Invasion success of the seaweed Gracilaria vermiculophylla correlates with low palatibility
| Autor: | Gaoge Wang, Florian Weinberger, Mareike Hammann, Sung Min Boo, Esther Rickert |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2013 |
| Předmět: |
0106 biological sciences
Herbivore Ecology biology Range (biology) 010604 marine biology & hydrobiology Littorina brevicula Aquatic animal Snail Aquatic Science biology.organism_classification 010603 evolutionary biology 01 natural sciences Invasive species Algae biology.animal 14. Life underwater Palatability Ecology Evolution Behavior and Systematics |
| Zdroj: | Marine Ecology Progress Series, 486 . pp. 93-103. |
| ISSN: | 1616-1599 0171-8630 |
| DOI: | 10.3354/meps10361 |
| Popis: | Differences with respect to anti-herbivore defense were investigated in invasive and native populations of the seaweed Gracilaria vermiculophylla. Specimens from 6 native populations in East Asia and from 8 populations invasive in Europe and the Mexican Pacific coast were maintained under identical conditions and offered to herbivorous snails from both the native range (Littorina brevicula) and Europe (L. littorea) in no-choice feeding assays. L. brevicula consumed in total significantly larger amounts of G. vermiculophylla tissue than did L. littorea. Further, both snail species least consumed the seaweed specimens originating from either non-native populations or from populations native to the Korean East Sea/Sea of Japan. The Korean East Sea/Sea of Japan had previously been identified as putative donor region of all the invasive populations of G. vermiculophylla. Thus, populations in the donor region as well as non-native populations in different invaded realms feature an increased capacity to resist feeding pressure. Differences in nutrient content did not account for the observed patterns of consumption, as palatability and carbon to nitrogen (C:N) ratio were not significantly correlated. Thus, mechanical or chemical defenses or the content of feeding cues influenced the behavior of the snails. We suggest that low palatability contributed to the invasion success of the species. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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