The effects of climate change on the reproduction of coastal invertebrates

Abstract

Environmental cues control or synchronize the reproductive cycle of many marine invertebrates. Of these environmental cues, photoperiod and temperature have been shown to moderate reproduction either individually or in combination. In addition, they may act directly or, in the case of photoperiod, set circannual clock mechanisms. These environmental cues may affect a number of reproductive parameters, including sex determination, gametogenesis and spawning. Gonadotrophic and spawning hormones appear to act as the transducers between the environment and the gamete, and limited evidence indicates that temperature and photoperiod can alter levels of these. Such processes occur in a range of estuarine invertebrates that constitute important components of the diets of overwintering birds. Global warming is likely to uncouple and alter the phase relationship between temperature and photoperiod and this is likely to have significant consequences for animals that develop gametes during the winter and spawn in the spring in temperate northern latitudes. Species that cue reproduction to photoperiod are likely to be particularly vulnerable. Although this is unlikely to lead to extinctions, it may cause local extirpations. However, this will depend on speed of adaptation to changing climate in relation to speed of climate change and the degree of mixing between populations across the range of the species. More likely will be significant impacts on fecundity, spawning success and recruitment, and this may have significant implications for overwintering birds of national and international importance, and, ultimately, on the conservation status of estuaries such as the Humber in the UK.

Temperature induced disease in the starfish Astropecten jonstoni

“…Lawrence, 2004;Sabaté, 2006;Ward et al, 2007;Webster, 2007). A majority of these studies deal with mass mortalities observed in different coral species and other sessile invertebrates (Perez et al, 2000;Kushmaro et al, 2001;Boyett et al, 2007;Remily & Richardson, 2006;Ward et al, 2007).…”

“…Temperature changes can directly influence marine organisms by inducing physiological stress, or by disturbing natural reproductive cycles (Lawrence & Soame, 2004), or they can affect populations indirectly by modifying trophic interactions and competitive relationships (Stenseth et al, 2002). Recent reviews have emphasized the potential importance of parasites and pathogens on populations under global warming (Harvell et al, 2002;Mouritsen & Poulin, 2002).…”

Anthropogenic and natural disturbance effects on a macrobenthic estuarine community over a 10-year period

“…Estuaries are defined by salinity change over tidal cycles, but floods (of varying intensity, frequency and duration) can alter salinity regimes dramatically to the detriment of the benthic communities (Ritter et al, 2005). With future climate change, more extreme fluctuations in salinity are expected, which in turn will affect both plant (Short and Neckles (1999) review for seagrass) and faunal communities (Lawrence and Soame, 2004). Ecosystems such as the Mondego estuary will have to deal with the effect of multiple stressors, which may act synergistically to considerable lower the resilience and resistance of the populations to disturbance (Adams, 2005;Cardoso et al, 2005).…”

“…Due to the shallow depth and relatively weak exchange with the open sea, these systems are particularly vulnerable to eutrophication, recognised as a major problem worldwide (Kennish, 2002;Marques et al, 2003;Pardal et al, 2004;Lillebø et al, 2005;Munkes, 2005;Powers et al, 2005). In addition, global warming and sea-level rise will have important consequences for aquatic ecosystems (Short and Neckles, 1999;Simas et al, 2001;Lawrence and Soame, 2004;Beukema and Dekker, 2005). A major challenge for ecologists is the understanding of the ecosystem functioning and dynamics in the face of natural, anthropogenically-induced and extreme climate variability.…”

The effect of depth and sediment type on the spatial distribution of shallow soft-bottom amphipods along the southern Portuguese coast

“…Therefore, the classiWcation of the southern Portuguese benthic fauna as Atlantic-Mediterranean was once more conWrmed in the present study. Nevertheless, as amphipods are sensitive to changes in seawater temperature (e.g., Lawrence and Soame 2004), the distribution patterns of amphipod assemblages are also expected to change in a global warming scenario. In this context, the present study may provide valuable baseline information to ascertain potential future impacts of climate change.…”