The terrestrial crab Gecarcoidea natalis is endemic to the forests of Christmas Island but must migrate each year to the coast to breed. During 1993 and 1995, radio-tracking, mark and recapture, and counting methods were used to establish the routes, walking speeds, direction of travel, and destinations of migrating crabs, as well as crab numbers and distribution. The density of crabs ranged from 0.09 to 0.57 crabs per square meter, which gave a population estimate of 43.7 million adult crabs on the island. During the dry season the crabs were relatively inactive but on arrival of the wet season immediately began their migration. The crabs generally walked in straight lines, and most crabs from around the Island traveled toward the northwest shore instead of simply walking toward the nearest shore. The maximum recorded distance walked by a red crab in one day was 1460 m, but the mean was 680 m per day in 1993 and 330 m in 1995. Comparing the 1993 and 1995 study seasons, there was a 3-week difference in the timing of the start of the migration, but the spawning date was fixed by the lunar phase and took place 17 to 18 days after mating. In 1993, late rain prompted a "rushed" migration and crabs walked directly to their shore destinations; in contrast, in 1995 most crabs made stops of 1 to 7 days during the downward migration. By giving the crabs a chance to feed along the way and minimizing the time that the population was concentrated near the shore, these stops may be important in ensuring that the animals have enough food after the long dry season. Furthermore, this behavior implies that the crabs are able to judge how far away they are from the shore during the migration.

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With the arrival of the monsoonal rains and after months of inactivity during the dry season, the terrestrial crab Gecarcoidea natalis embarks on its annual breeding migration to the coast. The physiological demands of the migration were assessed by determining respiratory gases in the hemolymph, key metabolites, and energy stores in G. natalis during two migratory seasons. At the end of each day of migration the pulmonary hemolymph PO2 decreased by 1-2.5 kPa, but the hemocyanin remained saturated with O2 and the venous reserve was largely unchanged (O2 > 0.4 mmol x l(-1)). The breeding migration of red crabs was accomplished without recourse to anaerobiosis, even though at times walking speeds (up to 6.2 +/- 0.5 m x min(-1)) exceeded those that promoted anaerobiosis in non-migrating crabs and in crabs exercised in the laboratory. In contrast to all previous studies, at the end of each day of migrating, red crabs experienced an alkalosis (up to 0.1 pH units) rather than any acidosis. This alkalosis was removed overnight when the crabs were inactive. Although there were seasonal fluctuations in the glycogen, glucose, and triglyceride stores, crabs engaging in the migration did not draw on these stores and must have fed along the way. In contrast, crabs returning from breeding activities on the shore terraces had significantly depleted glycogen stores. Additionally, in 1993, the male crabs returning from the breeding activities on the terraces were dehydrated and experienced a decrease in muscle tissue water of 11%. In contrast to the breeding migration per se, fighting for burrows in which breeding occurs produced severe anaerobiosis in males, especially the victors: after 135 s of combat, the maximum L-lactate concentration in the hemolymph was 35 mmol x l(-1). It appears that burrowing, courtship, and mating are more demanding than the migration itself. Furthermore, the data provide evidence that the metabolic responses of migrating individuals of G. natalis might be different from those at other times of the year.

Red crabs, Gecarcoidea natalis, exhibit seasonal activity patterns: low activity during the dry season when they shelter in burrows to avoid dehydration, and high activity during the wet season. Red crabs were examined in situ in the rainforest of Christmas Island to determine if there were underlying seasonal differences in the capacity for exercise and associated metabolism. During both seasons, free‐ranging (FR) crabs engaged in their normal activities and, together with crabs induced to exercise for 5 min, were sampled for haemolymph and muscle tissue. Respiratory gases in the haemolymph and key metabolites were measured to assess differences in metabolic status of FR and exercised crabs. Actively foraging FR crabs during the wet season exhibited a relative haemolymph hypoxia (2.9 kPa) and accumulated an extra 3 mmol · litre–1 of CO2 compared to the relatively inactive FR crabs during the dry season. Wet‐season crabs appeared to be in a state of relative respiratory acidosis compared to dry‐season animals. This hypercapnia may arise as a consequence of a relative hypoventilation in animals with a relatively higher metabolic rate during the wet season. Oxygenation of pulmonary and arterial haemolymph was similar and remained high after 5 min of exercise, indicating that the gills and lungs functioned similarly in gas exchange in both FR and exercised crabs. During exercise, venous O2 reserves decreased and red crabs experienced a mixed respiratory/metabolic acidosis. Similar changes, after 5 min of enforced exercise, in metabolite concentrations, pH and respiratory gas status in the haemolymph during both sampling seasons suggest that the crabs maintain similar capacity to increase exercise during the wet and the dry seasons, despite the differences in underlying physiological status. This is important since after prolonged inactivity during the dry season, with the arrival of monosoonal rains, red crabs must engage in their annual breeding migration. J. Exp. Zool. 286:552–562, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

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