How do marine invertebrates communicate using sound?
Little research has been done on how marine invertebrates use sound for communication. Snapping shrimp, spiny lobster, and fiddler crabs have been shown to produce sounds for defensive purposes and certain fiddler crabs also appear to produce sounds for courtship. The snapping shrimp, Alpheus heterochaelis, produces sound in a most interesting and unique way. Upon closure of its enlarged claw, or cheliped, a bubble is formed that cavitates producing a loud popping sound (see How do marine invertebrates produce sound?). The force of the cavitating bubble is so powerful that it can stun or kill prey items. In the same way, the bubble is used to ward off predators.
