SHY BOLD CONTINUUM IN PUMPKINSEED SUNFISH (LEPOMIS-GIBBOSUS) - AN ECOLOGICAL STUDY OF A PSYCHOLOGICAL TRAIT

The shy-bold continuum is recognized as a fundamental axis of behavior al variation in humans, but 3 major issues have not been addressed. Fi rst, the taxonomic distribution of shyness and boldness is unknown. Se cond, the ecological consequences of shyness and boldness have not bee n studied in natural populations. Third, no one has tried to predict a nd test patterns of shyness and boldness that might result from natura l selection. We show that a shy-bold continuum, which influences diet, predator risk, and parasite fauna, exists in juvenile pumpkinseed sun fish (Lepomis gibbosus). Individual differences are relatively stable in nature but seem to disappear when the fish are held in social and e cological isolation in the laboratory. Thus, phenotypic stability may not reflect innate tendencies to be shy or bold but rather environment al conditions that maintain differences between phenotypically plastic individuals.