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

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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.

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Data availability

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

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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).

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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

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  1. Leonardo Lopes Costa
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  2. Vitor Figueira Arueira
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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.

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Correspondence to Leonardo Lopes Costa.

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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

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