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Abstract

Two groups of male chicks (Gallus gallus) were allowed to peck at distasteful food (chick crumbs flavoured with quinine and mustard) that either matched or contrasted with the background on which the food was presented. The experiment consisted of a series of trials, each of which was terminated when a fixed amount of food (four crumbs) had been ingested. Within-trial pecking rate was initially higher in the group given constrasting food, confirming that degree of contrast between a prey item and its background increases the likelihood of detection by a naive predator. However, during the series of training trials pecking rate declined faster, and reached a lower level, in the group given contrasting food than in the group given matching food. Thus, rate and strength of avoidance learning are affected by the degree to which distasteful food contrasts with its background. This may explain why many distasteful prey species are brightly coloured, despite the fact that bright colouration increases the likelihood of initial detection by a predator.

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Aposematic Colouration and Avoidance Learning in Chicks

Abstract

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