Camouflage and individual variation in shore crabs (Carcinus maenas) from different habitats.

ABSTRACT: Camouflage is widespread throughout the natural world and conceals animals from predators in a vast range of habitats. Because successful camouflage usually involves matching aspects of the background environment, species and populations should evolve appearances tuned to their local habitat, termed phenotype-environment associations. However, although this has been studied in various species, little work has objectively quantified the appearances of camouflaged animals from different habitats, or related this to factors such as ontogeny and individual variation. Here, we tested for phenotype-environment associations in the common shore crab (Carcinus maenas), a species highly variable in appearance and found in a wide range of habitats. We used field surveys and digital image analysis of

SUBMITTER: Stevens M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4281232 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature