Inhibition of escape tailflip in crayfish during backward walking and the defense posture

A major question in neuroethology is how animals coordinate transitions between incompatible behavior patterns. The recent demonstration that the lateral giant (LG) tailflip is inhibited during eating (Krasne and Lee, 1988) suggested to us that inhibition may play a general role in preventing maladaptive transitions between incompatible behavior patterns. We wished to determine whether the LG tailflip is inhibited during other incompatible behavior such as backward walking and the defense posture.