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When neighbors become family: the dear-enemy effect of swimming crab and the verification of the formation hypothesis

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Abstract

The neighbor-stranger response difference, which serves as a fundamental social network relationship, plays a crucial role in establishing and expanding complex social networks. However, the underlying causes of this phenomenon have received limited attention in controlled indoor settings. This study focused on Portunus trituberculatus, a representative crustacean species in the Western Pacific Ocean. We analyzed the behavioral responses of crabs towards intruders of varying familiarity and threat levels. Additionally, we quantified various parameters such as territory size, behavior quantification, time allocation, and territorial behavior score. The results showed that with increased familiarity, there was a decrease in the frequency of occupiers’ aggressive dash and aggressive wave. As the threat from the intruder decreased, occupiers displayed fewer territorial behaviors and engaged in fewer bouts, while the success rate in fights improved and the territorial behavior score declined. The results indicate a clear dear-enemy effect in the territorial defense of P. trituberculatus, and demonstrates that crabs adjusted the defense strategy according to the relative threat level of intruders. We verified the formation hypothesis of dear-enemy effect in crabs. In the future, we will expand the research from individuals to populations, analyze crustacean social networks from the perspective of group decision making, and provide more support for population dynamic analysis and decision evolution research of crustaceans.

Significance

The dear-enemy effect is considered as a potential driving force in the formation and evolution of social structures. However, the reasons behind the dear enemy effect, have seldom been investigated in controlled indoor settings. This study focused on Portunus trituberculatus to explore their territorial behavior and neighbor-stranger response difference. By analyzing the behavioral responses of crabs towards intruders of varying familiarity and threat levels, we discovered a clear dear-enemy effect in the territorial defense of P. trituberculatus. The finding sheds light on the recognition and evaluation rules towards intruders and provides a behavioral foundation for understanding the social networks of crustaceans. Our research lays the groundwork for further exploration of crustacean social networks, from individual behaviors to population dynamics and decision-making processes.

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Data availability

All data generated or analysed during this study are included in this published article and its supplementary information files.

Code availability

No code was generated or analyzed during the current study.

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Acknowledgements

This study would not have been possible without the field assistance of Xitao Guan, Youyan Wang, Xinyuan Cheng, Jiyan He, Heng Tang and Jinghao Xu. We thank the support of Key Laboratory of Mariculture in Ocean University of China.

Funding

This research was funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China (General Program, 32373103; Youth Program, 32202897 and General Program, 31972784).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Key Laboratory of Mariculture, Ministry of Education, Ocean University of China, 5 Yushan Road, Qingdao, 266003, Shandong, China

    Boshan Zhu, Hanzun Zhang, Xin Wang, Fang Wang & Dapeng Liu

  2. Function Laboratory for Marine Fisheries Science and Food Production Processes, Laoshan Laboratory, Qingdao, 266237, Shandong, China

    Boshan Zhu, Hanzun Zhang, Xin Wang, Fang Wang & Dapeng Liu

  3. Marine Science Research Institute of Shandong Province (National Oceanographic Center, Qingdao), Qingdao, 266104, China

    Xin Wang

  4. School of Marine Science and Engineering, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, 266109, Shandong, China

    Yunliang Lu

Authors
  1. Boshan Zhu
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  2. Hanzun Zhang
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  3. Xin Wang
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  4. Yunliang Lu
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  5. Fang Wang
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Contributions

Conceptualization, B.Z. and X.W.; methodology, H.Z. and B.Z.; validation, F.W. and D.L.; investigation, H.Z.; resources, X.W.; writing—original draft preparation, B.Z.; writing—review and editing, Y.L.; visualization, D.L.; supervision, F.W. and Y.L.; project administration, F.W. and Y.L.; funding acquisition, F.W. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Yunliang Lu or Fang Wang.

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The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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All procedures performed in studies involving animals were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institution or practice at which the studies were conducted (Animal Research and Ethics Committees of Ocean University of China (http://www.ouc.edu.cn/2022/0413/c59a367443/pagem.psp) (accessed on 25 December 2020).

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Communicated by T. Breithaupt.

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Zhu, B., Zhang, H., Wang, X. et al. When neighbors become family: the dear-enemy effect of swimming crab and the verification of the formation hypothesis. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 78, 49 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-024-03460-9

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