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Wendy Billock: PhD student. Graduated 2008. | |||||||
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Behavioral evidence for "Contextual decision hierarchies" in the hermit crab, Pagurus samuelis. Click here to open her Dissertation (PDF) Publications: |
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Billock, W. L. and Dunbar, S. G. (in prep). Influence of sensory cues on predation avoidance behavior in the hermit crab, Pagurus samuelis | ||||||||
Billock, W. L. and Dunbar, S. G. 2011. Shell and food acquisition behaviors: Evidence for Contextual decision Hierarchies in hermit crabs. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 389: 26 - 32. Link to PDF here | ||||||||
Billock, W. L. and Dunbar, S. G. 2009. Influence of motivation on behavior in the hermit crab, Pagurus samuelis. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the U. K. 89: 775 - 779. Link to PDF here | ||||||||
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Hermit crabs have a unique dilemma, their preferred home, food, and mate may all have the same external appearance, that of a specific gastropod shell. Perhaps hermit crabs use different search criteria based on their present need. For instance, if a hermit crab is searching for a new shell it may limit its search to shell shaped objects. On the other hand, if it is searching for food it may focus on the smell of gastropod odors and ignore shell-shaped objects without the odor.
Pagurus samuelis is an intertidal hermit crab that lives on the rocky shoreline of Southern California. They are predominantly found in Tegula shells in this area.
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