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Differences in context and function of two distinct waving displays in the fiddler crab, Uca perplexa (Decapoda: Ocypodidae)

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Abstract

To respond appropriately to communication signals, animals must have the ability to decipher signal meaning. At a basic level, interpreting the difference between territorial and courtship signals can be vital for the survival and reproduction of social animals. Male and female fiddler crabs communicate with claw-waving displays, but the function of these waves remains uncertain. Species differ in the context in which they wave: Some wave during courtship, some during territorial defence and some during both. In this paper, we provide evidence that males of an Australian species of fiddler crab, Uca perplexa, use two different types of claw waving display, lateral and vertical. Lateral waves are employed solely in a courtship context, whilst vertical waves are employed during courtship as well as territorial interactions. Using video recordings, we show that lateral waves were produced spontaneously (broadcast), and their frequency increased only in the presence of female wanderers. Vertical waves were not broadcast but were elicited by male wanderers during agonistic interactions and female wanderers during close range courtship. Male resident U. perplexa were able to discriminate the sex of wandering crabs on the mudflat at distances of 32 cm. During all resident–wanderer interactions, residents attempted to maintain a position directly between the wanderer and the home burrow and orient themselves to face females and to present the major claw towards males. To our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of the multiple use of waving displays in a fiddler crab species.

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Acknowledgements

We wish to thank Waldtraud Pix and Jochen Smolka for their support in the field, the Australian Institute for Marine Science for hosting fieldwork, the Research School of Biological Sciences workshop team for the custom-made equipment, Dr. Emlyn Williams of the Statistical Consulting Unit at the Australian National University for advice and the referees for their comments on an earlier version of the manuscript, which helped to improve it greatly. Funding was provided by a Research School of Biological Sciences postgraduate award to M J How, by the Australian National University Deputy Vice Chancellor’s fund for fieldwork assistance and by the ARC Centre of Excellence in Vision Science at the Australian National University. The experiments comply with the current laws of the country in which they were performed.

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  1. ARC Centre of Excellence in Vision Science and Centre for Visual Sciences, Research School of Biological Sciences, The Australian National University, GPO Box 475, Canberra, ACT 2600, Australia

    Martin J. How, Jochen Zeil & Jan M. Hemmi

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  1. Martin J. How
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Correspondence to Martin J. How.

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Communicated by: P. Backwell

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How, M.J., Zeil, J. & Hemmi, J.M. Differences in context and function of two distinct waving displays in the fiddler crab, Uca perplexa (Decapoda: Ocypodidae). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 62, 137–148 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-007-0448-5

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