Odours of different sources indicate in hermit crabs the availability of empty shells, crucial resources for their life cycle. Here, we compared Clibanarius erythropus and Pagurus bernhardus for the intensity of investigative behaviour exhibited towards an empty, well-fitting shell in the presence of plain seawater as control and seawater conditioned by dead and live snails, dead and live conspecifics, live predators, and food. During 10 min of observation, we recorded latency (the time until the first contact with the shell), and the number and duration of shell investigation bouts. The two species behaved similarly when exposed to the odours of food, live snails, and predators, while a more intense shell investigation was induced by dead snails’ odour in C. erythropus and by dead or live conspecifics’ odour in P. bernhardus. Further studies should investigate the influence of phylogeny and ecology on this interspecific difference.

Interpreting odours in hermit crabs: a comparative study / E. TRICARICO; T. BREITHAUPT; F. GHERARDI. - In: ESTUARINE, COASTAL AND SHELF SCIENCE. - ISSN 0272-7714. - STAMPA. - 91:(2011), pp. 211-215. [10.1016/j.ecss.2010.10.039]

Interpreting odours in hermit crabs: a comparative study.

TRICARICO, ELENA;GHERARDI, FRANCESCA
2011

Abstract

Odours of different sources indicate in hermit crabs the availability of empty shells, crucial resources for their life cycle. Here, we compared Clibanarius erythropus and Pagurus bernhardus for the intensity of investigative behaviour exhibited towards an empty, well-fitting shell in the presence of plain seawater as control and seawater conditioned by dead and live snails, dead and live conspecifics, live predators, and food. During 10 min of observation, we recorded latency (the time until the first contact with the shell), and the number and duration of shell investigation bouts. The two species behaved similarly when exposed to the odours of food, live snails, and predators, while a more intense shell investigation was induced by dead snails’ odour in C. erythropus and by dead or live conspecifics’ odour in P. bernhardus. Further studies should investigate the influence of phylogeny and ecology on this interspecific difference.
2011
91
211
215
E. TRICARICO; T. BREITHAUPT; F. GHERARDI
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Utilizza questo identificatore per citare o creare un link a questa risorsa: https://hdl.handle.net/2158/392856
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