PreyTouch

PreyTouch implements a touchscreen-based closed-loop system for studying predator-prey interactions through flexible prey control, accurate monitoring of predator strikes, and automated rewarding.

Key Features:

• Flexible prey control: Enables programmable manipulation of prey movement and dynamics during experiments.
• Accurate strike monitoring: Tracks predator touchscreen strikes with precision for behavioral analysis.
• Automated rewarding: Delivers rewards automatically based on predator performance.
• Real-time processing: Couples predator movement and prey dynamics for closed-loop interaction studies.
• Long-term automation: Supports extended automated experiments without manual intervention.

Scientific Applications:

• Predator-prey dynamics: Investigates the interaction patterns between predators and prey in controlled settings.
• Learning studies: Examines how predators learn prey dynamics over repeated encounters.
• Prey preference analysis: Identifies selective preferences for different prey types among predators.
• Attack pattern characterization: Reveals complex prey attack patterns and behavioral strategies.
• Comparative neuroscience: Connects natural prey capture behavior with cognitive studies across species.
• Comparative ecology: Facilitates cross-species comparisons of predatory behavior and evolution.

Methodology:

PreyTouch uses touchscreen-based closed-loop processing to couple predator movement with prey dynamics in real time, and was validated through long-term prey capture experiments on the lizard Pogona vitticeps.