Social behaviour of the African turquoise killifish (Nothobranchius furzeri)

Abstract

To date, very little is known about the African turquoise killifish and its social behaviour. It is emerging as a model organism in gerontological research due to its exceptionally short lifespan (approximately 6-8 months), yet its social behaviour is unknown. In this study, I investigate the grouping tendencies of juveniles using different methodologies to determine which best suits the species. Secondly, using the most suitable methodology, I investigate the grouping preferences of both juveniles and adults and observe whether they are capable of familiar and kin recognition. To my knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the grouping preferences and recognition capabilities of the African turquoise killifish. Using 7-week-old juveniles I compared a standard binary choice and Y-maze test arena and determined that the Y-maze was not only a more suitable test arena for my study species, but that at this age juveniles grouped. Using the Y-maze for further testing I investigated differences in juvenile and adult behaviour. I observed that at 5 weeks old juveniles displayed no preference for grouping, kin or familiar individuals. In contrast, adult killifish showed a preference for grouping and males demonstrated a preference for familiar male individuals. Similar to juveniles, adult killifish showed no preference for kin, nor did females show any preference for other familiar females. This work provides a framework for future studies to investigate this species further and increase our knowledge on both the African turquoise killifish and, more generally, on ontogenetic shifts in social behaviour.