Feeding and decoration preferences of the epialtidae crab Acanthonyx scutiforms

Vasconcelos, Marcelo Augusto; Mendes, Thiago Costa; Fortes, Wagner Luiz Soares; Pereira, Renato Crespo

Abstracts

Studies on the feeding preferences of marine herbivores are very important for our better understanding of the biology and the ecological role of these organisms. Members of the family Epialtidae are usually herbivores that mask themselves with pieces of seaweed and other materials to avoid predation. In order to better understand the mechanisms of food and decorating choices of the decorator crab Acanthonyx scutiformis, two multiple-choice feeding assays were performed using fresh seaweeds and artificial food containing crude extracts of the four seaweeds Osmundaria obtusiloba, Plocamium brasiliense, Sargassum sp., and Dictyota menstrualis, offered simultaneously to this crab species. In both assays the seaweed most consumed was O. obtusiloba, followed by P. brasiliense and Sargassum sp., while D. menstrualis was the least consumed. It is suggested that A. scutiformis is a generalist feeder, but with some preference for the perennial red seaweed O. obtusiloba and the chemically-defended seaweed P. brasiliense. Decorating behavior observations revealed the preferences of A. scutiformis by P. brasiliense. This decorating behavior can be interpreted as a mechanism to avoid generalist predators, since feeding and decorating preference were not associated and the crab used only small pieces of chemically defended algae.

Acanthonix scutiformis; Feeding preference; Decoration preference

Estudos sobre preferência alimentar de herbívoros marinhos são muito importantes para o melhor entendimento da importância biológica e ecológica destes organismos. Caranguejos majídeos são usualmente herbívoros que se camuflam com pedaços de macroalgas e outros materiais para evitar a predação. Para entender melhor os mecanismos de escolha de alimento e decoração do caranguejo decorador Acanthonyx scutiformis, foram realizados dois ensaios de múltipla escolha usando macroalgas frescas e alimentos artificiais contendo extratos brutos das macroalgas Osmundaria obtusiloba, Plocamium brasiliense, Sargassum sp. e Dictyota menstrualis, oferecidas simultaneamente a esta espécie de caranguejo. Em ambos ensaios, a macroalga mais consumida foi O. obtusiloba, seguida por P. brasiliense e Sargassum sp., enquanto D. menstrualis foi menos consumida. É sugerido que A. scutiformis é um consumidor generalista, mas com alguma preferência pela macroalga vermelha perenial O. obtusiloba e a macroalga quimicamente defendida P. brasiliense. Observações sobre o comportamento decorador revelaram a preferência de A. scutiformis por P. brasiliense. Este comportamento decorador pode ser interpretado como um mecanismo para evitar predadores generalistas, uma vez que as preferências por consumo e decoração não foram relacionadas e o caranguejo usou somente pequenos pedaços de algas quimicamente defendidas.

