Fiddler crabs can feel more than we think: the influence of neighbors on the activities of the fiddler crab Leptuca uruguayensis

Fiddler crabs can feel more than we think: the influence of neighbors on the activities of the fiddler crab Leptuca uruguayensis

Fiddler crabs have been used as model organisms in many laboratory and field studies. In their natural environment, social interaction with other fiddler crabs (conspecific or heterospecific) is recurrent, but manipulative studies involving these crabs as models are often performed with isolated ind...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Hydrobiologia Vol. 851; no. 15; pp. 3541 - 3552
Main Authors: Martins, Carolina Guardino, De Grande, Fernando Rafael, Costa, Tânia Marcia
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 01-09-2024
Springer Nature B.V
Subjects:
Animal models
Behavior
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Carnivorous animals
Conspecifics
Crustaceans
Decapoda
Ecology
Freshwater & Marine Ecology
Freshwater crustaceans
Leptuca
Life Sciences
Males
Marine crustaceans
Natural environment
Ocypodidae
Primary Research Paper
Robust control
Social behavior
Social behaviour
Social interactions
Stimuli
Visual fields
Visual perception
Visual stimuli
Zoology
Animal communication
Intertidal zone
Mangrove ecosystem
Animal testing
Animal behavior
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Summary:Fiddler crabs have been used as model organisms in many laboratory and field studies. In their natural environment, social interaction with other fiddler crabs (conspecific or heterospecific) is recurrent, but manipulative studies involving these crabs as models are often performed with isolated individuals. The isolation of an animal can interfere in the behaviors recorded as response variables. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate whether the presence of other individuals affects the performance of behaviors of fiddler crabs  Leptuca uruguayensis . We tested two hypotheses in the field: (1) the visual stimulus of the crab assemblage affects the activity of male fiddler crabs; and (2) the presence of other conspecific affects the activity of male fiddler crabs depending on the sexes of the individuals present. We found the activities of  L. uruguayensis  males mediated by social interactions does not depend exclusively on visual stimuli. Physical interaction with other conspecifics of both sexes enables the perception of stimuli which can influence the waving behavior of  L. uruguayensis  males. We suggest that behavioral studies with this model should consider the presence of other individuals. Understanding the behavioral complexity of a model organism contributes to more robust experiments with greater control of interfering variables.
ISSN:0018-8158
1573-5117
DOI:10.1007/s10750-024-05506-5