Leoville Alexandre auteur aut IRD Lagarde R. auteur aut IRD Grondin H. auteur aut IRD Faivre L. auteur aut IRD Rasoanirina E. auteur aut IRD Teichert N. auteur aut IRD text journalArticle eng text/pdf born digital access Mud crab, Scylla serrata, is a common mangrove species in the Indian Ocean. Over the last decades, fishing pressure has greatly increased especially in Madagascar. Therefore, improving the knowledge of mud crab biology and ecology is crucial to guide conservation and restoration plans. This study aimed at describing the distribution of burrows of the mud crab in a mangrove in southwestern Madagascar. Burrows fulfill an essential functional role by limiting the exposure of crab to environmental stress, such as desiccation during low tide, and predation. A total of 140 burrows were observed and available conditions were described at 168 random sampling points at low tide in three different mangrove zones, during the dry season (July 2014). Twelve environmental factors were recorded to reflect the position within the mangrove, the substrate composition and the surrounding floristic structure. A multivariate ordination analysis highlighted an overall association between burrows and specific habitat conditions. Boosted regression trees then indicated that the burrows distribution was predominantly explained by the avoidance of hard substrates. The occurrence of burrows was positively related to the upper intertidal zone of the mangrove where the water level was below 100 cm. Although the tree density had a positive effect, the occurrence of burrows was higher for low percentage of shade (<40%). These results provide insight for identifying mangrove areas that have an essential functional role for the conservation of mud crab populations. specialized Mangrove crab Crustacean Habitat conditions Substratum composition Floristic structure OCEAN INDIEN MADAGASCAR 034 036 082 020 43 101684 [9 p.] 2021 2352-4855 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010081266 10.1016/j.rsma.2021.101684 2352-4855 [F B010081266] https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010081266 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/intranet/publi/2021-05/010081266.pdf Accès réservé (Intranet de l'IRD) IRD - Base Horizon / Pleins textes 2021-05-17 2025-02-24 fdi:010081266 fre