Research at

The Crab Lab

Areas & Themes

Intertidal

Hermit Crabs

  • Intertidal hermit crabs live in complex, constantly fluctuating habitats. What information is relevant to them, and how do they integrate signals from the environment to make decisions? We are conducting field and lab experiments to understand how this common model organism uses the information to make decisions.

  • We are interested in better understanding the biology, ecology and behaviour of Pagurus bernhardus, the common hermit crab. By conducting surveys, collecting morphological data and conducting behavioural experiments, we are discovering how these charismatic crustaceans survive and thrive in their rock pool homes.

  • Climate change and human impacts change habitats and species distributions. These changes already affect hermit crabs and other rocky shore creatures. We are working to understand how the presence of a non-native species, the red soldier, aka St. Piran’s hermit crab (Clibanarius erythropus) will impact our native species, the common hermit crab (P. bernhardus).

Isopods

  • We are looking at how Isopods use different sensory appendages to gather information about the world and make decisions based on their sensory perceptions.

  • Isopods are an incredibly diverse and successful clade of crustaceans. We conducting experiments on how environmental stress (including hypoxia, elevated temperature and reduced salinity) impact metabolic rate, growth, behavioural traits and reproduction.

  • We are working to develop isopods as a model organism to study the behavioural and physiological correlates that help an organism adapt to a terrestrial lifestyle. Currently, we are developing behavioural experimental techniques to study both marine and terrestrial species. We are also developing protocols to use these animals in physiological and ecotoxicological research.

Terrestrial Ornamentals

Media Centre

Videos

Antennule shift in the common hermit crab P. bernhardus. This is part of the video footage from our first experiment examining attention in crustaceans. In this experiment, we added a stimulus to the water a crab was in and watched for a change in the direction its antennules were flicking to see if the crab shifted…

CLICK THE PHOTO TO SEE FOR YOURSELF

Downloadables

Posters and Presentations

Meet Hermione: the female of the species

SHIFT ATTENTION: Antennules as indicators of crustacean attention & interest

THE BOLD AND THE BALD: Boldness in hermit crabs is associated with an increase in sensory capacity