Meeting Abstract
Many animal characteristics have evolved to facilitate intraspecific communication. Deciphering what information these signals convey to a receiver is essential if we are to understand these signaling systems. Stomatopods are marine crustaceans that live in burrows, and are recognized by two punching arms capable of inflicting damaging blows. On each punching arm is a colored patch called the meral spot. During contests over ownership of burrows, stomatopods can use the meral spots to assist with opponent assessment. In Neogonodactylus oerstedii stomatopods, both the luminance and UV reflectance of the meral spots are used in contests; however, we do not know what information these spots convey to the receiver. Previous research has demonstrated that in N. oerstedii stomatopods, darker meral spots are correlated with larger meri (the segment of the punching arm where the meral spot is located). Furthermore, merus size is associated with strike force in other stomatopod species. We hypothesized that the meral spot transmits information about fighting ability, or Resource Holding Potential (RHP), to an opponent. To investigate this, we recorded strike force, and spectra of the meral spot for N. oerstedii individuals in the lab. We discuss whether these variables correlate, and the implication for stomatopod signaling systems and contests. This research addresses a key question in animal communication research – what are animals ‘saying’ to one another?
