Meeting Abstract

P3-72   -   The Impact of Conspecific and Predator Presence on the Shelter Usage of the Rusty Crayfish (Faxonius rusticus) Morse, J*; Berlanga, T; Martin, A; Saginaw Valley State University; Saginaw Valley State University; Saginaw Valley State University morsej@bgsu.edu

Animals utilize resources such as food, shelters, and mates. Extrinsic factors such as resource availability, resource design, and the presence of predators and conspecifics can influence the use of these resources. Shelters are an important resource that crayfish use for protection from conspecifics, predators and other environmental factors. Animals such as crayfish compete to gain and maintain access to shelters. This competition often comes in the form of agonistic interactions between individuals over limited resource supply. However, some resources may be abundant and extrinsic pressures may influence the use of these resources when physical interaction is eliminated. Our study is designed to examine the influence status-specific conspecifics and predators have in altering a focal crayfish’s shelter preference and usage, when shelters are abundant. In order to address this, 24-hour trials were designed to allow physically isolated rusty crayfish (Faxonius rusticus) to choose between different shelter designs based on their exposure to status-specific crayfish or predators. During trials the number of entries and time spent in each shelter were measured. The crayfish that were exposed to status-specific conspecifics were size matched within 10%. The crayfish that were exposed to the predator, largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) were size matched less than 96% or less than the gape size of the bass. Preliminary data suggests that crayfish that are not exposed to conspecifics or predators use shelters less frequently.