The effects of satiation level and competition risk on resource acquisition in red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii)

• Published in: Aquatic ecology Vol. 54; no. 3; pp. 889 - 894
• Main Authors: Mergler, Ciara J., Ludwig, Alexandra N., Gall, Brian G.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.09.2020; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Abandonment; Biological competition; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Competition; Crayfish; Deprivation; Dietary restrictions; ecology; Ecosystems; Food; food deprivation; Food sources; Food supply; Foods; Freshwater & Marine Ecology; Freshwater crustaceans; Life Sciences; Procambarus clarkii; Risk; Risk taking; Satiety; Starvation; Swamps; Model; Hunger; Interference; Exploitation
• ISSN: 1386-2588; 1573-5125
• DOI: 10.1007/s10452-020-09775-9

Strategies of resource acquisition are subject to change due to introduced pressures placed upon individual animals. The pressures of food deprivation and competition can lead to a drastic change in previously established strategies of resource acquisition. We conducted a series of trials in which red swamp crayfish ( Procambarus clarkii ) were either deprived of food or satiated and competition was introduced via a plastic model to necessitate the abandonment of established resource acquisition strategies in favor of risk-insensitive strategies. Crayfish exhibited no difference in behavior when exposed to a singular pressure; however, an interaction between food deprivation and competition was detected and indicates that crayfish responded to food sources more quickly and with more risk-insensitive behavior when a model competitor was present. This combination of factors indicates a complex relationship between resource acquisition strategies and the pressures of acquiring food.