Shabani Shkelzen, Kamio Michiya, Derby Charles D
Neuroscience Institute and Department of Biology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30303, USA.
J Exp Biol. 2009 Aug;212(Pt 15):2464-74. doi: 10.1242/jeb.026492.
Decapod crustaceans, like many other animals, engage in agonistic behaviors that enhance their ability to compete for resources with conspecifics. These agonistic behaviors include the release of chemical signals as well as physical aggressive and submissive behaviors. In this study, we report that Caribbean spiny lobsters, Panulirus argus, use both urine-borne chemical signaling and physical aggressive behaviors during interactions with conspecifics, and that these agonistic behaviors can influence the behavior and eventual social status of the interactants. Spiny lobsters that engaged primarily in physical aggressive behaviors became dominant, whereas spiny lobsters that received these physical aggressive behaviors responded with avoidance behaviors and became subordinates. Dominant animals frequently released urine during social interactions, more than when they were not in contact with subordinates and more than when they were not paired with another animal. Subordinates released urine significantly less often than dominants, and no more than when not paired. Preventing release of urine by catheterizing the animals resulted in an increase in the number and duration of physical interactions, and this increase was primarily driven by dominants initiating interactions through physical aggressive behaviors. Introducing urine from one of the catheterized animals into an aquarium reduced physical aggressive behavior by dominant animals to normal levels. Urine-borne signals alone were capable of inducing avoidance behaviors from solitary spiny lobsters in both laboratory and field conditions. We conclude that urine serves as a chemical signal that communicates social status to the interactants. Ablation experiments showed that that these urine signals are detected primarily by aesthetasc sensilla of the olfactory pathway.
十足目甲壳动物和许多其他动物一样，会表现出争斗行为，这些行为增强了它们与同种个体竞争资源的能力。这些争斗行为包括释放化学信号以及身体上的攻击和顺从行为。在本研究中，我们报告称，加勒比刺龙虾（Panulirus argus）在与同种个体互动时会同时使用尿液携带的化学信号和身体攻击行为，并且这些争斗行为会影响互动者的行为和最终的社会地位。主要表现出身体攻击行为的刺龙虾成为优势个体，而遭受这些身体攻击行为的刺龙虾则以回避行为做出反应并成为从属个体。优势个体在社交互动中频繁排尿，比它们不与从属个体接触时以及不与其他动物配对时排尿更多。从属个体排尿的频率明显低于优势个体，且不超过未配对时的排尿频率。通过给动物插管来阻止尿液排放会导致身体互动的次数和持续时间增加，而这种增加主要是由优势个体通过身体攻击行为发起互动所驱动的。将插管动物之一的尿液引入水族箱可使优势个体的身体攻击行为减少到正常水平。仅尿液携带的信号就能在实验室和野外条件下诱导独居刺龙虾产生回避行为。我们得出结论，尿液作为一种化学信号，向互动者传达社会地位。切除实验表明，这些尿液信号主要由嗅觉通路的嗅觉感觉毛检测到。
