Species of crab have been shown to spatially track and navigate to consequential locations through different processes, such as path integration and landmark orienting. Few investigations examine their ability to wayfind in complex environments, like mazes, with multiple intersections and how they may utilize specific features to benefit this process. Spatial learning potentially would lend a fitness advantage to animals living in complicated habitats, and ghost crab () is a semiterrestrial species that typically occupies extensive beach environments, which present many navigational challenges. Despite their potential, there are currently no studies that investigate forms of spatial cognition in these animals. To better diversify our knowledge of this trait, the current research exposed ghost crab to a maze with seven intersections. Animals were given multiple trials to learn the location of a reward destination to a specific criterion proficiency. In one condition several landmarks were distributed throughout the maze, and in another the environment was completely empty. Results showed that ghost crab in the landmark present group were able to learn the maze faster, they required significantly fewer trials to reach the learning criterion than those in the landmark absent group. However, only approximately half of the total sample met the learning criterion, indicating the maze was rather difficult. These findings are interpreted through theories of route learning that suggest animals may navigate by establishing landmark-turn associations. Such processes have implications for the cognitive ability of ghost crab, and spatial learning in this species may support the notion of convergent evolution for this trait.

中文翻译：

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鬼蟹（Ocypodequadrata）在复杂迷宫中寻路时使用的地标

螃蟹物种已被证明可以通过不同的过程（例如路径整合和地标定向）进行空间跟踪和导航到相应的位置。很少有研究考察它们在具有多个交叉路口的复杂环境（如迷宫）中寻路的能力，以及它们如何利用特定功能来使这一过程受益。空间学习可能会给生活在复杂栖息地的动物带来适应性优势，而鬼蟹是一种半陆生物种，通常占据广阔的海滩环境，这给导航带来了许多挑战。尽管它们具有潜力，但目前还没有研究调查这些动物的空间认知形式。为了更好地丰富我们对这一特征的了解，当前的研究将鬼蟹暴露在一个有七个交叉点的迷宫中。对动物进行多次试验，以了解奖励目的地的位置，以达到特定的标准熟练程度。在一种情况下，多个地标分布在整个迷宫中，而在另一种情况下，环境完全是空的。结果表明，存在地标的组中的鬼蟹能够更快地学习迷宫，与没有地标的组相比，它们达到学习标准所需的试验次数明显更少。然而，只有大约一半的样本符合学习标准，这表明迷宫相当困难。这些发现通过路线学习理论进行了解释，该理论表明动物可以通过建立地标转弯关联来导航。这些过程对幽灵蟹的认知能力有影响，该物种的空间学习可能支持该特征的趋同进化概念。