scholarly journals Seasonal movement of the American horseshoe crab Limulus polyphemus in a semi-enclosed bay on Cape Cod, Massachusetts (USA) as determined by acoustic telemetry

2010 ◽  
Vol 56 (5) ◽  
pp. 575-586 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary-Jane James-Pirri
Keyword(s):  
Acoustic Telemetry ◽  
Horseshoe Crab ◽  
Limulus Polyphemus ◽  
Cape Cod ◽  
Telemetry Data ◽  
Seasonal Movement ◽  
Continuous Record ◽  
Horseshoe Crabs ◽  
Enclosed Bay ◽  
Males And Females

Abstract American horseshoe crabs Limulus polyphemus were tracked using acoustic telemetry and traditional tagging in a semi-enclosed bay on Cape Cod (Pleasant Bay), Massachusetts, USA, to determine seasonal movement patterns. Fifty-five actively spawning females were fitted with transmitters in 2008 and 2009 and were tracked using acoustic telemetry from May 2008 through July 2010. Fifteen crabs with transmitters also had archive depth-temperature tags attached. In addition, over 2000 spawning crabs (males and females) were tagged with US Fish and Wildlife (USFWS) button tags over the same period. Ninety-one percent of the crabs with transmitters were detected during this study. In the spring, crabs were primarily located in the northern section of the bay near spawning beaches, whereas in the fall crabs moved towards the deeper portions of the bay, and some may have overwintered in the bay. There was evidence that a majority (58%–71%) of the females with transmitters spawned in two sequential seasons. One archive tag was recovered resulting in a year-long continuous record of depth and temperature data that, when integrated with telemetry data, indicated that the crab overwintered in the bay. The live recapture rate of crabs with USFWS button tags was 11%, with all re-sighted crabs except one observed inside Pleasant Bay. Eighty-three percent of recaptures were found within 2.5km of the tagging location, and 51% were observed at the same beach where they were tagged. This study provides further evidence that horseshoe crabs in Pleasant Bay may be philopatric to this embayment.

scholarly journals GENETIC VARIATION AND GEOGRAPHIC DIFFERENTIATION IN MITOCHONDRIAL DNA OF THE HORSESHOE CRAB, LIMULUS POLYPHEMUS

Genetics ◽  
1986 ◽  
Vol 112 (3) ◽  
pp. 613-627
Author(s):  
Nancy C Saunders ◽  
Louis G Kessler ◽  
John C Avise
Keyword(s):  
Mitochondrial Dna ◽  
Gene Flow ◽  
Horseshoe Crab ◽  
Gulf Coast ◽  
Sequence Divergence ◽  
Clonal Diversity ◽  
Limulus Polyphemus ◽  
Site Variation ◽  
Horseshoe Crabs ◽  
Or Gene

ABSTRACT Restriction site variation in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of the horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus) was surveyed in populations ranging from New Hampshire to the Gulf Coast of Florida. MtDNA clonal diversity was moderately high, particularly in southern samples, and a major genetic "break" (nucleotide sequence divergence approximately 2%) distinguished all sampled individuals which were north vs. south of a region in northeastern Florida. The area of genotypic divergence in Limulus corresponds to a long-recognized zoogeographic boundary between warm-temperate and tropical marine faunas, and it suggests that selection pressures and/or gene flow barriers associated with water mass differences may also influence the evolution of species widely distributed across such transition zones. On the other hand, a comparison of the mtDNA divergence patterns in Limulus with computer models involving stochastic lineage extinction in species with limited gene flow demonstrates that deterministic explanations need not necessarily be invoked to account for the observations. Experiments to distinguish stochastic from deterministic possibilities are suggested. Overall, the pattern and magnitude of mtDNA differentiation in horseshoe crabs is very similar to that typically reported for freshwater and terrestrial species assayed over a comparable geographic range. Results demonstrate for the first time that, geographically, at least some continuously distributed marine organisms can show considerable mtDNA genetic differentiation.

