Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Are ghost crabs (Ocypode spp.) smaller on human-disturbed sandy beaches? A global analysis

  • Primary Research Paper
  • Published:
Hydrobiologia Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Testing ghost crabs as indicator species usually fail to depict the mechanisms behind low burrow densities in urban coasts, neglecting individual traits as diagnostic variables. We conducted meta-analyses to compare the diameter of ghost crab burrow openings across gradients of human disturbances. Length–weight regressions were calculated, hypothesizing that crabs condition differ between beaches with high and low disturbance. The dataset regarding burrow opening diameter included 78 beaches (latitudes between 36° N and 30° S), and length–weight regressions were calculated based on 1,172 crabs data from 11 beaches (latitudes between 23° N and 30° S). Mean burrow diameter was smaller in high disturbance beaches, but a linear relationship with the level of human modification was not found in our gradient analysis. The higher the number of stressors acting locally, the greater the negative effects on burrow diameter. The body condition of ghost crabs was lower in high disturbance beaches; this result challenges the hypothesis that ghost crabs are smaller on disturbed beaches merely because individuals die before reaching adult ages. Our results have implications within the scope of ghost crab ecology, particularly regarding the inclusion of trait variation in investigations of mechanisms underlying spatial contrasts and in application of ecological-disturbance indicators.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

Data availability

The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

References

  • Acuña, E. O. & E. Jaramillo, 2015. Macroinfauna en playas arenosas de la costa del Norte Grande de Chile sometidas a diferentes presiones antrópicas. Revista De Biología Marina Y Oceanografía 50: 299–313.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aheto, D., C. Asare, E. Mensah & J. Aggrey-Fynn, 2011. Rapid assessment of anthropogenic impacts of exposed sandy beaches in Ghana using Ghost Crabs (Ocypode spp.) as ecological indicators. Momona Ethiopian Journal of Science 3: 93–103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alberto, R. & N. Fontoura, 1999. Distribuição e estrutura etária de Ocypode quadrata (Fabricius, 1787) (Crustacea, Decapoda, Ocypodidae) em praia arenosa do litoral Sul do Brasil. Revista Brasileira De Biologia 59: 95–108.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Araujo, C., D. D. M. Rosa & J. M. Fernandes, 2008. Densidade e distribuição espacial do caranguejo Ocypode quadrata (Fabricius, 1787) (Crustacea, Ocypodidae) em três praias arenosas do Espírito Santo, Brasil. Biotemas 21: 73–80.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bal, M., B. Çağrı Yapan & K. Özkan, 2021. The response of Tufted Ghost Crab, Ocypode cursor, populations to recreational activities in an urbanized coast with small-scale protected zones. Zoology in the Middle East 67: 32–41.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barton, B. T. & J. D. Roth, 2008. Implications of intraguild predation for sea turtle nest protection. Biological Conservation 141: 2139–2149.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berger, D., M. Olofsson, M. Friberg, B. Karlsson, C. Wiklund & K. Gotthard, 2012. Intraspecific variation in body size and the rate of reproduction in female insects - adaptive allometry or biophysical constraint? Journal of Animal Ecology 81: 1244–1258.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bivand, R., T. Keitt, & B. Rowlingson, 2021. rgdal: Bindings for the ’Geospatial. , Data Abstraction Library. R package version 1.5–19, https://cran.r-project.org/package=rgdal.