Acanthonyx scutiformis; Preferência alimentar; Preferência por decoração

ANKISETTY, S.; NANDIRAJU, S.; WIN, H.; PARK, Y. C.; AMSLER, C. D.; MCCLINTON, J. B.; BAKER, J. A.; DIYALABANAGE, T. K.; PASARIBU, A.; SINGH, M. P.; MAIESE, W. M.; WALSH, R. D., ZAWOROTKO, M. J.; BAKER, B. J. Chemical investigation of predatordeterred macroalgae from the Antarctic Peninsula. J. nat. Prod., v. 67, p. 1295-1302, 2004.
BARRY, J.; EHRET, M. Diet, food preference, and algal availability for fishes and crabs on intertidal reef communities in southern California. Environ. Biol. Fishes, v. 37, p. 75-95, 1993.
CRONIN, G.; HAY, M. E. Susceptibility to herbivores depends on recent history of both plant and the animal. Ecology, v. 77, p. 1531-1543, 1996.
CRUZ-RIVERA, E. Generality and specificity in the feeding and decoration preferences of three Mediterranean crabs.
DE NYS R.; COLL, J. C.; PRICE, I. R. Chemically mediated interactions between the red alga Plocamium hamatum(Rhodophyta) and the octocoral Sinularia cruciata (Alcyonacea). Mar. Biol, v. 108, p. 115-320, 1991.
DUFFY, J. E.; HAY, M. E. Food and shelter as determinants of food choice by an herbivorous marine amphipod. Ecology, v. 72, p. 1286-1298, 1991.
GRANADO, I.; CABALLERO, P. Feeding rates of Littorina striata and Osilinus atratus in relation to nutritional quality and chemical defenses of seaweeds. Mar. Biol., v. 138, p. :1213-1224, 2001.
GUIMARAENS, M. A.; COUTINHO, R. Spatial and temporal variation of benthic marine algae at the Cabo Frio upwelling region, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Aquat. Bot, v. 52, p. 283-299, 1996.
HAY, M. E. The role of seaweeds chemical defense in the evolution of feeding specialization and in the mediation of complex interactions. In: PAUL V. J. (Ed.). Ecological roles of marine natural products New York: Cornell University Press, 1992. p. 93-118.
HAY, M. E. Marine chemical ecology: what's known and what's next? J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol., v. 200, p. 103-134, 1996.
HAY, M. E.; DUFFY, J. E.; PFISTER, C. A.; FENICAL, W. Chemical defense against different marine herbivores: are amphipods insect equivalents? Ecology, v. 68, p. 1567-1580, 1987.
HAY, M. E.; DUFFY, J. E.; PAUL, V. J.; RENAUD, P. E.; FENICAL, W. Specialist herbivores reduce their susceptibility to predation by feeding on the chemically defended seaweed Avrainvillea longicaulis Limnol. Oceanogr., v. 35, p. 1734-1743, 1990.
HAY, M. E.; KAPPEL, Q. E.; FENICAL, W. Synergism in plant defenses against herbivores: interactions of chemistry, calcification, and plant quality. Ecology, v. 75, p. 1714-1726, 1994.
HULTGREN, K. M.; STACHOWICZ, J. J. Alternative camouflage strategies mediate predation risk among closely related co-occurring kelp crabs. Oecologia, v. 155, p. 519-528, 2008.
KILAR, J.; LOU, R. The subtleties of camouflage and dietary preference of the decorator crab, Microphrys bicornutus Latreille (Decapoda: Brachyura). J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol., v. 101, p. 143-160, 1986.
KONIG, G. M.; WRIGHT, A. D.; DE NYS, R. Halogenated monoterpenes from Plocamium costatum and their biological activity. J. nat. Prod. , v. 62, p. 383-385, 1999.
MASTRO, E. Algal preferences for decoration by the Californian kelp crab, Pugettia producta (Randall) (Decapoda, Majidae). Crustaceana, v. 41, p. 64-70, 1981.
