Relationships between sponges and crabs: patterns of epibiosis on Inachus aguiarii (Decapoda, Majidae)

Abstract

The association between sponges and the crab Inachus aguiarii Brito Capello, 1876 was studied by analysing the relationships between sponge distributional patterns on the crab carapaces and several morphological and biological crab parameters. Juveniles, mature females and mature males were differentiated on the basis of sex dimorphism and terminal pubertary moult. All three groups were fouled to different degrees by sponges. Percent sponge cover was related to carapace size only in mature males whereas mature females, all but one of which were ovigerous, were extensively covered regardless of their size. It is proposed that some behavioural patterns unique to females, such as long resting periods in sponge-rich microhabitats, are responsible for these high sponge covers in females. Sponges showed two trends in the colonization of the carapace, leading to either a monopolizing or a sharing of the available carapace surface. The sponge species found on the carapaces studied are not obligatory epibionts of crabs, but are believed to reflect the sponge population characterizing the crab home range.