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Observations on the behaviour, salinity relations and colour change of Ligia italica from madeira

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 October 2019

John Davenport
John Davenport
Affiliation:
University Marine Biological Station, Millport, Isle of Cumbrae, Scotland, KA28 OEG
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Abstract

Ligia italica Fabricius is a day-active isopod on the shores of Madeira. The population migrates up and down the shore with the tide, browsing on lichens and macroalgae. Shore bird predation is negligible; foraging wall lizards are the only daytime predators. Ligia italica retreats into crevices at night. It exploits plant material within supralittoral and intertidal pools and enters pools with salinities as high as 74‰. Ligia italica emerges from pools at intervals to breathe in air; such emersion lasts no more than two minutes. Ligia italica on Madeira has no colour change ability, the isopods remaining dark grey/black whatever the background.

Type
Short Communications
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 74 , Issue 4 , November 1994 , pp. 959 - 962
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 1994

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