MCSHANE, P. E.; GORFINE, H. K.; KNUCKEY, I. A. Factors influencing food selection in the abalone Haliotis rubra (Mollusca, Gastropoda). J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol., v. 176, p. 27-37, 1994.
NEIGHBORS, M. A.; HORN, M. H. Nutritional quality of macrophytes eaten and not eaten by two temperate zone herbivorous fishes: A multivariate comparison. Mar. Biol., v. 108, p. 471-476, 1991.
PAUL, V. J.; PUGLISI, M. P. Chemical mediation of interactions among marine organisms. Nat. Prod. Rep., v. 21, p. 189-209, 2004.
PAUL, V. J.; CRUZ-RIVERA, E.; THACKER, R. W. Chemical mediation of macroalgal-herbivore interactions: ecological and evolutionary perspectives. In: MCCLINTOCK, J. B.; Baker, B. J. (Ed.) Marine Chemical Ecology Boca Raton, FLA: CRC Press, 2001. p. 227-265.
PAUL, V. J.; PUGLISI, M. P.; RITSON-WILLIAMS, R. Marine chemical ecology. Nat. Prod. Rep., v. 23, p. 153-180, 2006.
PEREIRA, R. C.; CAVALCANTI, D. N.; TEIXEIRA, V. L. Effects of secondary metabolites from the tropical Brazilian brown alga Dictyota menstrualis on the amphipod Parhyale hawaiensis Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser., v.205, p. 95-100, 2000a.
PEREIRA, R. C.; DONATO, R.; TEIXEIRA, V. L.; CAVALCANTI, D. N. Chemotaxis and chemical defenses in seaweed susceptibility to herbivory. Rev. Bras. Biol., v. 60, p. 405-414, 2000b.
SAKATA, K.; IWASE, Y.; INA, K.; FUJITA, D. Chemical studies on feeding inhibitors for marine herbivores. 2. Halogenated terpenes isolated from the red alga Plocamium leptophyllum as feeding inhibitors for marine herbivores. Nipp. Suisan Gakk., v. 57, p. 743-746, 1991.
SATO, M.; WADA, K. Resource utilization for decorating in three intertidal majid crabs (Brachyura: Majidae). Mar. Biol., v. 137, p. 705-714. 2000.
STACHOWICZ, J. J.; HAY, M. E. Facultative mutualism between an herbivorous crab and a coralline alga: advantages of eating noxious seaweeds. Oecologia, v. 105, p. 377-387, 1996.
STACHOWICZ, J. J.; HAY, M. E. Reducing predation through chemically mediated camouflage: indirect effects of plant defenses on herbivores. Ecology, v. 80, p. 495-509, 1999.
STACHOWICZ, J. J.; HAY, M. E. Geographic variation in camouflage specialization by a decorator crab. Am. Naturalist., v. 156, p. 59-71, 2000.
VADAS, R. L. Preferential feeding: an optimization strategy in sea urchins. Ecol. Monogr., v. 47, p. 337-371, 1977.
WICKSTEN, M. Decorating crabs. Sci. Am., v. 242, p. 146154, 1980.
WICKSTEN, M. A review and a model of decorating behavior in spider crabs (Decapoda, Brachyura, Majidae). Crustaceana, v. 64, p. 314-325, 1993.
WILSON, R. Substrate selection and decorating behavior in Acanthonyx petiveri related to exoskeleton color (Brachyura, Majidae). Crustaceana, 52:135-140, 1987.
WOODS, C. M. C.; MCLAY, C. L. Use of camouflage materials as a food store by the spider crab Notomithrax ursus (Brachyura: Majidae). New Zeal. J. mar. fresh. Res. v. 28, p. 97-104, 1994.
WOODS, C. M. C.; MCLAY, C. L. Diet and cryptic coloration of the crab Eurynolambrus australis (Brachyura: Majidae) at Kaikoura. Crust. Res., v. 25, p. 32-43, 1996.
YONESHIGUE Y.; VALENTIN, J. L. Comunidades algais fotófilas de infralitoral de Cabo Frio, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. Gayana Bot., v. 45, p. 61-75, 1988.
YONESHIGUE-VALENTIN, Y.; VALENTIN, J. L. Macroalgae of the Cabo Frio upwelling region, Brazil: ordination of communities. In: SEELIGER, R. (Ed.). Coastal plants of Latin America. San Diego, CA: Academic Press, 1992. p. 31-49.

