrimpo Phone Camera

Sample Ethogram

Methods

Time of Day Rock 1 Rock 2 Rock 3 Rock 4 Outside Active Feeding

Morning

After School

The Control Phase

How does the Opsanus' feeding change when the lionfish (potential competition) is present?

How does the Opsanus' feeding change when the lionfish (potential competition) is present?

Will the Opsanus change its most frequented location when the rocks are rearranged and will the new

arrangement alter feeding?

Will the Opsanus change its most frequented location when the rocks are rearranged and will the new

arrangement alter feeding?

• Cohabitation

• Changing Dynamic

How does the Opsanus interact with the Peppermint Shrimp and does the dynamic change as the habitat is

changed?

• Increased Mobility

• Adaptability over time

• Increased feeding time

How does the Opsanus adapt to changes/additions to its habitat?

• We reject our hypothesis• Background research supports that

less confined conditions result in better feeding.

Alternative Explanation:The Opsanus Beta's feeding behavior

has a direct correlation to habitat. When the habitat is more spacious and reflects a competitive situation, the Opsanus feeds quicker.

Conclusions

Barimo, John F., Joseph E. Serafy, Peter E. Frezza, and Patrick J. Walsh. "Habitat Use, Urea Production and Spawning in the Gulf Toadfish Opsanus Beta." Marine Biology 150.3 (2006): 497-508. Print.

Palazón-Fernandez, José Luis, Jennifer C. Potts, Charles S. Manooch III, and Carmen Sarasquete. "Age, Growth and Mortality of the Toadfish, Halobatrachus Didactylus (Schneider, 1801)(Pisces:

Batrachoididae), in the Bay of Cádiz (southwestern Spain)."Scientia Marina 74.1 (2010): 121-30. Palazon-Fernandez. Scientia Marina. Web. 10 Oct. 2012.

<http://scientiamarina.revistas.csic.es/index.php/scientiamarina/article/view/1135/1179>.

Reider, Leila E. "The Biological Bulletin." Strategies for Increasing Growth of Juvenile Toadfish. Marine Biological Laboratory, n.d. Web. 01 Oct. 2012.

<http://www.biolbull.org/content/201/2/283.short>.

Walsh, Patrick J., Bonnie C. Tucker, and Todd E. Hopkins. "EFFECTS OF CONFINEMENT/CROWDING ON UREOGENESIS IN THE GULF TOADFISH OPSANUS BETA." THe Journal of Experimental

Biology (1994): 195-206. Journal of Experimental Biology. The Comapany of Biologist Limited. Web. 1 Oct. 2012. <http://jeb.biologists.org/content/191/1/195.full.pdf+html>.

Walsh, Patrick J. "Scaling and Sex-Related Differences in Toadfish (Opsanus Beta) Sonic Muscle Enzyme Activities." Ingentaconnect Scaling and Sex-Related Differences in Toadfish (Opsanus Beta)

So... University of Miami - Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, n.d. Web. 01 Oct. 2012.<http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/umrsmas/bullmar/1989/00000045/00000001/art00005>.

Bibliography