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Hermit crab response to a visual threat is sensitive to looming cues.

ABSTRACT: Prior work in our lab has shown that an expanding image on a computer screen elicits a hiding response in the Caribbean terrestrial hermit crab (Coenobita clypeatus). We conducted two experiments to identify what properties of the expanding stimulus contribute to its effectiveness as a visual threat. First we found that an expanding geometric star evoked a strong hiding response while a contracting or full-sized stationary star did not. A second experiment revealed that the more quickly the stimulus expanded the shorter the latency to hide. These findings suggest that the anti-predator response to looming stimulus relies heavily on visual cues relating to the manner of approach. The simulated visual threat on a computer screen captures key features of a real looming object that elicits hiding behavior in crabs in the wild.

SUBMITTER: Shragai T

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5712464 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Hermit crab response to a visual threat is sensitive to looming cues.

Shragai Talya T Ping Xiaoge X Arakaki Cameron C Garlick Dennis D Blumstein Daniel T DT Blaisdell Aaron P AP

PeerJ 20171130

Prior work in our lab has shown that an expanding image on a computer screen elicits a hiding response in the Caribbean terrestrial hermit crab <i>(Coenobita clypeatus</i>). We conducted two experiments to identify what properties of the expanding stimulus contribute to its effectiveness as a visual threat. First we found that an expanding geometric star evoked a strong hiding response while a contracting or full-sized stationary star did not. A second experiment revealed that the more quickly t ...[more]

PMID: 29204320

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