The relative influence of nature vs. nurture on the expression of circatidal rhythms in the American horseshoe crab Limulus polyphemus

2020 ◽  
Vol 649 ◽  
pp. 83-96
Author(s):  
TN Thomas ◽  
WH Watson ◽  
CC Chabot
Keyword(s):  
Horseshoe Crab ◽  
Marine Organism ◽  
Locomotor Behavior ◽  
Video Tracking ◽  
Limulus Polyphemus ◽  
Behavioral Differences ◽  
Early Environment ◽  
Tidal Cycles ◽  
Horseshoe Crabs ◽  
Nature Vs Nurture

The horseshoe crab Limulus polyphemus exhibits rhythmic locomotor behavior that is controlled by both internal clocks and external tidal cycles. Recent findings demonstrate that adult horseshoe crabs from a 2 tides d-1 environment usually express 2 bouts of activity d-1, while adults from areas with 1 dominant tide d-1, or with negligible tides (atidal), generally express 1 bout of activity d-1. Horseshoe crabs from these different environments are genetically distinct, so it is not known if these behavioral differences are driven by genetics or by the tides they experience early in life. To address this question, freshly spawned horseshoe crab eggs from populations that experience these 3 distinct environmental tidal regimes were reared in the laboratory under 1 of the above 3 artificial tidal conditions. Then the activity of individual larval and 2nd instar juveniles was recorded over 3 wk using video tracking software. Endogenous circatidal rhythms were present in most (88/108) of the freshly molted juveniles from all 3 populations, even when they were raised in atidal conditions, indicating a strong genetic influence. To our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of the presence of genetically driven endogenous circatidal rhythms in an individual juvenile marine organism. Nevertheless, the early environment was also capable of having an impact, because it significantly affected rhythm expression in crabs in the 1 tide d-1 population. Thus, overall, the tidal environment to which horseshoe crab eggs are exposed during development appears to have less of an influence than genetics on their expression of tidal rhythms of locomotion.

Assessing the movements of American horseshoe crabs (Limulus polyphemus) around a marine protected area in Cape Cod, MA, USA

2018 ◽  
Vol 210 ◽  
pp. 79-86 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah E.D. Martinez ◽  
William D. Halliday ◽  
Vincent Malkoski ◽  
Francis Juanes ◽  
Andy J. Danylchuk
Keyword(s):  
Protected Area ◽  
Marine Protected Area ◽  
Limulus Polyphemus ◽  
Cape Cod ◽  
Horseshoe Crabs

scholarly journals Age and sex specific timing, frequency, and spatial distribution of horseshoe crab spawning in Delaware Bay: Insights from a large-scale radio telemetry array

2010 ◽  
Vol 56 (5) ◽  
pp. 563-574 ◽  
Author(s):  
David R. Smith ◽  
Brousseau Lorne J. ◽  
Mary T. Mandt ◽  
Michael J. Millard
Keyword(s):  
Water Temperature ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Horseshoe Crab ◽  
Radio Telemetry ◽  
Spring Tide ◽  
Delaware Bay ◽  
Spawning Season ◽  
Adult Age ◽  
Horseshoe Crabs ◽  
Males And Females

Abstract To study horseshoe crab Limulus polyphemus spawning behavior and migration over a large-spatial extent (>100 km), we arrayed fixed station radio receivers throughout Delaware Bay and deployed radio transmitters and archival tags on adult horseshoe crabs prior to their spawning season. We tagged and released 160 females and 60 males in 2004 and 217 females in 2005. The array covered approximately 140 km of shoreline. Recapture rates were >70% with multi-year recaptures. We categorized adult age by carapace wear. Older females tended to spawn earlier in the season and more frequently than young females, but those tendencies were more apparent in 2004 when spawning overall occurred earlier than in 2005 when spawning was delayed possibly due to decreased water temperatures. Timing of initial spawning within a year was correlated with water temperature. After adjusting for day of first spring tide, the day of first spawning was 4 days earlier for every 1 degree (̊C) rise in mean daily water temperature in May. Seventy nine % of spawning occurred during nighttime high tides. Fifty five % of spawning occurred within 3 d of a spring tide, which was slightly higher than the 47% expected if spawning was uniformly distributed regardless of tidal cycle. Within the same spawning season, males and females were observed spawning or intertidally resting at more than one beach separated by >5 km. Between years, most (77%) did not return to spawn at the same beach. Probability of stranding was strongly age dependent for males and females with older adults experiencing higher stranding rates. Horseshoe crabs staging in the shallow waters east of the channel spawned exclusively along the eastern (NJ) shoreline, but those staging west of the channel spawned throughout the bay. Overall, several insights emerged from the use of radio telemetry, which advances our understanding of horseshoe crab ecology and will be useful in conserving the Delaware Bay horseshoe crab population and habitats.

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