Interaction of Temperature and Copper Ions as Orienting Stimuli in the Locomotor Behavior of the Goldfish (Carassius auratus)

Movements of single goldfish (Carassius auratus) were monitored in a free choice situation comprising zones of laboratory water or copper-containing water (0.010 ppm as CuCl2) each at two temperatures, 21.1 ±.1 and 21.5 ±.1 C.Fish entered the copper zone at 21.1 C significantly less frequently and spent less time there per entry as compared to the noncopper zone ("avoidance" behavior). The copper zone at 21.5 C became significantly "attractive" to the fish in terms of both frequency of entry and time spent.In the same terms, laboratory water at 21.5 C was "attractive" to the fish but became significantly more so in the presence of copper ions at the concentration of 0.010 ppm.