Aggression Assay: A Method to Study Aggressive Behavior of Zebrafish in Response to a Mirror

Abstract

Source: Way G.P., et al. Boldness, Aggression, and Shoaling Assays for Zebrafish Behavioral Syndromes. J. Vis. Exp. (2016)

The article describes an assay for studying zebrafish’s aggression. The method uses a simple mirror and observes zebrafish’s behavioral response towards its own reflection in mirror.

Protocol

1. Conducting the Aggression Assay Conduct the aggression assay in a 19 L rectangular tank measuring 30 cm x 15 cm x 10 cm. Outfit the tank in external opaque partitions surrounding three sides of the aggression tank, leaving the front exposed for viewing, to reduce undesirable outside stimuli. Divide the tank with external markings into four equal rectangular quadrants and fix a mirror permanently (with silicone caulk) within the lower left quadrant, inclined at 22.5° forming a right triangle against the …

Materials

19 L rectangular tank	That Fish Place	211932
ArtMinds Square Mirror, Value Pack 3" x 3"	Michaels	10334162
Zebrafish Rack System	Aquaneering Inc	ZS550
Nikon AF Nikkor 35-105 mm f/305~4.5s MACRO lens	Nikon Corporation	NA
Hitachi KP-D20A CCD Camera	Prescott's, Inc.	NA
Jwatcher	NA	NA