Publication Dates

Publication in this collection
06 July 2009
Date of issue
June 2009

History

Accepted
03 Sept 2008
Received
20 Dec 2008
Reviewed
31 Mar 2008

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

[1] ANKISETTY, S.; NANDIRAJU, S.; WIN, H.; PARK, Y. C.; AMSLER, C. D.; MCCLINTON, J. B.; BAKER, J. A.; DIYALABANAGE, T. K.; PASARIBU, A.; SINGH, M. P.; MAIESE, W. M.; WALSH, R. D., ZAWOROTKO, M. J.; BAKER, B. J. Chemical investigation of predatordeterred macroalgae from the Antarctic Peninsula. J. nat. Prod., v. 67, p. 1295-1302, 2004.

[2] BARRY, J.; EHRET, M. Diet, food preference, and algal availability for fishes and crabs on intertidal reef communities in southern California. Environ. Biol. Fishes, v. 37, p. 75-95, 1993.

[3] CRONIN, G.; HAY, M. E. Susceptibility to herbivores depends on recent history of both plant and the animal. Ecology, v. 77, p. 1531-1543, 1996.

[4] CRUZ-RIVERA, E. Generality and specificity in the feeding and decoration preferences of three Mediterranean crabs.

[5] DE NYS R.; COLL, J. C.; PRICE, I. R. Chemically mediated interactions between the red alga Plocamium hamatum(Rhodophyta) and the octocoral Sinularia cruciata (Alcyonacea). Mar. Biol, v. 108, p. 115-320, 1991.

[6] DUFFY, J. E.; HAY, M. E. Food and shelter as determinants of food choice by an herbivorous marine amphipod. Ecology, v. 72, p. 1286-1298, 1991.

[7] GRANADO, I.; CABALLERO, P. Feeding rates of Littorina striata and Osilinus atratus in relation to nutritional quality and chemical defenses of seaweeds. Mar. Biol., v. 138, p. :1213-1224, 2001.

[8] GUIMARAENS, M. A.; COUTINHO, R. Spatial and temporal variation of benthic marine algae at the Cabo Frio upwelling region, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Aquat. Bot, v. 52, p. 283-299, 1996.

[9] HAY, M. E. The role of seaweeds chemical defense in the evolution of feeding specialization and in the mediation of complex interactions. In: PAUL V. J. (Ed.). Ecological roles of marine natural products New York: Cornell University Press, 1992. p. 93-118.

[10] HAY, M. E. Marine chemical ecology: what's known and what's next? J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol., v. 200, p. 103-134, 1996.

[11] HAY, M. E.; DUFFY, J. E.; PFISTER, C. A.; FENICAL, W. Chemical defense against different marine herbivores: are amphipods insect equivalents? Ecology, v. 68, p. 1567-1580, 1987.

[12] HAY, M. E.; DUFFY, J. E.; PAUL, V. J.; RENAUD, P. E.; FENICAL, W. Specialist herbivores reduce their susceptibility to predation by feeding on the chemically defended seaweed Avrainvillea longicaulis Limnol. Oceanogr., v. 35, p. 1734-1743, 1990.

[13] HAY, M. E.; KAPPEL, Q. E.; FENICAL, W. Synergism in plant defenses against herbivores: interactions of chemistry, calcification, and plant quality. Ecology, v. 75, p. 1714-1726, 1994.

[14] HULTGREN, K. M.; STACHOWICZ, J. J. Alternative camouflage strategies mediate predation risk among closely related co-occurring kelp crabs. Oecologia, v. 155, p. 519-528, 2008.

[15] KILAR, J.; LOU, R. The subtleties of camouflage and dietary preference of the decorator crab, Microphrys bicornutus Latreille (Decapoda: Brachyura). J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol., v. 101, p. 143-160, 1986.

[16] KONIG, G. M.; WRIGHT, A. D.; DE NYS, R. Halogenated monoterpenes from Plocamium costatum and their biological activity. J. nat. Prod. , v. 62, p. 383-385, 1999.

[17] MASTRO, E. Algal preferences for decoration by the Californian kelp crab, Pugettia producta (Randall) (Decapoda, Majidae). Crustaceana, v. 41, p. 64-70, 1981.

[18] MCSHANE, P. E.; GORFINE, H. K.; KNUCKEY, I. A. Factors influencing food selection in the abalone Haliotis rubra (Mollusca, Gastropoda). J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol., v. 176, p. 27-37, 1994.

[19] NEIGHBORS, M. A.; HORN, M. H. Nutritional quality of macrophytes eaten and not eaten by two temperate zone herbivorous fishes: A multivariate comparison. Mar. Biol., v. 108, p. 471-476, 1991.

[20] PAUL, V. J.; PUGLISI, M. P. Chemical mediation of interactions among marine organisms. Nat. Prod. Rep., v. 21, p. 189-209, 2004.

