The sequence of mudball placement by male fiddler crabs, Uca tangeri

Burford, Fiona R. L.; McGregor, Peter K.; Oliveira, Rui Filipe

http://hdl.handle.net/10400.12/1334

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Authors

Burford, Fiona R. L.

McGregor, Peter K.

Oliveira, Rui Filipe

Abstract(s)

Male Uca tangeri place mudballs in the area surrounding their burrows each low tide to delineate territory boundaries. We investigated the sequence of mudball placement by noting the distance at which each mudball was placed and its location in one of eight sectors around the burrow. Ten of the 13 focal males placed their mudballs in a pattern that was significantly different from random. No relationship was found between mudball distance from burrow and order of placement in the mudball sequence. However, most males placed each mudball in the same or a nearby sector to that of the previous mudball.