Data from: Parasite infection in a central sensory organ of fish does not affect host personality

Among the ecological factors acting on the evolution and expression of animal personalities and behavioral syndromes, parasitism has received comparatively little attention. However, infection and host behavior are often strongly intertwined, because host behavior can predict the risk of infection and can also be changed by an infection. We conducted a controlled experimental infection study to explore the effects of infection on host boldness, exploration and activity using rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss and its trematode parasite Diplostomum pseudospathaceum, which infects a central sensory organ of the fish, the eye lens. Contrary to our expectation, infection did not change the within-individual consistency of the personality traits or the relationships between the traits, but infected individuals were less bold than uninfected control individuals. We also found no relationship between personality in uninfected fish and resistance against parasite infection, suggesting that behaviors which increase parasite encounter do not select for improved resistance. Thus, we found only weak support for parasite-mediated effects on animal personalities.

在影响动物个性与行为综合征演化及表达的各类生态因子中，寄生虫感染相关研究的关注度相对较低。不过，宿主感染与宿主行为往往紧密交织——宿主行为既可以预测感染风险，也会因感染而发生改变。本研究以虹鳟（Oncorhynchus mykiss）及其寄生于鱼类中枢感觉器官——晶状体的复口吸虫（Diplostomum pseudospathaceum）为研究对象，通过控制性实验感染探究感染对宿主大胆性、探索行为与活动能力的影响。与我们的预期相悖，感染并未改变个性性状的个体内一致性，也未改变性状间的关联，但受感染个体的大胆程度显著低于未感染的对照组个体。此外，未感染个体的个性特征与抗寄生虫感染能力之间未发现显著关联，这表明那些会增加寄生虫接触概率的行为并未对更高的抗感染能力产生选择压力。因此，本研究仅为寄生虫介导的动物个性效应提供了微弱的支持证据。