Egg mass ventilation by caridean shrimp: similarities to other decapods and insight into pheromone receptor location

Abstract

Egg clutch brooding and larval release behaviour are common among decapods and involve pheromone communication between the developing embryos and the brooding female. We tested caridean shrimps to determine whether their behaviour was similar to other decapods. In tests with aqueous extracts of crushed eggs and peptide pheromone mimic shrimps responded similarly to brachyurans and lobsters. The elongate body form of shrimps enabled us to focally stimulate body locations with the goal of determining the location of pheromone receptors. The receptors for the pheromones are likely located on the bases of the walking legs or on the gills, not on the pleopods, first walking legs, antennae or antennules. Shrimps are another example of organisms that use peptides generated by trypsin-like serine proteases as pheromones and signal molecules.