The effect of extreme climatic events on littorinid snails in two estuarine environments, temperate (NW Spain) and tropical (NE Brazil)

Abstract

Extreme weather events (e.g., droughts, excessive precipitation) are expected to increase in frequency and severity in the coming decades due to climate change, causing significant impacts on society and ecosystems. Because these events are rare and complex, they have been studied with manipulative experiments. Littorinidae snails inhabit a complex and variable environment in which they must deal with periodic extreme events and are thus considered excellent ecological models for these studies. Therefore, this study aimed to understand the effects of extreme climatic events on the survival and weight of the species Littorina fabalis and Littorina littorea in Spain and Littoraria angulifera and Littoraria flava in Brazil. Higher mortality rates and greater weight loss were observed in the desiccation resistance treatment compared to the control treatment in both countries. The results showed dependence on the species' body size. The submergence tolerance treatment indicated that the species from Spain are more susceptible to mortality in response to excessive rainfall and/or coastal flooding. Each species tested for the effect of extreme climatic events using an integrated response strategy with clear latitudinal differences. Understanding the organisms' responses at different latitudes is essential for conservation biology on a global scale.