Additional sources of disturbance pheromone affecting the crayfish

Abstract

The responses of individually housed crayfish ( Orconectes virilis ) were recorded during introduction of water from aquaria containing disturbed or undisturbed animals. When female O. virilis were disturbed, form II males assumed low-level altert postures significantly more than when those females were undisturbed. Similar results were obtained when the source animals were female Cambarus diogenes , a sympatric crayfish. When the newt Notopthalamus viridescens was disturbed, the crayfish responses were strong but resembled stress behavior. The responses by crayfish to disturbed vs. undisturbed catfish ( Ictalurus natalis ) were not significantly different.