  • Bolnick, D. I., P. Amarasekare, M. S. Araújo, R. Bürger, J. M. Levine, M. Novak, V. H. W. Rudolf, S. J. Schreiber, M. C. Urban & D. A. Vasseur, 2011. Why intraspecific trait variation matters in community ecology. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 26: 183–192.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, J. H. & B. A. Maurer, 1989. Macroecology: the division of food and space among species on continents. Science 243(4895): 1145–1150.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Burrows, M. & G. Hoyle, 1973. The Mechanism of rapid running in the ghost crab, Ocypode Ceratophthalma. Journal of Experimental Biology 58: 327–349.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Campbell, M. D., D. S. Schoeman, W. Venables, R. Abu-Alhaija, S. D. Batten, S. Chiba, F. Coman, C. H. Davies, M. Edwards, R. S. Eriksen, J. D. Everett, Y. Fukai, M. Fukuchi, O. Esquivel Garrote, G. Hosie, J. A. Huggett, D. G. Johns, J. A. Kitchener, P. Koubbi, F. R. McEnnulty, E. Muxagata, C. Ostle, K. V. Robinson, A. Slotwinski, K. M. Swadling, K. T. Takahashi, M. Tonks, J. Uribe-Palomino, H. M. Verheye, W. H. Wilson, M. M. Worship, A. Yamaguchi, W. Zhang & A. J. Richardson, 2021. Testing Bergmann’s rule in marine copepods. Ecography 44: 1283–1295.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Caro, T., 2010. Conservation by Proxy: Indicator, Umbrella, Keystone, Flagship, and Other Surrogates, Island Press, Washington, Covelo, London:

    Google Scholar 

  • Celentano, E., N. L. Gutiérrez & O. Defeo, 2010. Effects of morphodynamic and estuarine gradients on the demography and distribution of a sandy beach mole crab: Implications for source-sink habitat dynamics. Marine Ecology Progress Series 398: 193–205.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Classen, A., I. Steffan-Dewenter, W. J. Kindeketa & M. K. Peters, 2017. Integrating intraspecific variation in community ecology unifies theories on body size shifts along climatic gradients. Functional Ecology 31: 768–777.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Contreras, H., E. Jaramillo, C. Duarte & A. McLachlan, 2003. Population abundances, growth and natural mortality of the crustacean macroinfauna at two sand beach morphodynamic types in southern Chile. Revista Chilena De Historia Natural 76: 543–561.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Costa, L. L. & I. R. Zalmon, 2019. Multiple metrics of the ghost crab Ocypode quadrata (Fabricius, 1787) for impact assessments on sandy beaches. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 218: 237–245.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Costa, L. L., D. C. Tavares, M. C. Suciu, D. F. Rangel & I. R. Zalmon, 2017. Human-induced changes in the trophic functioning of sandy beaches. Ecological Indicators 82: 304–315.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Costa, L. L., L. Fanini, I. R. Zalmon & O. Defeo, 2020. Macroinvertebrates as indicators of human disturbances: a global review. Ecological Indicators 118: 106764.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Costa, L. L., L. Fanini, I. R. Zalmon, O. Defeo & A. McLachlan, 2022. Cumulative stressors impact macrofauna differentially according to sandy beach type: a meta-analysis. Journal of Environmental Management 307: 114594.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • de Barboza, C. A. M., G. Mattos, A. Soares-Gomes, I. R. Zalmon, & L. L. Costa, 2021. Low densities of the ghost crab Ocypode quadrata related to large scale human modification of sandy shores. Frontiers in Marine Science 8: 589542.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Oliveira, C. A. G., G. N. Souza & A. Soares-gomes, 2016. Measuring burrows as a feasible non-destructive method for studying the population dynamics of ghost crabs. Marine Biodiversity 46: 809–817.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Defeo, O. & M. Elliott, 2021. The ‘triple whammy’ of coasts under threat—why we should be worried! Marine Pollution Bulletin 163: 111832.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Defeo, O., A. McLachlan, D. Armitage, M. Elliott & J. Pittman, 2021. Sandy beach social–ecological systems at risk: regime shifts, collapses, and governance challenges. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 19(10): 564–573.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dixon, R. W., S. L. Peters, C. G. Townsend, R. W. Dixon, S. L. Peters & C. G. Townsend, 2015. Burrowing preferences of Atlantic ghost crab, Ocypode quadrata, in relation to sand compaction in Padre Island National Seashore, Texas. Physical Geography Taylor & Francis 36: 188–201.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fanini, L., O. Defeo, S. dos Cecilia, & S. Felicita, 2009. Testing the habitat safety hypothesis with behavioural field experiments: amphipod orientation on sandy beaches with contrasting morphodynamics. Marine Ecology Progress Series 392: 133–141.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frota, G. P., T. M. B. Cabrini & R. S. Cardoso, 2019. Fluctuating asymmetry of two crustacean species on fourteen sandy beaches of Rio de Janeiro State. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 223: 138–146.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gül, M. R. & B. D. Griffen, 2018a. Impacts of human disturbance on ghost crab burrow morphology and distribution on sandy shores. PLoS One 13: e0209977.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Gül, M. R. & B. D. Griffen, 2018b. A reliable bioindicator of anthropogenic impact on the coast of South Carolina. Southeastern Naturalist 17: 357–364.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gül, M. R. & B. D. Griffen, 2019. Burrowing behavior and burrowing energetics of a bioindicator under human disturbance. Ecology and Evolution 9: 14205–14216.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Gül, M. R. & B. D. Griffen, 2020a. Changes in claw morphology of a bioindicator species across habitats that differ in human disturbance. Hydrobiologia 847: 3025–3037.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gül, M. R. & B. D. Griffen, 2020b. Diet, energy storage, and reproductive condition in a bioindicator species across beaches with different levels of human disturbance. Ecological Indicators 117: 106636.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Haley, S. R., 1969. Relative growth and sexual maturity of the Texas ghost crab, Ocypode quadrata (Fabr.) (Brachyura, Ocypodidae). Crustaceana 17: 285–297.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hamid, A., A. Hamid & A. Hamid, 2018. Carapace width-weight relationships and condition factor of blue swimming crab, Portunus pelagicus Linnaeus, 1758 (Crustacea: Decapoda) in Lasongko Bay, Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia. Advances in Environmental Biology 12: 14–21.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hijmans, R. J., 2020. raster: Geographic Data Analysis and Modeling. , R package version 3.4–5., https://cran.r-project.org/package=raster.

