Abstract
The swimming behaviour of the Norway lobster, Nephrops norvegicus (L.), was studied in the laboratory. The lobsters were stimulated to swim repeatedly until they failed to respond to a single tactile stimulus. The position of the initiating stimulus on the body determined the height of the escape path above the bottom of the tank. A stimulus to the rostrum resulted in a low swimming trajectory, rarely exceeding a height of 0.1 m. A similar tactile stimulus to the abdomen produced higher mean swimming trajectories up to 0.5 m. Several parameters of swimming performance and endurance were measured for each swimming sequence, including distance, duration, mean and maximum velocities and the frequency and number of tail beats. Results showed no significant differences in the average swimming performance and endurance of males and females, but there was a sex difference in the relationship between swimming performance and N. norvegicus size.
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature cited
Chapman, C. J., Main, J., Howell, T., Sangster, G. I. (1979). The swimming speed and endurance of the queen scallop Chlamys opercularis in relation to trawling. Prog. Underwat. Sci. 4: 57–72
Chapman, C. J., Rice, A. L. (1971). Some direct observations on the ecology and behaviour of the Norway lobster Nephrops norvegicus. Mar. Biol. 10: 321–329
Farmer, A. S. (1974). Relative growth in Nephrops norvegicus (L.) (Decapoda: Nephropidae). J. nat. Hist. 8: 605–620
Gäde, G., Weeda, E., Gabbott, P. A. (1978). Changes in the level of octopine during the escape responses of the scallop, Pecten maximus (L.). J. comp. Physiol. 124: 121–127
Grieshaber, M. (1978). Breakdown and formation of high-energy phosphates and octopine in the adductor muscle of the scallop, Chlamys opercularis (L.), during escape swimming and recovery. J. comp. Physiol. 126: 269–276
Krasne, F. B., Woodsmall, K. S. (1969). Waning of the cryfish escape response as a result of repeated stimulation. Anim. Behav. 17: 416–424
Lang, F., Govind, C. K., Costello, W. J., Greene, S. L. (1977) Developmental neuroethology: changes in escape and defensive behaviour during growth of the lobster. Science, N.Y. 197: 682–685
Main, J., Sangster, G. I. (1982) A study of separating fish from Nephrops norvegicus L. in a bottom trawl. Scott. Fish. Res. Rep. 24: 1–8
Main, J., Sangster, G. I. (1985). The behaviour of the Norway lobster, Nephrops norvegicus (L.) during trawling. Scott. Fish. Res. Rep. 34: 1–23
Mittenthal, J. E., Wine, J. J. (1973). Connectivity patterns of crayfish giant interneurones. Visualisation of synaptic regions with cobalt dyes. Science, N.Y. 179: 182–184
Mittenthal, J. E., Wine, J. J. (1978). Segmental homology and variation in flexor motoneurones of the crayfish abdomen. J. comp. Neurol. 177: 311–334
Newland, P. L. (1985). The control of escape behaviour in the Norway lobster, Nephrops norvegicus (L.) Ph.D. thesis. University of Glasgow, Scotland
Newland, P. L., Chapman, C. J. (1985). Some observations on the behaviour of Nephrops in relation to trawling. Int. Counc. Explor. Sea Comm. Meet. (Shellfish and Benthos Comm.) K:7: 1–8 (mimeo)
Newland, P. L., Neil, D. M. (1987). Functional plasticity in a stereotyped motor act: redirection of the tail flick in the Norway lobster, Nephrops norvegicus, by asymmetrical stimuli. Neurosci. Lett. (Suppl.) 29: p. 124
Reichert, H., Wine, J. J. (1983). Co-ordination of lateral giant and non-giant systems in crayfish escape behaviour. J. comp. Physiol. 153:3–15
Schrameck, J. E. (1970). Crayfish swimming: alternating motor output and giant fiber activity. Science, N.Y. 169:698–700
Shelton, P. M. J., Gaten, E., Chapman, C. J. (1985). Light and retinal damage in Nephrops norvegicus (L.) (Crustacea). Proc. R. Soc. (Ser. B) 226: 217–236
Wine, J. J. (1984). The structural basis of an innate behavioural pattern. J. exp. Biol. 112: 283–319
Wine, J. J., Krasne, F. B. (1972). The organization of escape behaviour in the crayfish. J. exp. Biol. 56: 1–18
Wine, J. J., Krasne, F. B. (1982). The cellular organization of crayfish escape behaviour. In: Bliss, D. E. (ed.) The biology of Crustacea, Vol.4. Academic Press, New York, p. 241–292
Zucker, R. S. (1972). Crayfish escape behaviour and entral synapses. II. Physiological mechanisms underlying behavioural habituation. J. Neurophysiol. 35: 621–637
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by J. Mauchline, Oban
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Newland, P.L., Chapman, C.J. & Neil, D.M. Swimming performance and endurance of the Norway lobster Nephrops norvegicus . Marine Biology 98, 345–350 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00391110
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00391110