DOI: 10.5061/dryad.66t1g1k71
title: Data for: Genetic and context-specific effects on individual inhibitory control performance in the guppy (Poecilia reticulata)

description: Among-individual variation in cognitive traits, widely assumed to have
 evolved under adaptive processes, is increasingly being demonstrated
 across animal taxa. As variation among individuals is required for natural
 selection, characterising individual differences and their heritability is
 important to understand how cognitive traits evolve. Here we use a
 quantitative genetic study of wild-type guppies repeatedly exposed to a
 ‘detour task’ to test for genetic variance in the cognitive trait of
 inhibitory control. We also test for genotype-by-environment interactions
 (GxE) by testing related fish under alternative experimental treatments
 (transparent vs. semi-transparent barrier in the detour-task). We find
 among-individual variation in detour task performance, consistent with
 differences in inhibitory control. However, analysis of GxE reveals that
 heritable factors only contribute to performance variation in one
 treatment. This suggests that the adaptive evolutionary potential of
 inhibitory control (and/or other latent variables contributing to task
 performance) may be highly sensitive to environmental conditions. The
 presence of GxE also implies that the plastic response of detour task
 performance to treatment environment is genetically variable. Our results
 are consistent with a scenario where variation in individual inhibitory
 control stems from complex interactions between heritable and plastic
 components.
description: Data was collected from fish bred from a captive population of
 <em>P. reticulata</em> housed at the University of Exeter’s
 Penryn campus. The population has been maintained at a population size of
 several thousand, with no deliberate selection or inbreeding. Behavioural
 data was collected on an offspring generation of 374 guppies (all tested
 as adults), produced from 6 small breeding groups over a period of 4
 months.  Individual detour task performance was assessed in a repeated
 measures design. First, naïve guppies were given the opportunity to learn
 to associate the appearance of a green disc placed on the floor of the
 test compartment with a food reward. Individual guppies were given nine
 feeding training ‘trials’ (3 per day for 3 successive days). To ensure
 fish had sufficient opportunity to learn the food location, they did not
 proceed to the detour task if they did not locate food in 5/9 of the
 training trials. Fish that completed the training stage were then assayed
 three times in a detour task (once per day for three successive days), and
 time taken to locate a food reward inside a cylinder was recorded. To test
 for GxE, fish were assigned to one of two treatments in the detour task;
 either a transparent (unmarked) cylinder with low visual information or a
 cylinder marked with three black horizontal lines providing high visual
 information.  Fish were genotyped at 6 autosomal
 microsatellite loci to facilitate pedigree reconstruction.
 Data from both detour and training trials were analysed using a
 linear mixed effect model fitted with ASReml-R 4.1 within R version
 3.6.1. 
description: # README data file description associated with manuscript ‘Genetic and
 context-specific effects on individual inhibitory control performance in
 the guppy (Poecilia reticulata)’ ## Authors Pamela M. Prentice1,2, Alex
 Thornton1, Niclas Kolm3, Alastair J. Wilson1\* 1Centre for Ecology and
 Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
 2Animal and Veterinary Science Research Group, SRUC, West Mains Rd,
 Edinburgh, EH9 3JG, UK 3Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, 106
 91 Stockholm, Sweden \*Corresponding Author Data collection – Pamela M.
 Prentice Code writing - Alastair J. Wilson and Pamela M. Prentice This is
 a quantitative genetic study of wild-type guppies repeatedly exposed to a
 ‘detour task’ to test for genetic variance in the cognitive trait of
 inhibitory control. We also tested for genotype-by-environment
 interactions (GxE) by testing related fish under alternative experimental
 treatments (transparent vs. semi-transparent barrier in the detour-task).
 We find among-individual variation in detour task performance, consistent
 with differences in inhibitory control. However, analysis of GxE reveals
 that heritable factors only contribute to performance variation in one
 treatment. This suggests that the adaptive evolutionary potential of
 inhibitory control (and/or other latent variables contributing to task
 performance ) may be highly sensitive to environmental conditions. The
 presence of GxE also implies that the plastic response of detour task
 performance to treatment environment is genetically variable. Our results
 are consistent with a scenario where variation in individual inhibitory
 control stems from complex interactions between heritable and plastic
 components. ### data file name ‘IC\_full\_MS.csv’ #### Column headers with
 explanations * date: The date each trial took place on * time: The time of
 day each trial took place on * block: Fish were trialled in 11 blocks of
 48 fish (categorical, group = 1 – 11). * trial: Fish had 9 training
 trials, followed by 3 test trials. Trial number here refers to the
 incremental trial number, whether it was a training or test trial
 (categorical, trial = 1 – 9) * rept: Incremental trial number, including
 training (9 trials) and test trials (3 trials) ((repeat)rept = 1 – 12) *
 ID\_full: Full ID description e.g. Grp 1\_11\_T35\_M\_2 would indicate a
 fish that was in Group1, breeding group 11, tank35, male #2 * ID:
 Individual fish were given an identifiable number for pedigree
 reconstruction (categorical) * brood tank: Fish were housed in brood
 groups within a specific tank number before receiving the cognitive assay
 of training and test trials (categorical) * breeding\_group: The number of
 breeding group each fish was born from (6 groups, number breeding groups =
 7 - 12) * brood\_den: The number of fish in each brood group * dob: The
 date each brood group was birthed on * brood\_age: The age of the brood
 each fish was from (brood age = number of days) * tank: The identifying
 tank number each fish was housed in during the cognitive assay trials *
 stack: Experimental tanks were contained within two ‘stacks’, each
 comprising 24 tanks, 3 rows high, 8 tanks per row. (categorical, stack =
 1, or 2).) * level: The level of the stack on which each tank was situated
 (categorical, level = 1, 2 or 3) * sexM: The sex of each fish
 (categorical, 0 = female, 1 = male) * treatment: The treatment of the test
 trials (categorical, 0 = clear cylinder, 1=marked cylinder) * temp: The
 temp of each stack when each trial took place (Celcius) * success: Whether
 fish were successful in locating and eating the food reward each trial
 (categorical, 0=no, 1=yes) * time\_train: Time taken for each fish to
 locate the food during the training trials (continuous, seconds) *
 time\_test: Time taken for each fish to locate the food during the test
 trials (continuous, seconds) * time\_test\_1: Time taken for each fish to
 locate the food during the test trials under treatment 1 (marked
 cylinders) (continuous, seconds) * time\_test\_0: Time taken for each fish
 to locate the food during the training trials under treatment 1 (clear
 cylinders) (continuous, seconds) ### data file name ‘Genotype\_File.csv’
 #### Column headers with explanations * ID: Individual identification
 number. ‘P’ denotes ‘parent’. Parents were genotyped but did not undergo
 test trials or inhibitory control trials. * Column B – M: Individual
 genotype scores at each loci position, across 6 microsatellite markers
 (e.g. P39Da and P39Db) ### data file name ‘IC\_pedigree.csv’ #### Column
 headers with explanations * ID: Individual identification number. ‘P’
 denotes paternal/ male, ‘M’ denotes maternal/ female parent. Dam and Sire
 for these individuals are scored as ‘NA’. * DAM: Identification number of
 each individuals’ mother ID * SIRE: Identification number of each
 individuals’ father ID