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Learning in an invasive and a native predatory crab

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Abstract

The invasion of the green crab Carcinus maenas in the northeastern U.S. and its competition with the native blue crab Callinectes sapidus and other native crustaceans has been well-documented and researched. Various reasons for the invader’s success against native crabs have been examined (juvenile predation, food source flexibility, etc.), but another possibility is a difference in the learning ability of invasive versus native crab species. In this study, the learning ability of C. maenas and C. sapidus was tested by their increased speed in locating hidden food over successive days. The data suggest that C. maenas possesses a learning ability significantly greater than that of C. sapidus, which may partially contribute to its success.

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Acknowledgements

We thank James MacDonald and Jessica Reichmuth for assistance in collecting subjects and materials, and for their advice. This study was supported by the Honors College of Rutgers University, Newark.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Sciences, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ, 07012, USA

    Ross J. Roudez & Judith S. Weis

  2. Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Bloomfield College, Bloomfield, NJ, 07003, USA

    Terry Glover

Authors
  1. Ross J. Roudez
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  2. Terry Glover
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  3. Judith S. Weis
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Judith S. Weis.

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Roudez, R.J., Glover, T. & Weis, J.S. Learning in an invasive and a native predatory crab. Biol Invasions 10, 1191–1196 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-007-9195-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-007-9195-9

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