ownership of shells, and many of the resource assessment procedures seen in a fight are similar to those used in selecting empty shells (Elwood and Neil, 1992, 25).
Shells are an important resource for the hermit crab. The crab must have an optimal shell, and the crab typically engages in a series of activities ending when he either rejects a shell or moves out of the old shell and into the new one. This series of activities seems to be the process of information gathering and decision making for the crab (Elwood and Neil, 1992, 53).
Conover (1978) reports on a study on shell selection by the hermit crab, using the Pagurus pollicaris in a natural populati
...