Abstract
A pair of spiny lobsters locks antennae as they battle on the gravel-strewn bottom of an aquarium. The two grapple, grabbing legs and jousting with their long spines. Their aggressive actions extend beyond the show of force: the crustaceans also fire off chemical signals by peeing at each other. “They’re actively signaling as they’re fighting,” says Charles D. Derby, a sensory biologist at Georgia State University whose lab studies these underwater wrestling matches, along with other crustacean behaviors. Lobster urine, released from the face near the base of the antennae, contains an array of compounds, including chemical cues to an animal’s sex and social status ( J. Exp. Biol. 2009, DOI: 10.1242/jeb.026492 ). Lobsters are just one of myriad marine animals that rely on molecular missives. Behaviors such as finding meals, choosing habitats, avoiding predators, seeking sex, and engaging in social encounters “are all driven by chemistry, at least in
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