Artificial light at night reduces coral reef fish metabolism response to a fake predator

Chronic exposure to artificial light increased the metabolic rate of coral reef fish when confronted with a predator stimulus.

• Wild-caught Polynesian anemonefish exposed to ambient light showed a significant reduction in metabolic rate in response to predation risk.
• In contrast, fish exposed to artificial light exhibited an increase in metabolic rate when facing the same predator threat.
• These findings suggest that artificial light can fundamentally alter physiological responses during critical predator-prey interactions.
• The alteration in metabolic responses could potentially disrupt energy budgets and population dynamics in coastal ecosystems.

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