Behavioral aspects of biological invasions of alien fish species

The role of the behavior of animals determining the success of invasion to new areas and habitats is analyzed. The majority of examples are related to fish whose distribution attracts increasing attention from both scientists and persons involved in applied fisheries. The contribution of migratory, feeding, defensive, reproductive, and social behavior in "the invasive potential" of the species is considered. The success of the colonization of new biotopes by the species and expansion of its area may not depend so much on its properties as the ability to cover long distances, plasticity in mastering new resources, and stability to pressure from new competitors, predators, and parasites. Some properties of animals are stressed whose role in invasion may be important and is still to be demonstrated. Among them, a special interest for behaviorists is the ability of animals towards learning and towards "innovation activity", the ability to switch rapidly from a cooperative mode of life to an individual mode of life, and to efficiently explore and to exploit heterogeneous microhabitats. © 2006 Pleiades Publishing, Inc.