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TRAIT COMPENSATION IN MARINE GASTROPODS: SHELL SHAPE, AVOIDANCE BEHAVIOR, AND SUSCEPTIBILITY TO PREDATION
Author(s) -
Cotton Peter A.,
Rundle Simon D.,
Smith Kathryn E.
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.144
H-Index - 294
eISSN - 1939-9170
pISSN - 0012-9658
DOI - 10.1890/03-3104
Subject(s) - predation , biology , ecology , snail , intertidal zone , herbivore , competition (biology) , trait , gastropoda , programming language , computer science
Many organisms have evolved morphological and behavioral traits that reduce their susceptibility to predation. However, few studies have explicitly investigated the relationships between defensive traits and susceptibility. Here we demonstrate a negative correlation between morphological defenses and behavioral avoidance across several species of marine gastropod that is linked to vulnerability to crab predation. Snails that had relatively taller shell spires (high aspect ratio) showed greater responsiveness when exposed to predation cues than did species with disc‐like shells (low aspect ratio). Our results suggest that the snail species most vulnerable to predation compensated by showing the highest levels of behavioral avoidance, and hence may be at a disadvantage in competition with less vulnerable species. This has important implications because the behavioral response of herbivorous gastropods to predation cues may play a central role in structuring rocky intertidal communities through trait‐mediated indirect effects.