Abstract
Males of the dotillid crab Ilyoplax pusilla wave at approaching females during the breeding season. They also, however, often perform waving that is not directed toward any particular individual. This undirected waving is associated with the presence of male neighbors and may function in male–male competition. It may also, however, act as a long-range female attractant. To test whether undirected waving functions to attract females, we conducted a field experiment that manipulated the abundance of waving males. We found that females preferred to approach groups that had more waving males. This suggests that undirected waving by male I. pusilla functions as a long-range courtship signal.
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Acknowledgments
We express our gratitude to Dr. Yoichi Yusa, Dr. Hiroaki Sato and Prof. Fugo Takasu of Nara Women’s University for their valuable advice and suggestions, and to Dr. Patricia Backwell of the Australian National University and three anonymous reviewers for their kind reviewing of the manuscript. We wish to thank the members of the laboratory of Animal Ecology at Nara Women’s University for their comments and support. This work was partly supported by Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research from Japan Society for the Promotion of Science to K.W.
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Ohata, M., Wada, K. Are females of Ilyoplax pusilla (Brachyura: Dotillidae) attracted to groups having more waving males?. J Ethol 27, 191–194 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-008-0110-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-008-0110-3