  • Jonah, F. E., N. W. Agbo, W. Agbeti, D. Adjei-Boateng & M. J. Shimba, 2015a. The ecological effects of beach sand mining in ghana using ghost crabs (Ocypode species) as biological indicators. Ocean and Coastal Management 112: 18–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jonah, F. E., D. W. Aheto, D. Adjei-boateng, N. W. Agbo, I. Boateng & M. J. Shimba, 2015b. Human use and modification of beaches and dunes are linked to ghost crab (Ocypode spp.) population decline in Ghana. Regional Studies in Marine Science 2: 87–94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kennedy, C. M., J. R. Oakleaf, D. M. Theobald, S. Baruch-Mordo & J. Kiesecker, 2019. Managing the middle: a shift in conservation priorities based on the global human modification gradient. Global Change Biology 25: 811–826.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Leinaas, H. P., M. Jalal, T. M. Gabrielsen & D. O. Hessen, 2016. Inter- and intraspecific variation in body- and genome size in calanoid copepods from temperate and arctic waters. Ecology and Evolution 6: 5585–5595.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Lucrezi, S., T. A. Schlacher & W. Robinson, 2009. Human disturbance as a cause of bias in ecological indicators for sandy beaches: experimental evidence for the effects of human trampling on ghost crabs (Ocypode spp.). Ecological Indicators 9: 913–921.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lucrezi, S., T. A. Schlacher & W. Robinson, 2010. Can storms and shore armouring exert additive effects on sandy-beach habitats and biota? Marine and Freshwater Research 61: 951–962.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lucrezi, S., M. Saayman & P. Van Der Merwe, 2014. Impact of off-road vehicles (ORVs) on ghost crabs of sandy beaches with traffic restrictions: a case study of Sodwana Bay, South Africa. Environmental Management 53: 520–533.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Maccarone, A. & P. Mathews, 2007. Effect of human disturbance on the abundance and spatial distribution of the Atlantic Ghost Crab (Ocypode quadrata) (Fabricius 1798) on a Texas beach. Texas Journal of Science 59: 1–6.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mathews, A., L. Patrick & D. Alan, 2019. Responses by Atlantic ghost crab (Ocypode quadrata) populations to hurricane impacts on a Texas beach: a 10-Year study. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science 122: 59–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McLachlan, A. & A. Dorvlo, 2005. Global Patterns in sandy beach macrobenthic communities. Journal of Coastal Research 214: 674–687.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ocaña, F. A., A. De Jesús-Navarrete, R. M. De Jesús-Carrillo & J. J. Oliva-Rivera, 2016. Efectos del disturbio humano sobre la dinámica poblacional de Ocypode quadrata (Decapoda: Ocypodidae) en playas del Caribe Mexicano. Revista De Biologia Tropical 64: 1625–1641.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ocaña, F. A., A. de Jesús-Navarrete & H. A. Hernández-Arana, 2020. Co-occurring factors affecting ghost crab density at four sandy beaches in the Mexican Caribbean. Regional Studies in Marine Science 36: 101310.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Olurin, K. & O. A. Aderibigbe, 2006. Length-weight relationship and condition factor of pond reared juvenile Oreochromis niloticus. World Journal of Zoology 1: 82–85.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ortodossi, N. L., B. L. Gilby, T. A. Schlacher, R. M. Connolly, N. A. Yabsley, C. J. Henderson, & A. D. Olds, 2013. Effects of seascape connectivity on reserve performance along exposed coastlines. Conservation Biology 33: 580–589.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pombo, M. & A. Turra, 2013. Issues to be considered in counting burrows as a measure of Atlantic ghost crab populations, an important bioindicator of sandy beaches. PLoS One 8: e83792.