Sessile Marine Invertebrates of Beaufort, North Carolina: A Study of Settlement, Growth, and Seasonal Fluctuations among Pile‐Dwelling Organisms

The succession of sessile invertebrates over ca 3 yr was studied by suspending concrete plates at depths of 1.0, 2.5, 4.0 and 5.5 m in Nabeta Bay, Shimoda, Pacific coast of Japan. A total of 28 species of sessile invertebrates appeared dunng colonization. Their succession was divided into 3 stages by dendrogram analysis: Stage 1 is characterized by the earliest colonizers of the barnacle Balanus trigonus and the spirorbid Dexlospira foraminosus; Stage 2 by the ascidian Diplosoma mitsukuni; and Stage 3 by the oyster Crassostrea nippona. The earliest colonizers were overgrown by colonial ascidians, bryozoans and sponges recrulhng a little later. The overgrowth of these colonists, especially D. mitsukurii, affected the subsequent community structure of sessile invertebrates. The pattern of transition of sessile invertebrates differed with depth. At depths of 1.0 and 2.5 m, C. nlppona finally dominated by overgrowing other sessile invertebrates. Communities at these 2 depths reached Stage 3 between 13 and 37 mo after immersion. At a depth of 4.0 m, C. nippona finally decreased in coverage, while B. trigonus, D. mitsukurii and the bryozoans Watersipora subovoidea and Amathja distans increased. The community at this depth reached Stage 3 after 13 to 37 mo from immersion. At a depth of 5.5 m, C. nlppona did not appear at all, but the barnacles Megabalanus volcano and M. rosa as well as B. tngonus, D. mitsukurii, W. subovoidea and A. distans increased in coverage 37 mo after immersion. At this depth, the community remained at Stage 2 dunng the period from 4 to 37 mo after immersion. In the penod from 13 to 37 mo the number of species remained almost unchanged at depths of 1.0 and 2.5 m, but tended to decrease at 4.0 and 5 5 m. The communities at the 2 upper depths dominated by C. nippona were regarded as a persistent climax community in the succession, because C. nippona can settle easily on the shells of barnacles having high recruitment capability, it can avoid the intensive overgrowth by later colonists, and it has a long life span. On the other hand, the communities at the 2 lower depths dominated by colonial animals seem to inhibit the invasion of other sessile invertebrates through competition for space.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Community Development and Ecological Characteristics Of Sessmentioning

confidence: 99%

Succession of sessile organisms on experimental plates immersed in Nabeta Bay, Izu Peninsula, Japan. II. Succession of invertebrates

Hirata¹

1987

“…Salinities reach the ocean seawater values (35 ppt) and vary by 3 to 5 ppt tidally (Kirby-Smith & Costlow 1989). McDougall (1943), Sutherland & Karlson (1977), Sutherland (1981) and Walters & Wethey (1996) have extensively described the general features of the Beaufort fouling community, the dominant species of which are Tubularia crocea (hydroids), Bugula neritina (arborescent bryozoan), Styela plicata (ascidian) (barnacles). The target species in this study 1s B. amphitrite Darwin, the most common barnacle found in warm coastal and estuarine waters (Bishop 1950, Crisp & Molesworth 1951.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Barnacle settlement:field experiments on the influence of larval supply, tidal level, biofilm quality and age on Balanus amphitrite cyprids

