Modulation of Cortisol Responses to an Acute Stressor in Zebrafish Visually Exposed to Heterospecific Fish During Development

Abstract Studies regarding predator–prey relationships have often focused on prey assessment and the responses to predation risk, but few have verified the relationship in the presence or absence of visual contact with a predator (e.g., tiger oscar, Astronotus ocellatus) or a nonpredator (e.g., goldfish, Carassius auratus) during the developmental phase, which could alter several physiological and neuroendocrine mechanisms in adulthood. Herein, we determined responses to physical (chasing with a net) and biological stressors (visualization to predator) in adult zebrafish raised in visual contact with a predator or nonpredator fish. We demonstrated that adult naive zebrafish show a more intense cortisol stress response than fish housed in visual contact with the stimulus fish (predator or nonpredator) when larvae, and that this alteration is related with movement specificity of the stimulus fish.