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pombo, M. & A. Turra, 2019. The burrow resetting method, an easy and effective approach to improve indirect ghost-crab population assessments. Ecological Indicators 104: 422–428.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pombo, M., A. L. De Oliveira, L. Y. Xavier, E. Siegle & A. Turra, 2017. Natural drivers of distribution of ghost crabs Ocypode quadrata and the implications of estimates from burrows. Marine Ecology Progress Series 565: 131–147.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Quijón, P., E. Jaramillo & H. Contreras, 2001. Distribution and habitat structure of Ocypode gaudichaudii H. Milne Edwards & Lucas, 1843, in sandy beaches of northern Chile. Crustaceana 74: 91–103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rae, C., G. A. Hyndes & T. A. Schlacher, 2019. Trophic ecology of ghost crabs with diverse tastes: unwilling vegetarians. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 224: 272–280.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Reyes-Martínez, M. J., D. Lercari, M. C. Ruíz-Delgado, J. E. Sánchez-Moyano, A. Jiménez-Rodríguez, A. Pérez-Hurtado & F. J. García-García, 2014. Human pressure on sandy beaches: implications for trophic functioning. Estuaries and Coasts 38: 1782–1796.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schlacher, T. A. & S. Lucrezi, 2010. Experimental evidence that vehicle traffic changes burrow architecture and reduces population density of ghost crabs on sandy beaches. Vie Et Milieu 60: 313–320.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schlacher, T. A., R. De Jager & T. Nielsen, 2011. Vegetation and ghost crabs in coastal dunes as indicators of putative stressors from tourism. Ecological Indicators 11: 284–294.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schlacher, T. A., S. Lucrezi, R. M. Connolly, C. H. Peterson, B. L. Gilby, B. Maslo, A. D. Olds, S. J. Walker, J. X. Leon, C. M. Huijbers, M. A. Weston, A. Turra, G. A. Hyndes, R. A. Holt & D. S. Schoeman, 2016a. Human threats to sandy beaches: a meta-analysis of ghost crabs illustrates global anthropogenic impacts. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 169: 56–73.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schlacher, T. A., S. Lucrezi, C. H. Peterson, R. M. Connolly, A. D. Olds, F. Althaus, G. A. Hyndes, B. Maslo, B. L. Gilby, J. X. Leon, M. A. Weston, M. Lastra, A. Williams & D. S. Schoeman, 2016b. Estimating animal populations and body sizes from burrows: marine ecologists have their heads buried in the sand. Journal of Sea Research 112: 55–64.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schlacher, T. A., L. Thompson & S. Price, 2007. Vehicles versus conservation of invertebrates on sandy beaches: mortalities inflicted by off-road vehicles on ghost crabs. Marine Ecology 28: 354–367.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tewfik, A., S. S. Bell, K. S. Mccann & K. Morrow, 2016. Predator diet and trophic position modified with altered habitat morphology. PLoS ONE 11: e0147759.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Turra, A., M. A. O. Gonçalves & M. R. Denadai, 2005. Spatial distribution of the ghost crab Ocypode quadrata in low - energy tide - dominated sandy beaches. Journal of Natural History 39: 2163–2177.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vargas-fonseca, E., A. D. Olds, B. L. Gilby, M. Rod, D. S. Schoeman, C. M. Huijbers, G. A. Hyndes, T. A. Schlacher & J. Muir, 2016. Combined effects of urbanization and connectivity on iconic coastal fishes. Diversity and Distributions 22: 1–14.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Watson, G. S., E. A. Gregory, C. Johnstone, M. Berlino, D. W. Green, N. R. Peterson, D. S. Schoeman & J. A. Watson, 2018. Like night and day: reversals of thermal gradients across ghost crab burrows and their implications for thermal ecology. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 203: 127–136.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Witman, J. D. & K. Roy, 2009. Marine Macroecology, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago and London:

