Direct shell acquisition by hermit crabs from gastropods

McLean, R.B.

doi:10.1007/bf01927738

Cited by 89 publications

(43 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…According to individual needs, hermit crabs may find an adequate empty shell from locations in sites of gastropod predation (Mclean, 1973) or swap them during inter and intraspecific interaction (Rittschoff, 1980). Shell swap is mentioned in agonistic behavior among hermit crabs, not only on the establishment of dominant species, but mainly related to the competition for adequate shells (see more in Hazlett and Bossert, 1965;1966;Hazlett, 1966;1967;.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Shell occupation by the South Atlantic endemic hermit crab Loxopagurus loxochelis (Moreira, 1901) (Anomura: Diogenidae)

et al. 2013

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-The evaluation of population characteristics, particularly those of endemic species, aids in population preservation and management. Hermit crabs present an innate behavior of occupying shells, which tends to individual needs and limits their distribution. This study characterized the pattern of occupation of gastropod shells by the hermit Loxopagurus loxochelis in three bays of the southwestern coast of Brazil. Monthly collections were made from January/1998 to December/1999 in the bays Ubatumirim (UBM), Ubatuba (UBA) and Mar Virado (MV) with a shrimping boat. Overall, ten species of gastropod shells were occupied by L. loxochelis. The shell of Olivancillaria urceus represented 66.8% of those occupied. Morphometric relationships demonstrated a differential occupation of the more abundant shells among demographic groups, where most of the males occupied O. urceus, non-ovigerous females occupied O. urceus and Buccinanops cochlidium, and ovigerous females occupied B. cochlidium and Stramonita haemastoma. Most of the individuals occupied the more abundant shells, considered adequate for the morphology of this hermit crab species. Thus, the studied bays seem to be stable and propitious environments for population perpetuation and the settlement of new individuals.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Shell occupation by the South Atlantic endemic hermit crab Loxopagurus loxochelis (Moreira, 1901) (Anomura: Diogenidae)

et al. 2013

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“…The burying behaviour of P. longicarpus, in addition to its intertidal zone habitat and smaller size relative to the other species examined for anemones, likely explains the absence of anemones on shells occupied by this species. Individuals of P. pollicaris also commonly bury in the substrate (McLean, 1974), commonly associate with C. tricolor (Rudloe, 1999), and were often found with anemones in this study, so their greater association with the anemone relative to P. longicarpus is most likely explained by their greater exposure to habitats in the subtidal zone where anemones more commonly occur.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 62%

Population dynamics and epibiont associations of hermit crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda: Paguroidea on Dog Island, Florida

Sandford¹

2003

MMV

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“…An abundant body of literature shows that aquatic hermit crabs are attracted to gastropod predation sites by the means of chemical substances (McLean, 1974;Rittschof, 1980a,b;Lepore and Gilchrist, 1988;Rittschof et al, 1992) and that their orientation towards shells is mediated by a combination of chemical and visual cues (Hazlett and Herrnkind, 1980;Hazlett, 1982;Diaz et al, 1994;Orihuela et al, 1992;Chiussi et al, 2001). Starting from the observations of McLean (1975) and Rittschof (1980a), evidence has been accumulating that their attraction to the sites that are potential sources of shells is affected by predator odors (Rittschof and Hazlett, 1997) and is specific for certain preferred gastropod species (Diaz et al, 1995).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of chemical context on shell investigation behavior in hermit crabs

Gherardi

Atema

2005

Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology

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Specific chemicals in the environment evoke significant changes in the behavior of many aquatic organisms. We studied in the laboratory whether satiated individuals of the hermit crab, Pagurus longicarpus Say 1817, adjust their investigatory behavior towards an empty, optimal gastropod shell according to differences of chemical context. We also explored to what extent shell investigation by a crab in the same hunger state was affected by occupying an inadequately sized shell. Our results confirmed in part previous findings that crabs can discriminate the odor of freshly dead snails from the odor of freshly dead conspecifics. In the presence of the former odor, crabs inhabiting shells of inadequate size were more responsive and active than those in better-fitting shells. To the contrary, regardless of the quality of the inhabited shell, P. longicarpus remained practically motionless when presented with the odor of freshly dead conspecifics, possibly because the risks of incurring in predators would outweigh the benefits of acquiring a new shell. Unexpectedly, we found that crabs in both types of shell quality exhibited nearly the same behavior in control water, while crabs in adequate shells were more responsive in the presence of food odor. Individuals appeared insensitive to the odor of live snails; indeed, only one hermit crab species has been seen removing living snails from their shells. An intriguing result was that water conditioned by the odors of live conspecifics exerted a strong effect on all the individuals by inducing an intense shell investigation. Our study underlines the central role exerted by chemical detection in hermit crabs' behavior and demonstrates the existence of a complex interplay among chemical context, the physiological state of the animal, and the ecological pressures of the habitat. D

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Direct shell acquisition by hermit crabs from gastropods

Cited by 89 publications

References 9 publications

Shell occupation by the South Atlantic endemic hermit crab Loxopagurus loxochelis (Moreira, 1901) (Anomura: Diogenidae)

Shell occupation by the South Atlantic endemic hermit crab Loxopagurus loxochelis (Moreira, 1901) (Anomura: Diogenidae)

Population dynamics and epibiont associations of hermit crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda: Paguroidea on Dog Island, Florida

Effects of chemical context on shell investigation behavior in hermit crabs

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