Abstract

The freshwater crayfish Procambarus cubensis has many features that favour its use as a model animal for physiological study of behaviour over the native Russian species from the genus Astacus. Procambarus cubensis prefer room temperature and are rather insensitive to the quality of the water. In addition, our laboratory population has been maintained for years in separate shallow tanks and they are well adapted to laboratory conditions. This allows us to study not only species-specific but also individual features of their behavior. For about 20 years, we have investigated several behavioural characteristics in long-term experiments on P. cubensis using various non-invasive techniques: optical recording of background locomotor activity, recording the summed electrical field of scaphognathite-moving muscles, and video-recording of repetitive motions of the flagellar exopods of the maxillipeds, under different behavioural situations. Using these characteristics, it is possible to differentiate several functional states of the animal: quiet wakefulness (alertness), hyper-excited, or a sleep-like state. Crayfish reactions to various sensory stimuli depend significantly on their functional state. Ventilatory reactions recorded in wakeful motionless crayfish show that they are continuously monitoring their environment. It is suggested that an initial component of crayfish reactions to a novel stimulus may be analogous to the orienting response of higher vertebrates.

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