Skip to main content

Research Repository

Advanced Search

Animal perception in gravel-bed rivers: scales of sensing and environmental controls on sensory information

Johnson, Matthew F.; Rice, Stephen P.

Animal perception in gravel-bed rivers: scales of sensing and environmental controls on sensory information Thumbnail


Authors

Stephen P. Rice



Contributors

John Richardson
Editor

Abstract

Animals make decisions based on the sensory information that they obtain from the environment and other organisms within that environment. In a river, this information is transported, transmitted, masked, and filtered by fluvial factors and processes, such as relative roughness and turbulent flow. By interpreting the resultant signals, animals decide on the suitability of habitat and their reaction to other organisms. While a great deal is known about the sensory biology of animals, only limited attention has been paid to the environmental controls on the propagation of sensory information within rivers. Here, the potential transport mechanisms and masking processes of the sensory information used by animals in gravel-bed rivers are assessed by considering how the physical nature of sensory signals are affected by river hydromorphology. In addition, the physical processes that animals have the potential to directly perceive are discussed. Understanding the environmental phenomena that animals directly perceive will substantially improve understanding of what controls animal distributions, shifting emphasis from identifying correlations between biotic and abiotic factors to a better appreciation of causation, with benefits for successful management.

Citation

Johnson, M. F., & Rice, S. P. (2014). Animal perception in gravel-bed rivers: scales of sensing and environmental controls on sensory information. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 71(6), 945-957. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2013-0474

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Mar 1, 2014
Online Publication Date Mar 3, 2014
Publication Date 2014-06
Deposit Date Feb 11, 2020
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
Print ISSN 0706-652X
Electronic ISSN 1205-7533
Publisher NRC Research Press
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 71
Issue 6
Pages 945-957
DOI https://doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2013-0474
Public URL https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1460688
Publisher URL https://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/10.1139/cjfas-2013-0474#.XnolbXKnxPY

Files




You might also like



Downloadable Citations