Biomechanics: a pneumo-hydrostatic skeleton in land crabs

Nature
Jennifer R A Taylor, William M Kier

Abstract

Like their aquatic counterparts, terrestrial crabs repeatedly shed their rigid exoskeleton during moulting. But in the case of land crabs, little water is available to provide a temporary hydrostatic skeleton before the new skeleton hardens, and air does not provide the buoyancy necessary to support the animal. Here we show that whenever its exoskeleton is shed, the blackback land crab Gecarcinus lateralis relies on an unconventional type of hydrostatic skeleton that uses both gas and liquid (a 'pneumo-hydrostat'). To our knowledge, this is the first experimental evidence for a locomotor skeleton that depends on a gas. It establishes a new category of hydrostatic skeletal support and possibly a critical adaptation to life on land for the Crustacea.

References

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Citations

Sep 9, 2018·The Journal of Experimental Biology·Jennifer R A Taylor
Mar 17, 2007·Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences·Diane A Kelly
Jan 21, 2021·Bioinspiration & Biomimetics·Nicole M GrafKathryn A Daltorio
Dec 7, 2007·The Journal of Experimental Biology·Jennifer R A TaylorWilliam M Kier
Mar 24, 2012·The Journal of Experimental Biology·William M Kier
Oct 5, 2010·The Journal of Experimental Biology·J R A Taylor, S N Patek
Aug 17, 2021·Arthropod Structure & Development·Victoria M Watson-Zink

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