Video Playback Experiments Testing the Function of Claw Waving in the Sand Fiddler Crab

Pope, Denise S.

doi:10.1163/156853900501962

Cited by 16 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Another possible reason is that synchrony functions in inter-male communication as well as mate attraction. A male's ability to produce leading waves may indicate his 'quality' to females as well as to other males (for a review, see Pope 2000). This may result in neighbouring males less often challenging leaders in border disputes or burrowless males less often attempting to usurp the burrows of leading signallers.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Synchronous waving in two species of fiddler crabs

et al. 2006

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In the fiddler crabs Uca saltitanta and Uca perplexa, males attract mates by waving their enlarged claws. We show that in both species waving is closely synchronised between neighbouring males in clusters, both in the presence of mate-searching females and in their absence. Wandering females visit those males in the cluster that produce more waves at faster wave rates. In U. perplexa, they also selectively visit those males that produce the greatest number of leading waves. Synchronous waving may be the result of a precedence effect causing male competition to produce leading signals.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Synchronous waving in two species of fiddler crabs

et al. 2006

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“…For example, claw-waving in male fiddler crabs, Uca pugilator, is context-dependent and primarily directed at females. Although other males may be present during signaling, potential recipient males are not attentive to the displays and therefore do not elicit claw-waving in the absence of females (Pope, 2000a;Pope, 2000b). Dualfunction signals such as birdsong used for mate attraction, territoriality and defense are also relatively common (Berglund et al, 1996).…”

Section: Evolution Of Electrocommunication Signals: Does Form Predictmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stimulus frequency differentially affects chirping in two species of weakly electric fish: implications for the evolution of signal structure and function

Kolodziejski

Sanford

Smith

2007

Journal of Experimental Biology

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Weakly electric fish in the genus Apteronotus provide a unique vertebrate model for studying the evolutionary interplay between signal structure, production, and function in complex communication systems. This diverse group of fish produces quasisinusoidal electric organ discharges (EODs) for electrolocation and communication. EODs are relatively simple and are easy to record, analyze and manipulate. These signals can vary in frequency, amplitude and waveform, and therefore reliably convey information about species, sex and individual identity (Hopkins, 1988;Smith, 1999;Zakon and Smith, 2002).In many species, sex differences in EOD frequency are stable enough to unambiguously distinguish males from females. In the brown ghost knifefish Apteronotus leptorhynchus, males produce EODs between 800 and 1000·Hz whereas females produce lower-frequency EODs between 600 and 750·Hz (Hagedorn and Heiligenberg, 1985;Kirschbaum, 1983;Meyer et al., 1987). In the closely related black ghost knifefish Apteronotus albifrons, EOD frequency is also sexually dimorphic, but in the opposite direction. In this species, females discharge at higher frequencies than males (Dunlap et al., 1998;Kolodziejski et al., 2005).EODs in both A. leptorhynchus and A. albifrons can be modulated to produce discrete signals that are often sexually dimorphic and species-specific. EOD modulations known as chirps and rises are transient changes in the frequency and/or amplitude of an otherwise constant-frequency EOD. Chirps are produced most often in response to social stimulation and vary in structure both within and between species. Several studies have proposed that chirps, and to a lesser extent rises, function as intraspecific communication signals (Bastian et al., 2001;Dunlap and Larkins-Ford, 2003;Engler et al., 2000;Hagedorn and Heiligenberg, 1985;Kolodziejski et al., 2005;Tallarovic and Zakon, 2002;Triefenbach and Zakon, 2003;Zupanc and Maler, 1993).Chirps can be classified into categories based on frequency excursion and duration. Although the classification of chirp types differs somewhat across studies, two broad classes of chirps, low-frequency and high-frequency chirps, are consistently described in A. leptorhynchus

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“…1). The major claw is used to attract potential mates and in male-male territoriality conflicts (Christy and Salmon 1984;Pope 2000a). The highly ritualistic mating behaviors and extreme dimorphism in claw size have stimulated a large number of studies that explore the form, function, and costs of sexual dimorphism in fiddler crabs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Male fiddler crabs perform elaborate, species-specific claw-waving displays that consist of moving the claw in vertical and/or lateral motions (Crane 1975;How et al 2009). This waving attracts potential mates (Pope 2000a(Pope , 2000b, possibly because the movement captures the attention of females. The waving display varies on the basis of the context and the distance to females.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The waving display varies on the basis of the context and the distance to females. Low-intensity waving advertises the presence of the male and the breeding burrow over long distances, while highintensity waving occurs when females are in close proximity and is directed toward a specific female (Pope 2005). Males with a larger major claw relative to their body size are more successful in attracting potential mates than are males with a relatively smaller major claw, suggesting that claw size also plays a role in female choice (Oliveira and Custodio 1998;Pratt and McLain 2002;McLain and Pratt 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Thermoregulation as an Alternate Function of the Sexually Dimorphic Fiddler Crab Claw

Darnell

Munguia

2011

The American Naturalist

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JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.. abstract: Fiddler crabs are highly sexually dimorphic. Males possess one small (minor) feeding claw and one greatly enlarged (major) claw; females possess two small claws. The major claw is used to attract mates and for burrow defense, but it is costly for the male to possess. We tested the hypothesis that the major claw also functions as a thermoregulatory structure, a function that would allow males to spend a greater amount of time at the surface, foraging and attracting potential mates. Fiddler crabs Uca panacea were exposed to a source of radiant heat and body temperatures were monitored.Four groups of crabs were tested: intact males, males with the minor claw removed, males with the major claw removed, and females. The body temperatures of males without the major claw increased more rapidly and reached higher values than did those of males with the major claw intact, but the results from these animals were similar to those of females. These results support the hypothesized thermoregulatory function of the major claw. The major claw may function as a heat sink, transferring heat away from the body and dissipating it into the air. Enhanced thermoregulatory ability provided by the major claw may partially ameliorate the energetic costs of possessing such a large claw.

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Video Playback Experiments Testing the Function of Claw Waving in the Sand Fiddler Crab

Cited by 16 publications

References 24 publications

Synchronous waving in two species of fiddler crabs

Synchronous waving in two species of fiddler crabs

Stimulus frequency differentially affects chirping in two species of weakly electric fish: implications for the evolution of signal structure and function

Thermoregulation as an Alternate Function of the Sexually Dimorphic Fiddler Crab Claw

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