The Ecology of Lough Ine. XV. The Ecological Significance of Shell and Body Forms in Nucella

Kitching, J. A.; Muntz, Louise; Ebling, F. J.

doi:10.2307/2693

Cited by 194 publications

(164 citation statements)

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“…2). This interaction of size increase and wave exposure is consistent with the increased risk of dislodgement of large N. lapillus at waveexposed sites (18)(19)(20)(21). This increase in shell length was unexpected, however, given the known influence of the recently introduced invasive C. maenas on N. lapillus shell morphology.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 51%

“…These patterns have since led to the development of experimental analyses of crab-snail interactions as a model system for the study of inducible and evolved morphological defenses (13)(14)(15)(16). But although N. lapillus remains a common and extensively studied North Atlantic marine snail (17), no study has examined historical changes in its shell morphology on the scale of a century by exclusively resampling the same sites and evaluating site-specific wave exposures among sites, which alter shell size and shape (18)(19)(20)(21). With the goal of exploring spatial and temporal variations in N. lapillus shell morphology and their implications across a century of dramatic ecological change, we resampled snails at locations originally described in museum collections.…”

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confidence: 99%

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An intertidal snail shows a dramatic size increase over the past century

Fisher

Rhile

Liu

et al. 2009

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Changes in the shell architecture of marine snails enhance defenses and greatly improve survival against predators. In the northwest Atlantic Ocean, shorter and thicker shells have been reported for several species following the introduction of predatory Carcinus maenas crabs early in the 20th century. But we report that the shell lengths of Nucella lapillus actually increased by an average of 22.6% over the past century, with no evidence of shell thickening after correcting for shell length. The increases in shell length were greatest on sheltered shores, highlighting the interaction between wave exposure and the sampling period. Comparisons were based on archived shells collected in 1915-1922 from sites that were resampled in 2007. N. lapillus is an important member of North Atlantic marine ecosystems, and our results suggest that the impacts of historical changes in species' key morphological traits on marine ecosystems remain underappreciated.morphology ͉ museum collections ͉ natural history ͉ rocky shores ͉ trait variation

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 51%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

An intertidal snail shows a dramatic size increase over the past century

Fisher

Rhile

Liu

et al. 2009

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Kitching et al 1966 ;Crothers 1983). Field work (Burrows & Hughes 1989) and results of the present investigation, however, suggest that dogwhelks will tend to avoid exposure to this risk by taking refuge during rough weather.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 67%

“…According to the neurological mechanism critical stimulus strength, inhibiting foraging behaviour would covary with morphology and hence with susceptibility to dislodgement. Critical stimulus strength thus would be less for sheltered-shore dogwhelks, whose relatively smaller pedal area affords lesser tenacity (Seed 1978 ;Etter 1988 b) and whose relatively more elongated shell presumably generates greater drag forces during wave surge (Kitching et al 1966 ;Newkirk & Doyle 1975 ;Denny 1988). Such behavioural differentiation among populations would be analogous to that recorded in the sexual behaviour of guppies living under different regimes of predation risk (Magurran et al 1992 ;see §1).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…lapillus. The relatively shorter, wider-mouthed shell characteristic of exposed-shore populations reduces drag during wave surge (Kitching et al 1966) and is associated with a relatively larger foot area and greater tenacity (Seed 1978 ;Etter 1988 b). The relatively more elongated, narrower-mouthed shell of sheltered-shore populations allows greater retention of water, so reducing desiccation at low tide (Kitching 1986), and its thicker walls impart greater protection from crab predation (Hughes & Elner 1979).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Genotype–environment interaction expressed in the foraging behaviour of dogwhelks,Nucella lapillus(L.), under simulated environmental hazard

Hughes¹,

Taylor²

1997

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

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SUMMARYThe foraging behaviour of sub-adult ucella lapillus originating from different field populations, was monitored for ten alternating, biweekly, periods of calm and wave action simulated in a tidal aquarium. Because the dogwhelks were reared under standard laboratory conditions, any behavioural differences among the experimental populations could reasonably be inferred to be linked to some genetically based mechanism. In order to forage, the dogwhelks had to leave a refugium, traverse empty ' habitat ' and enter a patch of mussels serving as prey. Wave action markedly depressed foraging activity, increased foraging latency and lowered the patch-residence-time index. Dogwhelks derived from populations naturally occurring on shores exposed to wave action reduced their foraging activity less strongly than those derived from sheltered-shore populations, but geographical origin (Plymouth or Anglesey) had no significant influence on foraging behaviour. A simple interpretation was offered, linking the differential behavioural response to habitat-specific shell morphology, known to be heritable. According to this interpretation, all dogwhelks react similarly to the drag forces generated by wave action, but the relatively shorter-spired shells of exposed-shore dogwhelks cause weaker resultant forces than the taller-spired shells of shelteredshore individuals. Consequently, exposed-shore dogwhelks tolerate higher levels of wave action than sheltered-shore morphs before suppressing their foraging behaviour. As exposed-shore dogwhelks have greater tenacity associated with relatively larger pedal area, the increased tolerance of wave action extends opportunities for foraging without incurring extra risk of dislodgement. The sheltered-shore morphology, which imparts greater resistance to desiccation, coincidentally increases drag and so makes dogwhelks more likely to seek refuge during occasional periods of heavy wave action. Exposed-and sheltered-shore morphologies therefore represent genotype-environment interaction that is apparently adaptive, in part, through its effect on foraging behaviour.

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Relative predation intensity of an intertidal gastropod on artificial coastal defense structures

Yeo,

Todd

2024

Ecology and Evolution

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Despite seawalls becoming ubiquitous coastal features, and having some physical similarities to natural rocky shores, it remains unclear how these urban habitats influence predator–prey interactions. Predators can affect intertidal mobile prey densities through two pathways: (1) successful predation directly influences prey mortality rates, and (2) direct and indirect effects of predation can scare and induce motile prey to seek safer areas. In this study, we investigated whether intertidal predators affect the density of the marine gastropod, Nerita undata, at four seawall sites in Singapore. Using a tethering method that we developed, we monitored the mortality and other evidence of predation (shell state) of tethered N. undata. Field experiments revealed high (22.5%–82.5%) predation potential of N. undata across the four sites, with significantly higher predation risk at lower shore heights and for snails with mixed shell coloration. Observations and analysis of the shell state after 3 days showed that predation on seawalls was primarily by crushing predators such as fish. Other predators of N. undata include predatory snails, with various feeding methods that left behind different predator signatures. Our results add substantially to the limited knowledge on predator–prey interactions on seawalls, particularly for Nerita undata, and suggest that seawall systems are more dynamic than previously thought. This further highlights the role of these artificial structures as important habitats and feeding grounds in urban coastal ecosystems.

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The Ecology of Lough Ine. XV. The Ecological Significance of Shell and Body Forms in Nucella

Cited by 194 publications

References 3 publications

An intertidal snail shows a dramatic size increase over the past century

An intertidal snail shows a dramatic size increase over the past century

Genotype–environment interaction expressed in the foraging behaviour of dogwhelks,Nucella lapillus(L.), under simulated environmental hazard

Relative predation intensity of an intertidal gastropod on artificial coastal defense structures

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