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Perez DM, Klunk CL, Araujo SBL. Imperfect synchrony in animal displays: why does it occur and what is the true role of leadership? Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2021; 376:20200339. [PMID: 34420387 PMCID: PMC8384059 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0339] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Synchrony can be defined as the precise coordination between independent individuals, and this behaviour is more enigmatic when it is imperfect. The traditional theoretical explanation for imperfect synchronous courtship is that it arises as a by-product of the competition between males to broadcast leading signals to attract female attention. This competition is considered an evolutionary stable strategy maintained through sexual selection. However, previous studies have revealed that leading signals are not honest indicators of male quality. We studied imperfect courtship synchrony in fiddler crabs to mainly test whether (i) signal leadership and rate are defined by male quality and (ii) signal leadership generates synchrony. Fiddler crab males wave their enlarged claws during courtship, and females prefer leading males-displaying ahead of their neighbour(s). We filmed groups of waving males in the field to detect how often individuals were leaders and if they engaged in synchrony. Overall, we found that courtship effort is not directly related to male size, a general proxy for quality. Contrary to the long-standing assumption, we also revealed that leadership is not directly related to group synchrony, but faster wave rate correlates with both leadership and synchrony. This article is part of the theme issue 'Synchrony and rhythm interaction: from the brain to behavioural ecology'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniela M. Perez
- Graduate Program in Ecology and Conservation, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Parana 81531-990, Brazil
| | - Cristian L. Klunk
- Graduate Program in Ecology and Conservation, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Parana 81531-990, Brazil
| | - Sabrina B. L. Araujo
- Department of Physics, Laboratory of Biological Interactions, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Parana 81531-990, Brazil
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Xiang H, Li K, Cao L, Zhang Z, Yang H. Impacts of pollution, sex, and tide on the time allocations to behaviours of Uca arcuata in mangroves. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2020; 742:140609. [PMID: 32721739 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140609] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2019] [Revised: 03/13/2020] [Accepted: 06/27/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Fiddler crabs (Uca) are ecosystem engineers in coastal ecosystems. Many anthropogenic and natural factors can affect the time allocated to various behaviours in Uca. However, the behaviour of U. arcuata, a widely distributed fiddler crab in Asia, has not been studied in mainland China. Here, we used binoculars to record the time budget of ten behaviours of U. arcuata to investigate the potential effects of sex, tides, and pollution on these behaviours. We found that the crabs spent 42.3%, 27.0%, and 10.6% of their time on feeding, feeding while walking, and stationary respectively. The crabs spent <1.5% of their time on copulation and grooming. The total foraging time (feeding + feeding while walking) did not differ among the three polluted sites. However, crabs spent more time on feeding but less time on feeding while walking. The feeding rate and probability of burrowing and grooming decreased while the possibility of locomotion and stay in burrow increased with increasing nutrient concentration. Females spent 13.9% more time on feeding and fed 54.9% faster than males. Males had a higher tendency to grooming and combat while they were less likely to walk than females. Regarding to the influence of tide, fiddler crabs fed 11.2% faster at ebb tides than at flood tides, and they were more likely to walk and stay in burrows at flood tides than at ebb tides. Our results indicated that nutrient pollution had stronger impacts on the behaviours of crabs than sex and tide. In polluted mangroves, increasing nutrient concentration reduced the quantity of sediment processed by fiddler crabs due to their smaller feeding area, slower feeding rate, and reduced frequency of burrowing activities. These results imply that mitigating nutrient pollution in mangroves may benefit the restoration and management of coastal ecosystems through the enhanced engineering functions of fiddler crabs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongyong Xiang
- Key Laboratory of Vegetation Ecology, Ministry of Education, Institute of Grassland Science, Northeast Normal University, Changchun, Jilin 130024, China; Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, Yunnan 650500, China
| | - Kun Li
- Heilongjiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Ecological Restoration and Resource Utilization for Cold Region, Heilongjiang University, Harbin 150080, China
| | - Lina Cao
- State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecology and Vegetation Restoration, Northeast Normal University, Changchun, Jilin 130024, China; Ecology and Environment Department of Jilin Province, Changchun, Jilin 130024, China
| | - Zhenxing Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Vegetation Ecology, Ministry of Education, Institute of Grassland Science, Northeast Normal University, Changchun, Jilin 130024, China; State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecology and Vegetation Restoration, Northeast Normal University, Changchun, Jilin 130024, China.
| | - Haijun Yang
- Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, Yunnan 650500, China.
