to Zoology, number 189, 41 pages, 24 figures, 3 tables, 1975.-Eighty-nine marine mollusks of Ascension are identified and short synonymies, distributional information, and remarks concerning their morphology, relationships, and zoogeography are given. Comparisons are made between the molluscan faunas of St. Helena and Ascension, overall findings showing that species of both islands are derived in similar proportions from the various other world faunal areas. Species endemicity is many times greater on St. Helena than on Ascension, probably due in part to the considerably greater geological age of the former island. OFFICIAL PUBLICATION DATE is handstamped in a limited number of initial copies and is recorded in the Institution's annual report, Smithsonian Year. SI PRESS NUMBER 5199. SERIES COVER DESIGN: The coral Montastrea cavernosa (Linnaeus). Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Rosewater, Joseph, 1928-An annotated list of the marine mollusks of Ascension Island, South Atlantic Ocean. (Smithsonian contributions to zoology, no. 189) Supt. of Docs, no.: SI 1.27:189 1. Mollusks-Ascension Island (Atlantic Ocean). 2. Mollusks-South Atlantic Ocean. I. Title. II. Title: Marine mollusks of Ascension Island. III. Series: Smithsonian Institution. Smithsonian contributions to zoology, no. 189. QL1.S54 no. 189 [QL424.5.A8] 591'.08s [594'.09'24] 74-16371 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents,
Abstract. Marine turtles harbour a variety of epizoa, some of which are specific to these hosts, but shelled gastropod and bivalve mollusks were previously unrecorded on marine turtles. Thousands of turtles of five species from all major oceans were examined. Loggerheads, Caretta caretta, from Greece and the states of Georgia and Florida, USA, were the most remarkable hosts to mollusks. At least 15 species of bivalves and 5 species of gastropods were found on turtles. Many turtles hosting mollusks carried only one species and few individuals. Edible oysters, the most common molluscan epizoan on Grecian Loggerheads, may grow to more than 10cm in diameter, so in some cases the mollusks may survive for several years on the turtle. Large epizoan bivalves may in turn serve themselves as substrates for epizoa, molluscan or otherwise. There are no known obligate relationships between turtles and mollusks, although there may be a parasitic relationship between the Loggerhead turtle, a spirorchid blood fluke, and a gastropod intermediate host. It is unknown if turtles carrying mollusks are at a disadvantage.
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