The tradeoff between reproductive and food resources in the crayfish Orconectes virilis

Abstract

The conflict between mating and foraging is one of the many tradeoffs associated with reproduction. The relative attraction to sex pheromone and food stimuli by male virile crayfish (Orconectes virilis) were tested using two experiments. In the first experiment, the responses by males to pheromone and food stimuli alone were assessed. In the second experiment, males were exposed to both pheromone and food stimuli in a choice maze. To determine the effects of feeding motivation, the males in the choice experiment were fed either one day or seven days prior to observation. Male crayfish exhibited similar responses to the pheromone and food stimuli individually. Males exhibited a preference for the pheromone stimulus over the food stimulus in the choice trials, and that preference that was not influenced by starvation.