Fighting for space: How do weaker individuals compete?

争夺空间：较弱的个体如何竞争？

• 批准号: DP0449536
• 负责人: Prof Patricia Backwell
• 金额: $ 13.92万
• 依托单位: The Australian National University
• 依托单位国家: 澳大利亚
• 项目类别: Discovery Projects
• 财政年份: 2004
• 资助国家: 澳大利亚
• 起止时间: 2004-01-01 至 2007-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://dataportal.arc.gov.au/RGS/Web/Grants/DP0449536
• 关键词: Fighting; space; How; do; weaker

Animals fight for territories and larger, stronger individuals usually win. How then, in fiddler crabs, do small males and weaponless females defend their territories against larger males? I will investigate four contexts in which strength alone may not determine fighting success. I predict that: (a) positional and motivational advantages allow territory owners to repel intruders; (b) weak individuals compete with stronger neighbours by 'nagging' rather than by winning fights; (c) residents form coalitions to fend off intruders; and d) females, who lack the large claws of males, employ novel alternative tactics to maintain territories.This study will test important theories of territoriality and in so doing make a major contribution to behavioural ecology.

动物为领土而战，更大，更强壮的个体通常会获胜。那么，招潮蟹中的小公蟹和没有武器的母蟹是如何抵御大公蟹的攻击来保卫自己的领地的呢？我将研究四种情况，在这些情况下，单凭实力可能无法决定战斗的成败。我预测：（a）地位和动机优势使领地所有者能够击退入侵者;（B）弱小的个体通过“唠叨”而不是赢得战斗来与强大的邻居竞争;（c）居民结成联盟抵御入侵者;和d）雌性，它们没有雄性的大爪子，采用新的替代策略来维护领土。这项研究将测试领土的重要理论，并在这样做的主要对行为生态学的贡献。