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Yogamoorthi, A. & R. Siva Sankar, 2010. Carapace length/width-weight relationship of Ocypode macrocera population from Pondicherry Sandy Beaches, South East Coast of India. Journal of Coastal Environment 1: 127–136.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yong, A. Y. P. & S. S. L. Lim, 2009. The potential of Ocypode ceratophthalmus (Pallas, 1772) as a bioindicator of human disturbance on Singapore Beaches. Crustaceana 82: 1579–1597.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Gustavo Mattos who helped us to gather the Human Modification Metric (HMM). LLC is supported by the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro—FAPERJ (204.377/2021). FAO is supported by the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología de México (CONACYT; I1200/94/2020). VFA was supported by the Brazilian Agency for Research Development—CNPq (154766/2020-8). AS-G is supported by CNPq (301475/2017-2). IRZ is supported by FAPERJ (259920/2021) and CNPq (301203/2019-9).

Funding

Funding was provided by Fundação Carlos Chagas Filho de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (204.377/2021, 259920/2021), Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (I1200/94/2020), and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (154766/2020-8, 301203/2019-9).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratório de Ciências Ambientais, Campos dos Goytacazes, Universidade Estadual Do Norte Fluminense Darcy Ribeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Leonardo Lopes Costa, Vitor Figueira Arueira & Ilana Rosental Zalmon

  2. Escuela Nacional de Estudios Superiores Unidad Mérida, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ucú, Yucatán, Mexico

    Frank A. Ocaña

  3. Laboratório de Ecologia de Sedimentos, Departamento de Biologia Marinha, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Abilio Soares-Gomes

Authors
  1. Leonardo Lopes Costa
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Vitor Figueira Arueira
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Frank A. Ocaña
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Abilio Soares-Gomes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Ilana Rosental Zalmon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by LLC, VFA and FAO. The first draft of the manuscript was written by LLC and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Leonardo Lopes Costa.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Additional information

Handling editor: Daniele Nizzoli

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Supplementary Information

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary file1 (DOCX 122 kb)

Supplementary file2 (DOCX 13 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Costa, L.L., Arueira, V.F., Ocaña, F.A. et al. Are ghost crabs (Ocypode spp.) smaller on human-disturbed sandy beaches? A global analysis. Hydrobiologia 849, 3287–3298 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-022-04900-1

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-022-04900-1

Keywords

Search

Navigation