ABSTRACT Autotomy is the ability to shed an appendage, and arthropods can autotomize to escape predation or a fouled molting event. Myriad aspects of autotomy have been previously explored, yet quantitative data on the force needed to induce autotomy is lacking. We tested three leg types in Hemigrapsus nudus, and our results showed that hind legs require the most amount of force to autotomize (~45 N-s) compared to claws (~28 N-s) or middle walking legs (~22 N-s). These results rejected our null hypothesis that all legs require an equal amount of force to autotomize as well as our alternate hypothesis that larger legs would require more force than smaller legs. Previous research has suggested that the propensity to autotomize could correlate with the type of appendage, and while we are unable to provide an evolutionary explanation for our results, it is exciting to have some quantitative force data for future studies.

中文翻译：

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螃蟹 Hemigrapsus nudus 腿部自切所需的力

摘要 Autotomy 是脱落附属物的能力，节肢动物可以自动切除以逃避捕食或污染的蜕皮事件。先前已经探索了自切术的无数方面，但缺乏诱导自切术所需力的定量数据。我们在 Hemigrapsus nudus 中测试了三种腿类型，我们的结果表明，与爪子 (~28 Ns) 或中间步行腿 (~22 Ns) 相比，后腿需要最大的力量来自动切割 (~45 Ns)。这些结果拒绝了我们的零假设，即所有的腿都需要等量的力量来实现自动化，以及我们的替代假设，即较大的腿比较小的腿需要更多的力量。先前的研究表明，自动切割的倾向可能与附属物的类型相关，虽然我们无法为我们的结果提供进化解释，