Etude comparee de la detection chimique des proies par Proteus anguinus,cavernicole, et son parent de surface Necturus maculosus (proteidae,urodela)

Do the blind cave salamander Proteus and its epigean relative Necturus use the chemical sense in searching for prey? Proteus shows a significant, and Necturus only a weak, preference for water which passes living prey before entering a choice chamber. Prey which was frozen before the test also gave the same result in both species. However, with this immobilized prey the time for a decision in the test was much longer. The results of ten series of tests demonstrate the importance of chemoreception for prey detection in Proteus. The weaker reactions in Necturus can be explained probably by the different biotope.Six other series of tests have been conducted to show that our results are not influenced by stimuli relating to mechanoreception, thigmotaxis and rheotropism.