Thermal and desiccation constraints drive territory preference in fiddler crabs

Darnell, M. Zachary; Backwell, Patricia R. Y.; Stockbridge, Jackson; Dyson, Miranda L.; Munguia, Pablo

doi:10.1016/j.jembe.2019.05.013

Cited by 10 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 26 publications

(39 reference statements)

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“…Males that are actively courting females may experience high body temperatures if they are displaying in open habitats where they can be seen or higher in the intertidal where females prefer the more stable burrows [ 53 , 65 ]. However, courting males also crowd into shaded areas that give them a thermal advantage [ 29 , 66 , 67 ], and those actively defending burrows have ready access to a cool microclimate. Hence, individual courting males may experience higher or lower than expected T b depending on local conditions, including the availability of shade, female habitat preferences, and variation in the intensity of sexual competition.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Field-based body temperatures reveal behavioral thermoregulation strategies of the Atlantic marsh fiddler crab Minuca pugnax

et al. 2021

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Behavioral thermoregulation is an important defense against the negative impacts of climate change for ectotherms. In this study we examined the use of burrows by a common intertidal crab, Minuca pugnax, to control body temperature. To understand how body temperatures respond to changes in the surface temperature and explore how efficiently crabs exploit the cooling potential of burrows to thermoregulate, we measured body, surface, and burrow temperatures during low tide on Sapelo Island, GA in March, May, August, and September of 2019. We found that an increase in 1°C in the surface temperature led to a 0.70-0.71°C increase in body temperature for females and an increase in 0.75-0.77°C in body temperature for males. Body temperatures of small females were 0.3°C warmer than large females for the same surface temperature. Female crabs used burrows more efficiently for thermoregulation compared to the males. Specifically, an increase of 1°C in the cooling capacity (the difference between the burrow temperature and the surface temperature) led to an increase of 0.42-0.50°C for females and 0.34-0.35°C for males in the thermoregulation capacity (the difference between body temperature and surface temperature). The body temperature that crabs began to use burrows to thermoregulate was estimated to be around 24°C, which is far below the critical body temperatures that could lead to death. Many crabs experience body temperatures of 24°C early in the reproductive season, several months before the hottest days of the year. Because the use of burrows involves fitness trade-offs, these results suggest that warming temperatures could begin to impact crabs far earlier in the year than expected.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Field-based body temperatures reveal behavioral thermoregulation strategies of the Atlantic marsh fiddler crab Minuca pugnax

et al. 2021

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“…This may have an important role in improving the growing conditions for developing vegetation. Crabs prefer shaded habitats with access to sufficient food (Darnell et al, 2019), which may be provided by salt marsh vegetation and CWD. Burrowing alters the site's planar microtopography, which increases the stranding of propagules.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Salt marsh vegetation and secured woody debris facilitate the recolonization of Avicennia germinans

Pranchai

Jenke

Vogt

et al. 2021

J Vegetation Science

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Questions Does the presence of salt marsh vegetation affect the long‐term regeneration of the pioneer mangrove species Avicennia germinans in a degraded dwarf forest? Does immobilized coarse woody debris (CWD) affect regeneration similarly? Do larger trees suppress or facilitate intraspecific saplings? Location Dwarf mangrove forest in the high intertidal zone on the Bragança peninsula in northern Brazil. Methods The spatial patterns of A. germinans, the herbaceous halophyte Sesuvium portulacastrum, and CWD were mapped in three sample plots (each 400 m2) during two consecutive vegetation surveys, conducted in 2011 and 2014. Inhomogeneous Poisson and Thomas point process models were used to assess the distribution of A. germinans life‐history stages (seedlings, saplings, and adult dwarf trees), conditioned on the presence of S. portulacastrum and CWD. In addition, intraspecific interactions between trees and regeneration were assessed based on crown projection mapping. Bivariate point pattern analyses were used to assess the dependence of advance regeneration on dwarf A. germinans trees and S. portulacastrum. Results Avicennia germinans saplings and trees were positively associated with S. portulacastrum and CWD, whereas seedlings were located around tree crowns. The density of fruit‐bearing trees was positively associated with sapling density, indicating that regeneration relied on locally dispersed propagules. Conclusions Herbaceous vegetation and CWD have an important ecological function in degraded mangroves by retaining tidally dispersed propagules. Here, we show that herbaceous vegetation does not suppress the growth of seedlings but facilitates mangrove recolonization. Due to limited tidal dispersal, regeneration relies on local propagule supply. In addition to hydrological restoration, the observed vegetation patterns suggest that, in the absence of propagule‐retaining vegetation, restoration of high‐intertidal mangroves can be facilitated by establishing nuclei of planted trees and installing secured logs.

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“…Males that are actively courting females may experience high body temperatures if they are displaying in open habitats where they can be seen or higher in the intertidal where females prefer the more stable burrows ([49]; [50]). However, large courting males also crowd into shaded areas that give them a thermal advantage ([23]; [51]; [52]), and those actively defending burrows have ready access to a cool microclimate. Hence, individual courting males may experience higher or lower than expected T b s depending on local conditions, including the availability of shade, female habitat preferences, and variation in the intensity of sexual competition.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Field-based body temperatures reveal behavioral thermoregulation strategies of the Atlantic marsh fiddler crabMinuca pugnax

Hews

Brodie

Allen

et al. 2020

Preprint

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AbstractBehavioral thermoregulation is an important defense against the negative impacts of climate change for ectotherms. In this study we examined the use of burrows by a common intertidal crab, Minuca pugnax, to control body temperature. To understand how body temperatures respond to changes in the surface temperature and explore how efficiently crabs exploit the cooling potential of burrows to thermoregulate, we measured body, surface, and burrow temperature data during low tide on Sapelo Island, GA in March, May, August, and September of 2019. We found that an increase in 1°C in the surface temperature led to a 0.70-0.71°C increase in body temperature for females and an increase in 0.75-0.77°C in body temperature for males. Body temperatures of small females were 0.3°C warmer than large females for the same surface temperature. Female crabs used burrows more efficiently for thermoregulation compared to the males. Specifically, an increase of 1°C in the cooling capacity (the difference between the burrow temperature and the surface temperature) led to an increase of 0.42-0.50°C for females and 0.34-0.35°C for males in the thermoregulation capacity (the difference between body temperature and surface temperature). The body temperature that crabs began to use burrows to thermoregulate was estimated to be around 24°C, which is far below the critical body temperatures that could lead to death. Many crabs experience body temperatures of 24°C early in the reproductive season, several months before the hottest days of the year. Because the use of burrows involves fitness trade-offs, these results suggest that warming temperatures could begin to impact crabs far earlier in the year than expected.

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Thermal and desiccation constraints drive territory preference in fiddler crabs

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Cited by 10 publications

References 26 publications

Field-based body temperatures reveal behavioral thermoregulation strategies of the Atlantic marsh fiddler crab Minuca pugnax

Field-based body temperatures reveal behavioral thermoregulation strategies of the Atlantic marsh fiddler crab Minuca pugnax

Salt marsh vegetation and secured woody debris facilitate the recolonization of Avicennia germinans

Field-based body temperatures reveal behavioral thermoregulation strategies of the Atlantic marsh fiddler crabMinuca pugnax

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