Olivier¹,

Tremblay²,

Bourget³

et al. 2000

123

A set of 3 field experiments lasting 24 h was conducted during April 1998 at the Duke University Marine Laboratory (Beaufort, North Carolina, USA) to: (1) assess the influence of larval supply, intertidal height, quantity and quality of biofilm and age of the larvae on the settlement of Balanus amphitrite Darwin and (2) examine the correspondence between small-scale planktonic distribution of larvae, the initial spatial pattern of newly settled larvae and the vertical distribution of adult barnacles. Precolonized methacrylate (Plexiglas) disks, arranged within 3 blocks and established so as to eliminate edge effects within 3 large experimental panels, were placed at 3 predetermined tidal heights (High, Medium, Low) corresponding to the upper lirmt, modal zone and the lower limit of adults of B. amphitrite. Split-split-plot ANOVAs were performed on densities of newly attached larvae (metamorphosis not completed) to test their habitat selection behavior to surfaces which had been precolonized by microbiota (bacteria and diatoms) at 3 heights (origin factor) for 0, 7, 14 or 21 d (age factor). The physical environment (salinity, temperature, current flow) was stable and comparable during the 3 experiments. B. amphitrite cyprids were uniformly distributed in the water column. Larval supply was poorly correlated with the intensity of settlement over the 1 wk experimental period. In fact, the same larval supply could induce either high (4x) or low ( l X) settlement after 2 tidal cycles, and, inversely, similar settlement intensities were associated with planktonic larval abundance varying significantly at 2 d intervals (109 to 171 cyprids 923 l-l). Settlement was homogeneous on each experimental unit (no significant block effect). Tidal height, however, was a significant factor in determining the vertical patterns of newly settled larvae during the first experiment where larvae were abundant but not during subsequent experiments for which fewer larvae were collected. The degree of microbial precolonization was the main parameter affecting the settlement of B. amphitrite. For the first 2 experiments, 'weighed cyprid settlement' significantly decreased as the age of the biofilrn increased, revealing a strong preference of settlers for clean surfaces and avoidance of biofouled surfaces of all intertidal origins. Further analysis of biofilm samples showed that free-space availability in the microbial film and bacterial densities were significantly inversely correlated to settlement intensity. Moreover, settlement to 'favorable' substrata decreased by nearly % during our experimental period, suggesting changes in the selectivity of settling larvae. Our experiments confirm the role of larval supply in determining the vertical intertidal distribution of adults of B. amphitrite, but the short-term variability in the larval supplyhettlement coupling observed over a 1 wk period must be integrated in models of recruitment dynamics of barnacles.

“…It is well established that barnacles prefer to settle on rough surfaces (Crisp & Barnes 1954, Crisp 1961, 1974, Chabot & Bourget 1988. Some barnacle species have been observed to settle preferentially on dark substratum (Edmondson & Ingram 1939, Pomerat & Reiner 1942, McDougall 1943, Smith 1948, but see Barnes et al 1951, Luckens 1970) and the absence of tropical barnacles from coral rock, which is generally light-colored, has been reported by Southward & Newman (1977). Coral rock is highly porous, and it has been suggested that barnacles, especially those with wholly or partially membranous bases, like Chthamalus proteus and Nesochthamalus intertextus, would be more subject to desiccation than those with calcified bases (Southward & Newman 1977).…”

Section: Predictabilitymentioning

confidence: 81%

A Hawaiian limpet facilitates recruitment of a competitively dominant invasive barnacle

Zabin

Altieri²

2007

At an intertidal site on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, the abundance of the invasive barnacle Chthamalus proteus was negatively correlated with abundance of the native limpet Siphonaria normalis. As the substratum at this site was a conglomerate of materials, we hypothesized that the observed pattern was the result of differences in substratum preferences, and/or negative interactions between the 2 species, or both. We used manipulative field experiments to test these hypotheses, and then generalized our findings with surveys across several sites that differed in substratum type and abundances of barnacles and limpets. The limpet recruited in highest numbers to light-colored substrata. The barnacle settled in highest numbers on rough substrata, with a trend toward higher settlement on dark-colored substrata. Surprisingly, in experimental plots, recruitment of the barnacle was positively correlated with the density of the limpet. In contrast, limpet densities increased in experimental plots from which barnacles had been removed. Thus the pattern at this site appears to result from a combination of substratum preferences and interactions between the 2 species. These experiments and surveys of other intertidal sites on Oahu suggest that (1) limpets and barnacles have little effect on each other at low densities, (2) at higher densities limpets facilitate settlement of barnacles, but barnacles have a negative effect on limpets, and (3) substratum type can mediate the density-dependent interactions between these 2 species by affecting their settlement patterns.