INVESTIGADORES
IRIBARNE Oscar Osvaldo
artículos
Título:
The influence of habitat, season and tidal regime in the activity of the intertidal crab Neohelice (= Chasmagnathus) granulata
Autor/es:
LUPPI, T; C. BAS; A, MENDEZ CASARIEGO; M. ALBANO; J. LANCIA; KITTLEIN, M; A. ROSENTHAL; FARIAS, A; E. SPIVAK; O. IRIBARNE,
Revista:
HELGOLAND MARINE RESEARCH
Editorial:
SPRINGER
Referencias:
Lugar: Berlin; Año: 2013 vol. 67 p. 1 - 15
ISSN:
1438-387X
Resumen:
The activity pattern of intertidal crabs is inXuenced
by factors that usually change rhythmically following
tidal and/or diel cycles, and is often associated with the
use of refuges. The movement activity of the burrowing
crab Neohelice granulata was compared among three populations
from SW Atlantic coastal areas where they face
diVerent tidal regimes, water salinities, substrata and biological
factors. At each site, we examined the seasonal
activity of the crabs (individuals collected in pitfall traps) in
two types of habitat: mudXat and salt marsh. The working
hypothesis is that the activity would vary according to the
diverse environmental conditions encountered at geographical
and local scales. Crab activity varied between sites and
seasons showing to be more intense when habitats were
covered by water. The most active groups were large males,
followed by large non-ovigerous females. Ovigerous
females were almost inactive. Most crabs were near or
inside burrows at low tides in Mar Chiquita and Bahía
Blanca, but they were active at both low and high tides in
San Antonio during spring and summer. N. granulata were
active in a wide range of temperatures: from 10 to 37 °C at
low tides and at temperatures as low as 2 °C when covered
by water. DiVerences of activity between mudXat and salt
marsh varied among sites depending on Xooding frequencies.
Movement activity of N. granulata varied both in
space and in time; crabs move under very diVerent abiotic
conditions (e.g., low or high tide, daylight or night, low and
high temperature) and their movement may also be prevented
or elicited by biotic conditions like burrow complexity,
food quality and predation pressure. The wide set
of conditions under which N. granulata can be active may
explain why this is the only semiterrestrial crab inhabiting
latitudes higher than 40°S in South America.