Postmortem changes in strength of gastropod shells: evolutionary implications for hermit crabs, snails, and their mutual predators

LaBarbera, Michael; Merz, Rachel

doi:10.1017/s0094837300010940

Cited by 45 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…Shell epibionts may aid hermit crab protection against predators (Ross 1971, Partdrige 1980, Turra 2003, but see Buckley & Ebersole 1994 but, in some coastal areas, hermit crabs may use shells in poorer condition (physical damage) than those of the snails (A. Turra unpubl. data), which can make them more vulnerable to predation (Vance 1972b, McClintock 1985, LaBarbera & Merz 1992. In addition, low shell adequacy and condition, which is also common to most intertidal species (Vance 1972a, Bertness 1980, Gilchrist & Abele 1984, Barnes 1999, Turra 2003, may also increase hermit crab vulnerability to predation (Angel 2000) in relation to gastropods.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Predation on gastropods by shell-breaking crabs: effects on shell availability to hermit crabs

Turra¹,

Denadai²,

Leite³

2005

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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This study addressed the effect predation on gastropods by shell-breaking crabs has on shell availability to hermit crabs.(1) Variable rates of predation on the gastropod Cerithium atratum were recorded within and among the crab species Menippe nodifrons, Panopeus occidentalis, Eriphia gonagra, and Callinectes danae. Predation rate was more dependent on crab size than on crab species, and all predators consumed the largest individuals of C. atratum available. nodifrons generally crushed its prey, C. danae and E. gonagra used both peeling and crushing, and P. occidentalis generally peeled. Crushing was usually lethal, while peeling attempts resulted in higher prey survival. Predatory strategy was dependent on relative prey size: small shells were crushed, medium-sized were peeled, and large ones were nondestructively preyed upon through the aperture. (5) Most shells used by the hermit crab Pagurus criniticornis (68%) in nature presented damage very similar to that recorded for gastropods preyed upon experimentally, indicating that this kind of predation makes new shells available to hermit crabs. (6) M. nodifrons showed a clear preference for the gastropod C. atratum over the hermit crab P. criniticornis, suggesting differential predation pressures in nature. In conclusion, shell availability to hermit crabs was demonstrated to be dependent on predator species and size, gastropod architectural defenses, and on the relative predator-prey size, which determined the predatory strategy and the damage inflicted on the shells.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Predation on gastropods by shell-breaking crabs: effects on shell availability to hermit crabs

Turra¹,

Denadai²,

Leite³

2005

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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“…Even if other methods are found superior for application to seaweeds, LEFM might be well applied to some plant materials such as leaves and wood (Farquhar and Zhao, 2006) or to shells to predict cycles to failure during predator loadings (e.g. Boulding and LaBarbera, 1986;LaBarbera and Merz, 1992) or wave force impositions.…”

Section: Lifetimementioning

confidence: 99%

Techniques for predicting the lifetimes of wave-swept macroalgae: a primer on fracture mechanics and crack growth

Mach

Nelson

Denny

2007

Journal of Experimental Biology

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SUMMARY Biomechanical analyses of intertidal and shallow subtidal seaweeds have elucidated ways in which these organisms avoid breakage in the presence of exceptional hydrodynamic forces imposed by pounding surf. However, comparison of algal material properties to maximum hydrodynamic forces predicts lower rates of breakage and dislodgment than are actually observed. Why the disparity between prediction and reality? Most previous research has measured algal material properties during a single application of force, equivalent to a single wave rushing past an alga. In contrast, intertidal macroalgae may experience more than 8000 waves a day. This repeated loading can cause cracks– introduced, for example, by herbivory or abrasion – to grow and eventually cause breakage, yet fatigue crack growth has not previously been taken into account. Here, we present methods from the engineering field of fracture mechanics that can be used to assess consequences of repeated force imposition for seaweeds. These techniques allow quantification of crack growth in wave-swept macroalgae, a first step towards considering macroalgal breakage in the realistic context of repeated force imposition. These analyses can also be applied to many other soft materials.

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“…This suggests that Pagurus maclaughlinae responds to the presence of gastropods as the ultimate provider of its shell resource (hermit crabs may also be tracking gastropods as a potential food source). The association between aggregations of hermit crabs and gastropods may be evolutionarily beneficial if the rate of decline in shell integrity upon the death of the gastropod inhabitant is rapid (LaBarbera & Merz 1992). At least some aggregations of P. maclaughlinae also occurred where few or no empty shells were found.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Relationships between a hermit crab and its shell resource: spatial patterns within a seagrass-dominated landscape

Robbins

Bell²

2004

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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Abundance patterns of the hermit crab Pagurus maclaughlinae and its gastropod shell resources were compared to one another across the shallow subtidal landscape within Tampa Bay, Florida at a landscape (4.88 ha) and a sub-landscape (1 m 2 ) scale. Specifically, we investigated whether the spatial abundance patterns of P. maclaughlinae over time could be explained by the abundance patterns of either future resources (i.e. live gastropods) or present resources (i.e. empty gastropod shells). The seagrass landscape was sampled for seagrass, hermit crabs, live gastropods and empty gastropod shells during the spring and fall of 1994 and 1995. The distribution of P. maclaughlinae could be explained by the distribution of its gastropod shell resources when the spatial organization of both P. maclaughlinae and these resources were compared across the landscape. Physical measures of the dominant seagrass Halodule wrightii (i.e. canopy height and shoot density) appeared to be unrelated to the distribution of P. maclaughlinae and either of its shell resources (present or future) across the landscape. These results suggest that hermit crabs track their 'limited' resources (i.e. gastropod shells) when viewed over the spatial scales examined here. Furthermore, our results suggest that the spatial distribution of future, as well as present resources, adds insight into patterns of hermit crab abundance.

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Postmortem changes in strength of gastropod shells: evolutionary implications for hermit crabs, snails, and their mutual predators

Cited by 45 publications

References 42 publications

Predation on gastropods by shell-breaking crabs: effects on shell availability to hermit crabs

Predation on gastropods by shell-breaking crabs: effects on shell availability to hermit crabs

Techniques for predicting the lifetimes of wave-swept macroalgae: a primer on fracture mechanics and crack growth

Relationships between a hermit crab and its shell resource: spatial patterns within a seagrass-dominated landscape

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