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Behavioral Ecology Advance Access published online on May 16, 2008
Behavioral Ecology, doi:10.1093/beheco/arn052
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© The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the International Society for Behavioral Ecology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Opponent assessment in lizards: examining the effect of aggressive and submissive signals

Daniel A. Van Dyk and Christopher S. Evans

Centre for the Integrative Study of Animal Behaviour, Macquarie University, New South Wales 2109, Australia

Address correspondence to D.A. Van Dyk. E-mail: daniel{at}galliform.bhs.mq.edu.au.


  Abstract

During conflict, males often assess their opponent's fighting ability and motivation via dynamic signals. We conducted an interactive video playback study using male Jacky dragons, Amphibolurus muricatus, to determine which signalling strategy was the most effective at deterring aggression and eliciting submission. A 3D computer-animated lizard was used to present aggressive signals (push-up displays) and submissive ones (slow arm-waves). This approach reproduced natural display motor patterns precisely while controlling variation in morphology. Treatments all commenced with the stimulus lizard producing bouts of push-ups, but then diverged after the subject lizard's responses, according to predetermined rules. Lizards attacked the stimulus more frequently when it responded to submission with slow arm-waves, revealing that their behavior during a contest is sensitive to social contingencies. Individuals that signal submission without retreating are likely to incur a receiver retaliation cost. In addition, assessment processes are surprisingly sophisticated, involving the monitoring of both an index signal (push-ups) and a conventional one (slow arm-waves) during a single interaction.

Key words: Amphibolurus, interactive playback, signalling, submissive display, threat display.

Received 11 July 2007; revised 18 February 2008; accepted 24 March 2008.


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