Diversity, environmental requirements, and biogeography of bivalve wood-borers (Teredinidae) in European coastal waters

Abstract

BackgroundBivalve teredinids inflict great destruction to wooden maritime structures. Yet no comprehensive study was ever carried out on these organisms in European coastal waters. Thus, the aims of this study were to: investigate the diversity of teredinids in European coastal waters; map their past and recent distributions to detect range expansion or contraction; determine salinity-temperature (S-T) requirements of species; flag, for future monitoring, the species that pose the greatest hazard for wooden structures.ResultsA total of nine teredinid species were found established in European coastal waters. Seven were considered cryptogenic, of unknown origin, and two were considered alien species. Teredo navalis and Nototeredo norvagica were the species with the widest distribution in European waters. Recently, T. navalis has been reported occurring further east in the Baltic Sea but it was not found at a number of sites on the Atlantic coast of southern Europe. The Atlantic lineage of Lyrodus pedicellatus was the dominant teredinid in the southern Atlantic coast of Europe. In the Mediterranean six teredinid species occurred in sympatry, whereas only three of these occurred in the Black Sea. The species that pose the greatest hazard to wooden maritime structures in European coastal areas are T. navalis and the two lineages of L. pedicellatus.ConclusionsCombined data from field surveys and from the literature made it possible to determine the diversity of established teredinid species and their past and recent distribution in Europe. The environmental requirements of species, determined using climatic envelopes, produced valuable information that assisted on the explanation of species distribution. In addition, the observed trends of species range extension or contraction in Teredo navalis and in the two lineages of Lyrodus pedicellatus seem to emphasise the importance of temperature and salinity as determinants of the distribution of teredinids, whereas their life history strategy seems to play an important role on competition.Teredo navalis and pedicellatus-like Lyrodus species should be monitored due to their destructive capability. The two alien species may expand further their distribution range in Europe, becoming invasive, and should also be monitored.

Ocorrência e recrutamento larval de Teredinidae (Mollusca, Bivalvia) na região do Sistema Costeiro Cananéia-Iguape, São Paulo, Brasil

“…As espécies com larvas lecitotróficas apresentam período de vida planctônica mais curto que as planctotróficas e têm geralmente maiores chances de sucesso reprodutivo. Em função disso, geralmente são as mais abundantes (Turner, 1966;Borges et al, 2014). No entanto, o número de indivíduos de L. floridanus, única espécie com larvas lecitotróficas encontrada, foi pequeno quando comparado ao das espécies com larvas planctotróficas.…”

“…Os Teredinidae são bivalves especializados na perfuração e digestão de madeira, ocorrendo, predominantemente, em ambiente marinho e de água salobra de regiões temperadas e tropicais, embora algumas espécies possam ocorrer em águas mais frias ou em salinidades próximas a zero (Turner, 1966;Borges et al, 2014). São animais de grande importância econômica e ecológica, pois aceleram a degradação de estruturas de madeira, contribuindo para a reciclagem mais rápida dos macrodetritos vegetais (roBerTson, 1991).…”

“…A temperatura e a salinidade têm influência maior sobre as larvas, pois estas requerem condições ótimas com relação a esses fatores (Turner, 1966;rayner, 1979;Borges et al, 2014). Além disso, em regiões entremarés, a constante exposição dos troncos das árvores ao ar retarda o assentamento larval (lopes & narchi, 1997) e as flutuações de salinidade causadas por tempestades súbitas e intensas afetam a sobrevivência dos adultos (BarreTo et al, 2000;paalvasT & van der velde, 2011).…”

Biodiversity of Shipworms (Mollusca: Bivalvia: Teredinidae) in the Vicinity of a Tropical Mangrove Ecosystem along Bay of Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, India

“…Among others, the occurrence of T. bartschi was reported from the mangroves in Mamanguape estuarine region of the north-eastern Brazil by Leonel et al 4 and the presence of B. rochi and L. pedicellatus in the mangrove habitats of the Burrup peninsula in Western Australia by Brearley et al 5 Like-wise, Beasley et al 30 identified the presence of L. pedicellatus and Teredo spp. from Ajuruteua Peninsula of northern Brazil while Borges et al 11 recognized the incidence of L. pedicellatus in the Tagus Estuary, Borges et al 31 found the occurrence of B. carinata, L. pedicellatus and T. bartschi in European coastal waters.…”

Lyrodus mersinensis sp. nov. (Bivalvia: Teredinidae) another cryptic species in the Lyrodus pedicellatus (Quatrefages, 1849) complex

“…The aim is to improve `taxonomic resolution´ in this species complex because many studies rely on taxonomic precision. Examples include studies of species diversity, one of the most widely adopted measures of biodiversity (Chiarucci et al 2011), biogeography (Borges et al 2014a) and bioassessment (Lenat and Resh 2001;Chessman et al 2007). …”