Presentation Details
| Claws—What are they good for? Sexual selection, signaling and antipredator behavior in snapping shrimp Melissa Hughes, . College of Charleston, Charleston, SC, USA |
Abstract
Sexually-selected weapons are common in many taxa, and such weaponry may also serve as signals. While signaling with large weapons may attract the attention of predators, weapons may also play a role in anti-predator behavior. Relationships between exaggerated weaponry and anti-predator behavior are likely to be critical for the evolution of these structures, yet remain poorly understood. In snapping shrimp, both sexes have a greatly exaggerated snapping claw used primarily in conspecific interactions. Males have larger claws than females, and use their claw as both a weapon and signal; for females, on the other hand, the claw does not appear to serve a signaling function. In response to a standardized predator disturbance assay, males with larger claws were less likely to engage with the potential predator, and more likely to flee. In contrast, females with larger claws were more likely to approach the potential predator and directly threaten it. Thus, this weapon appears to be play a different role in anti-predator behavior in males and females, suggesting relationships between exaggerated weaponry and anti-predator behavior are complex and deserve further attention.
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