Summary
Position preferences of well-fed and food-deprived juvenile roach were investigated in schools of 2 and 4 fish in the laboratory. Food-deprived fish appeared significantly more often in the front position than their well-fed conspecifics. For fish at the same hunger level, individuals at the front of the school had the highest feeding rate. These results represent the first evidence for a relationship between the nutritional state of individual fish and their positions in a school and suggest a functional advantage of the preference.
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Krause, J., Bumann, D. & Todt, D. Relationship between the position preference and nutritional state of individuals in schools of juvenile roach (Rutilus rutilus). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 30, 177–180 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00166700
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00166700