Comparative brain architecture of the European shore crab Carcinus maenas (Brachyura) and the common hermit crab Pagurus bernhardus (Anomura) with notes on other marine hermit crabs

Abstract

The European shore crab Carcinus maenas and the common hermit crab Pagurus bernhardus are members of the sister taxa Brachyura and Anomura (together forming the taxon Meiura) respectively. Both species share similar coastal marine habitats and thus are confronted with similar environmental conditions. This study sets out to explore variations of general brain architecture of species that live in seemingly similar habitats but belong to different major malacostracan taxa and to understand possible differences of sensory systems and related brain compartments. We examined the brains of Carcinus maenas, Pagurus bernhardus, and three other hermit crab species with immunohistochemistry against tyrosinated tubulin, f-actin, synaptic proteins, RF-amides and allatostatin. Our comparison showed that their optic neuropils within the eyestalks display strong resemblance in gross morphology as well as in detailed organization, suggesting a rather similar potential of processing visual input. Besides the well-developed visual system, the olfactory neuropils are distinct components in the brain of both C. maenas and P. bernhardus as well as the other hermit crabs, suggesting that close integration of olfactory and visual information may be useful in turbid marine environments with low visibility, as is typical for many habitats such as, e.g., the Baltic and the North Sea. Comparing the shape of the olfactory glomeruli in the anomurans showed some variations, ranging from a wedge shape to an elongate morphology. Furthermore, the tritocerebrum and the organization of the second antennae associated with the tritocerebrum seem to differ markedly in C. maenas and P. bernhardus, indicating better mechanosensory abilities in the latter close to those of other Decapoda with long second antennae, such as Astacida, Homarida, or Achelata. This aspect may also represent an adaptation to the "hermit lifestyle" in which competition for shells is a major aspect of their life history. The shore crab C. maenas, on the other hand seems to rely much less on mechanosensory information mediated by the second antennae but in water, the visual and the olfactory senses seem to be the most important modalities.