The behavioural and sensory ecology of Agaronia propatula (Caenogastropoda: Olividae), a swash-surfing predator on sandy beaches of the Panamic faunal province

Cyrus, Ariel Z.; Rupert, Samantha D.; Silva, Amy S.; Graf, Monika; Rappaport, Jeremy C.; Paladino, Frank V.; Peters, Winfried S.

doi:10.1093/mollus/eys006

Cited by 15 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Gastropods of the genus Agaronia in the family Olividae are common on sandy beaches throughout Pacific Central America ( López, Montoya & López, 1988 ; see the taxonomic note below), where they regularly prey on another common olivid, the filter-feeding Olivella semistriata (Gray 1839) ( Cyrus et al, 2012 ). Agaronia is closely related to the more thoroughly studied genus Oliva.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Unlike Oliva spp., which are predominantly active at night, A. propatula forages on the intertidal plains of sandy beaches during intermediate and low tide at daylight. Thus, A. propatula are more readily observed in the wild (videos showing A. propatula capturing prey are available as supplementary materials with Rupert & Peters, 2011 , and Cyrus et al, 2012 ). The gastropod also shows a range of interesting adaptations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The gastropod also shows a range of interesting adaptations. For example, it exploits wave action to move rapidly using its expanded foot as an underwater sail, and has a pronounced capability of sensing movement and vibrations in the sediment to detect potential prey ( Cyrus et al, 2012 ). It autotomizes the part of its foot that is used to form the pouch in which prey is stored ( Rupert & Peters, 2011 ), but previous studies have failed to identify the natural trigger of autotomy in A. propatula ( Cyrus & Peters, 2014 ; Cyrus et al, 2015 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Complexity of the prey spectrum ofAgaronia propatula(Caenogastropoda: Olividae), a dominant predator in sandy beach ecosystems of Pacific Central America

Robinson

Peters

2018

PeerJ

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Olivid gastropods of the genus Agaronia are dominant predators within invertebrate communities on sandy beaches throughout Pacific Central America. At Playa Grande, on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica, we observed 327 natural predation events by Agaronia propatula. For each predation event, we documented prey taxa and body size of both predator and prey. The relationship between predator and prey size differed for each of the four main prey taxa: bivalves, crustaceans, heterospecific gastropods, and conspecific gastropods (representing cannibalism). For bivalve prey, there was increased variance in prey size with increasing predator size. Crustaceans were likely subdued only if injured or otherwise incapacitated. Heterospecific gastropods (mostly Olivella semistriata) constituted half of all prey items, but were only captured by small and intermediately sized A. propatula. Large O. semistriata appeared capable of avoiding predation by A. propatula. Cannibalism was more prevalent among large A. propatula than previously estimated. Our findings suggested ontogenetic niche shifts in A. propatula and a significant role of cannibalism in its population dynamics. Also indicated were size-dependent defensive behavior in some prey taxa and a dynamic, fine-scale zonation of the beach. The unexpected complexity of the trophic relations of A. propatula was only revealed though analysis of individual predation events. This highlights the need for detailed investigations into the trophic ecology of marine invertebrates to understand the factors driving ecosystem structuring in sandy beaches.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Complexity of the prey spectrum ofAgaronia propatula(Caenogastropoda: Olividae), a dominant predator in sandy beach ecosystems of Pacific Central America

Robinson

Peters

2018

PeerJ

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“…; Cyrus et al . ). Most shells are either smooth (often enveloped by the foot or mantle) or sculptured with low, often terraced spiral elements, with shallow terraced sutures and streamlined profiles (Vermeij ) (Fig.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Life in the arena: infaunal gastropods and the late Phanerozoic expansion of marine ecosystems into sand

Vermeij

2017

Palaeontology

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Marine ecosystems have expanded into the infaunal realm below the surface of soft sediments throughout the Phanerozoic eon. During the Palaeozoic era, this expansion largely involved sedentary animals living in permanent resting places. Active sand-burrowing animals colonized the infaunal environment later, but when this happened and when specialization for infaunal life evolved remain open questions. Here, phylogenetic evidence, fossil occurrences and previously established criteria for recognizing the sand-burrowing habit in marine gastropods are used to determine how many gastropod clades became infaunal and when the transitions from surface-dwelling to infaunal life occurred. At least 20, and as many as 35, clades (all but one of post-Palaeozoic age) contain actively infaunal species.The overwhelming majority (15 of 20 clades) became infaunal during the Cenozoic, and clades with hundreds of infaunal species in the living fauna diversified beginning in the Early Miocene. The repeated evolution of, and specialization to, the sand-burrowing habit by gastropods and other animals was enabled by increased habitat availability and higher marine productivity, and was necessitated by intensifying predation. As a result, the infaunal realm was transformed from a marine refuge to an integrated part of the marine biosphere in which high performance in locomotion and defence has become the norm.

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“…As a group, the test beaches represented ecological gradients regarding their exposure to wave energy, and with respect to the type and extent of human activities (Table 1). Finally, the test beaches varied significantly with regard to predation pressure on O. semistriata, with estimated minimum densities of its main predator Agaronia propatula (López et al 1988, Rupert & Peters 2011, Cyrus et al 2012) between 0 and >20 individuals per 100 m beach length. (Table 1).…”

Section: Developmental and Ecological Plasticity In O Semistriatamentioning

confidence: 99%

What can we learn from confusing Olivella columellaris and O. semistriata (Olivellidae, Gastropoda), two key species in panamic sandy beach ecosystems?

et al. 2012

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Olivella columellaris (Sowerby 1825) and O. semistriata (Gray 1839) are suspension-feeding, swash-surfing snails on tropical sandy beaches of the east Pacific. While they often are the numerically dominant macrofaunal element in their habitats, their biology is poorly understood; the two species actually have been confused in all of the few publications that address their ecology. Frequent misidentifications in publications and collections contributed also to an overestimation of the geographic overlap of the two species. To provide a sound taxonomic basis for further functional, ecological, and evolutionary investigations, we evaluated the validity of diagnostic traits in wild populations and museum collections, and defined workable identification criteria. Morphometric analysis demonstrated that shell growth is allometric in O. columellaris but isometric in O. semistriata, suggesting that the species follow distinct developmental programs. The taxonomic confusion is aggravated by the existence of populations of dwarfish O. semistriata, which originally had been described as a separate species, O. attenuata (Reeve 1851). At our Costa Rican study sites, the occurrence of such dwarfish populations correlates with low wave energies but not with predation pressure and anthropogenic disturbances, indicating significant ecological plasticity in the development of O. semistriata.

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The behavioural and sensory ecology of Agaronia propatula (Caenogastropoda: Olividae), a swash-surfing predator on sandy beaches of the Panamic faunal province

Cited by 15 publications

References 29 publications

Complexity of the prey spectrum ofAgaronia propatula(Caenogastropoda: Olividae), a dominant predator in sandy beach ecosystems of Pacific Central America

Complexity of the prey spectrum ofAgaronia propatula(Caenogastropoda: Olividae), a dominant predator in sandy beach ecosystems of Pacific Central America

Life in the arena: infaunal gastropods and the late Phanerozoic expansion of marine ecosystems into sand

What can we learn from confusing Olivella columellaris and O. semistriata (Olivellidae, Gastropoda), two key species in panamic sandy beach ecosystems?

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