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Sex- and habitat-specific movement of an omnivorous semi-terrestrial crab controls habitat connectivity and subsidies: a multi-parameter approach

Oecologia volume 178, pages 999–1015 (2015)Cite this article

Abstract

Distinct habitats are often linked through fluxes of matter and migration of organisms. In particular, intertidal ecotones are prone to being influenced from both the marine and the terrestrial realms, but whether or not small-scale migration for feeding, sheltering or reproducing is detectable may depend on the parameter studied. Within the ecotone of an upper saltmarsh in the United States, we investigated the sex-specific movement of the semi-terrestrial crab Armases cinereum using an approach of determining multiple measures of across-ecotone migration. To this end, we determined food preference, digestive abilities (enzyme activities), bacterial hindgut communities (genetic fingerprint), and the trophic position of Armases and potential food sources (stable isotopes) of males versus females of different sub-habitats, namely high saltmarsh and coastal forest. Daily observations showed that Armases moved frequently between high-intertidal (saltmarsh) and terrestrial (forest) habitats. Males were encountered more often in the forest habitat, whilst gravid females tended to be more abundant in the marsh habitat but moved more frequently. Food preference was driven by both sex and habitat. The needlerush Juncus was preferred over three other high-marsh detrital food sources, and the periwinkle Littoraria was the preferred prey of male (but not female) crabs from the forest habitats; both male and female crabs from marsh habitat preferred the fiddler crab Uca over three other prey items. In the field, the major food sources were clearly vegetal, but males have a higher trophic position than females. In contrast to food preference, isotope data excluded Uca and Littoraria as major food sources, except for males from the forest, and suggested that Armases consumes a mix of C4 and C3 plants along with animal prey. Digestive enzyme activities differed significantly between sexes and habitats and were higher in females and in marsh crabs. The bacterial hindgut community differed significantly between sexes, but habitat effects were greater than sex effects. By combining multiple measures of feeding ecology, we demonstrate that Armases exhibits sex-specific habitat choice and food preference. By using both coastal forest and saltmarsh habitats, but feeding predominantly in the latter, they possibly act as a key biotic vector of spatial subsidies across habitat borders. The degree of contributing to fluxes of matter, nutrients and energy, however, depends on their sex, indicating that changes in population structure would likely have profound effects on ecosystem connectivity and functioning.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Stuart Linton (Deakin University, Australia) for valuable discussion on digestive enzymes; Melissa Both, Mario Muscarella and Daniel Saucedo (UGAMI), and Stephanie Stratil and Tim Lachnit (GEOMAR, Kiel, Germany) for support and assistance in the field and the lab. We thank NSF (OCE06-20959) for funding. This work is contribution #1038 of the University of Georgia Marine Institute, and a contribution of the Georgia Coastal Ecosystems Long-Term Ecological Research program.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Zoologisches Institut, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, 24108, Kiel, Germany

    Lena Hübneṙ & Martin Zimmer

  2. Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, 77204, TX, USA

    Steven C. Pennings

  3. Leibniz Center for Tropical Marine Ecology-Mangrove Ecology, Fahrenheitstr. 6, 28359, Bremen, Germany

    Martin Zimmer

Authors
  1. Lena Hübneṙ
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  2. Steven C. Pennings
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  3. Martin Zimmer
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Correspondence to Martin Zimmer.

Additional information

Communicated by Liliane Ruess.

Appendices

Appendix 1: Spatial distribution of individual male and female crabs

Spatial distribution of individual male and female crabs according to recapture-based migration patterns within the marsh–forest ecotone. Elipsoids reflect the individual range of recapture spots along the two axes parallel versus perpendicular to the coast line.

figure a

Appendix 2: Estimated proportional contribution of different food sources

Estimated proportional contribution of different food sources (J, Juncus; B, Borrichia; S, Spartina; Q, Quercus; M, Melampus; L, Littoraria; O, Orchestia; U, Uca; D, benthic diatoms) to the nutrition of male and female Armases from marsh versus forest habitat. Box plots represent minimum, 5, 25, 75 and 95 % percentiles, and maximum.

figure b

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Hübneṙ, L., Pennings, S.C. & Zimmer, M. Sex- and habitat-specific movement of an omnivorous semi-terrestrial crab controls habitat connectivity and subsidies: a multi-parameter approach. Oecologia 178, 999–1015 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-015-3271-0

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Keywords

  • Saltmarsh
  • Coastal forest
  • Land crab
  • Sexual dimorphism
  • Spatial subsidy
  • Habitat connectivity
  • Motile link organism