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Dyson ML, Perez DM, Curran T, McCullough EL, Backwell PRY. The role of claw color in species recognition and mate choice in a fiddler crab. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-020-02899-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Many animal signals are brightly colored and convey information about species identity as well as information about individual conspecifics. Colorful bird and lizard signals have received much attention, and many studies have related specific spectral properties of these signals to variation in mating success and territory defense. Far less attention has been given to invertebrates even though there are spectacularly colorful species. The enlarged claw of the male banana fiddler crab Austruca mjoebergi, for example, is bright yellow and contrasts vividly against the mudflat substrate. It is used in waving displays to attract females and in male territory defense and combat. Claw color varies among males in the degree of “yellowness,” ranging very pale yellow to orange. In this study, we examined female responses to claw color variation in two-choice tests using robotic crabs. We found that although females strongly discriminate against colors that fall outside the natural range of intensity, hue, and chroma, they show no consistent preferences for different claw colors within the natural range, and no single component of claw color (hue, chroma, or intensity) independently affected female choices. Using three-choice tests, we also showed that female preferences induce stabilizing selection on male claw color. We conclude that, although claw color is sufficient to facilitate species recognition, it is unlikely to be used in intraspecific mate choice to provide information about male quality.
Significance statement
Fiddler crabs are often brightly colored, are visually orientated animals, and have a highly complex social system. Despite this, there are few studies that have looked at the role of color in species recognition and mate choice in these animals. In this study, we use robotic crabs with painted claws to determine the role of claw color in species recognition and mate choice in the banana fiddler crab, Austruca mjoebergi. We found that color is important in conspecific mate recognition but the variation among males in claw “yellowness” is unlikely to be used by females in intraspecific mate choice decisions.
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Mitoyen C, Quigley C, Fusani L. Evolution and function of multimodal courtship displays. Ethology 2019; 125:503-515. [PMID: 31341343 PMCID: PMC6618153 DOI: 10.1111/eth.12882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2018] [Revised: 04/10/2019] [Accepted: 04/12/2019] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Courtship displays are behaviours aimed to facilitate attraction and mating with the opposite sex and are very common across the animal kingdom. Most courtship displays are multimodal, meaning that they are composed of concomitant signals occurring in different sensory modalities. Although courtship often strongly influences reproductive success, the question of why and how males use multimodal courtship to increase their fitness has not yet received much attention. Very little is known about the role of different components of male courtship and their relative importance for females. Indeed, most of the work on courtship displays have focused on effects on female choice, often neglecting other possible roles. Additionally, a number of scientists have recently stressed the importance of considering the complexity of a display and the interactions between its different components in order to grasp all the information contained in those multimodal signals. Unfortunately, these methods have not yet been extensively adapted in courtship studies. The aim of this study was to review what is currently known about the functional significance of courtship displays, particularly about the role of multimodality in the courtship communication context. Emphasis is placed on those cases where a complete picture of the communication system can only be assessed by taking complexity and interaction between different modalities into account.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Cliodhna Quigley
- Department of Cognitive BiologyUniversity of ViennaViennaAustria
- Konrad Lorenz Institute of EthologyUniversity of Veterinary MedicineViennaAustria
| | - Leonida Fusani
- Department of Cognitive BiologyUniversity of ViennaViennaAustria
- Konrad Lorenz Institute of EthologyUniversity of Veterinary MedicineViennaAustria
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5
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Effect of sand texture on nest quality and mating success in a fish with parental care. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-019-2711-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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Perez DM, Backwell PRY. Selection for conspicuous visual signals in a fiddler crab. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-019-2670-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
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Zeng H, Wee SSE, Painting CJ, Zhang S, Li D. Equivalent effect of UV coloration and vibratory signal on mating success in a jumping spider. Behav Ecol 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/ary167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Hua Zeng
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Samantha S E Wee
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Christina J Painting
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag, Auckland Mail Centre, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Shichang Zhang
- Center for Behavioral Ecology & Evolution, State Key Laboratory of Biocatalysis and Enzyme Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Hubei University, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Daiqin Li
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore
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Bent AM, Ings TC, Mowles SL. Anthropogenic noise disrupts mate searching in Gryllus bimaculatus. Behav Ecol 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/ary126] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Adam M Bent
- Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Anglia Ruskin University, East Road, Cambridge CB1 1PT, UK
| | - Thomas C Ings
- Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Anglia Ruskin University, East Road, Cambridge CB1 1PT, UK
| | - Sophie L Mowles
- Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Anglia Ruskin University, East Road, Cambridge CB1 1PT, UK
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Multimodal signaling in fiddler crab: waving to attract mates is condition-dependent but other sexual signals are not. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2018. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-018-2555-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
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