PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Harpaz, Roy
AU  - Nguyen, Minh Nguyet
AU  - Bahl, Armin
AU  - Engert, Florian
TI  - Precise visuomotor transformations underlying collective behavior in larval zebrafish
AID  - 10.1101/2021.05.24.445521
DP  - 2021 Jan 01
TA  - bioRxiv
PG  - 2021.05.24.445521
4099  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2021/05/25/2021.05.24.445521.short
4100  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2021/05/25/2021.05.24.445521.full
AB  - Complex schooling behaviors result from local interactions among individuals. Yet, how sensory signals from neighbors are analyzed in the visuomotor stream of animals is poorly understood. Here, we studied aggregation behavior in larval zebrafish and found that over development larvae transition from overdispersed groups to tight shoals. Using a virtual reality assay, we characterized the algorithms fish use to transform visual inputs from neighbors into movement decisions. We found that young larvae turn away from retinal “clutter” by integrating and averaging retina-wide visual inputs within each eye, and by using a winner-take-all strategy for binocular integration. As fish mature, their responses expand to include attraction to low retinal clutter, that is based on similar algorithms of visual integration. Using model simulations, we show that the observed algorithms accurately predict group structure over development. These findings allow us to make testable predictions regarding the neuronal circuits underlying collective behavior in zebrafish.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.