Meeting Abstract
Game theory offers an analytical framework for understanding how the sensory and motor systems of a prey animal govern its ability to evade a predator. We applied a classic pursuit-evasion game theory model, ‘the homicidal chauffeur’, to examine the evasion tactics employed by larval prey zebrafish (Danio rerio) when they encounter a predator. We modified this classic model in the interest of replicating our previous findings on the kinematics of prey fish. In particular, we relaxed the simplifying assumption that the predator and prey move at constant speed to predict optimal swimming trajectories with a combination of analytical and numerical modeling. We found that this modification yielded a superior prediction of escape maneuvers than the traditional model. In addition, the optimal escape strategy of a prey fish depends on the acceleration that the animal is capable of generating during an encounter with a predator, a property that is inherent to the mechanics of an escape response.