[21] PAUL, V. J.; CRUZ-RIVERA, E.; THACKER, R. W. Chemical mediation of macroalgal-herbivore interactions: ecological and evolutionary perspectives. In: MCCLINTOCK, J. B.; Baker, B. J. (Ed.) Marine Chemical Ecology Boca Raton, FLA: CRC Press, 2001. p. 227-265.

[22] PAUL, V. J.; PUGLISI, M. P.; RITSON-WILLIAMS, R. Marine chemical ecology. Nat. Prod. Rep., v. 23, p. 153-180, 2006.

[23] PEREIRA, R. C.; CAVALCANTI, D. N.; TEIXEIRA, V. L. Effects of secondary metabolites from the tropical Brazilian brown alga Dictyota menstrualis on the amphipod Parhyale hawaiensis Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser., v.205, p. 95-100, 2000a.

[24] PEREIRA, R. C.; DONATO, R.; TEIXEIRA, V. L.; CAVALCANTI, D. N. Chemotaxis and chemical defenses in seaweed susceptibility to herbivory. Rev. Bras. Biol., v. 60, p. 405-414, 2000b.

[25] SAKATA, K.; IWASE, Y.; INA, K.; FUJITA, D. Chemical studies on feeding inhibitors for marine herbivores. 2. Halogenated terpenes isolated from the red alga Plocamium leptophyllum as feeding inhibitors for marine herbivores. Nipp. Suisan Gakk., v. 57, p. 743-746, 1991.

[26] SATO, M.; WADA, K. Resource utilization for decorating in three intertidal majid crabs (Brachyura: Majidae). Mar. Biol., v. 137, p. 705-714. 2000.

[27] STACHOWICZ, J. J.; HAY, M. E. Facultative mutualism between an herbivorous crab and a coralline alga: advantages of eating noxious seaweeds. Oecologia, v. 105, p. 377-387, 1996.

[28] STACHOWICZ, J. J.; HAY, M. E. Reducing predation through chemically mediated camouflage: indirect effects of plant defenses on herbivores. Ecology, v. 80, p. 495-509, 1999.

[29] STACHOWICZ, J. J.; HAY, M. E. Geographic variation in camouflage specialization by a decorator crab. Am. Naturalist., v. 156, p. 59-71, 2000.

[30] VADAS, R. L. Preferential feeding: an optimization strategy in sea urchins. Ecol. Monogr., v. 47, p. 337-371, 1977.

[31] WICKSTEN, M. Decorating crabs. Sci. Am., v. 242, p. 146154, 1980.

[32] WICKSTEN, M. A review and a model of decorating behavior in spider crabs (Decapoda, Brachyura, Majidae). Crustaceana, v. 64, p. 314-325, 1993.

[33] WILSON, R. Substrate selection and decorating behavior in Acanthonyx petiveri related to exoskeleton color (Brachyura, Majidae). Crustaceana, 52:135-140, 1987.

[34] WOODS, C. M. C.; MCLAY, C. L. Use of camouflage materials as a food store by the spider crab Notomithrax ursus (Brachyura: Majidae). New Zeal. J. mar. fresh. Res. v. 28, p. 97-104, 1994.

[35] WOODS, C. M. C.; MCLAY, C. L. Diet and cryptic coloration of the crab Eurynolambrus australis (Brachyura: Majidae) at Kaikoura. Crust. Res., v. 25, p. 32-43, 1996.

[36] YONESHIGUE Y.; VALENTIN, J. L. Comunidades algais fotófilas de infralitoral de Cabo Frio, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. Gayana Bot., v. 45, p. 61-75, 1988.

[37] YONESHIGUE-VALENTIN, Y.; VALENTIN, J. L. Macroalgae of the Cabo Frio upwelling region, Brazil: ordination of communities. In: SEELIGER, R. (Ed.). Coastal plants of Latin America. San Diego, CA: Academic Press, 1992. p. 31-49.

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Feeding and decoration preferences of the epialtidae crab Acanthonyx scutiforms

Abstracts

Publication Dates

History