Swimming and schooling data of golden shiners in variable water temperatures

Temperature is highly influential on the physiology and behaviour of ectotherms. In fish, temperature affects social interactions such as schooling behaviour, a common defence against predation. However, the effect of temperature on the ability of schooling fish to collectively respond to a predator is unknown. Here we used a loom stimulus to simulate an approaching predator that elicited a fleeing response in schooling fish over a range of water temperatures (9-29°C) and group sizes (1-16 fish). While speed and acceleration always exhibited a positive curvilinear response to temperature, the optimal temperature at which performance peaked was different during the predation threat versus when they were unperturbed. Similarly, group-level metrics were sensitive to temperature immediately after a loom stimulus but showed no response to temperature during unperturbed swimming. The time taken for fish to respond to the loom stimulus was minimal at 20°C. The proportion of fish that startled,...