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Food Resource Utilization in the Sea Urchin Lytechinus Variegatus in Contrasting Shallow-Water Microhabits of Saint Joseph Bay, Florida Stephen D

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Food Resource Utilization in the Sea Urchin Lytechinus Variegatus in Contrasting Shallow-Water Microhabits of Saint Joseph Bay, Florida Stephen D Gulf of Mexico Science Volume 17 Article 3 Number 1 Number 1 1999 Food Resource Utilization in the Sea Urchin Lytechinus variegatus in Contrasting Shallow-Water Microhabits of Saint Joseph Bay, Florida Stephen D. Beddingfield University of Alabama at Birmingham James B. McClintock University of Alabama at Birmingham DOI: 10.18785/goms.1701.03 Follow this and additional works at: https://aquila.usm.edu/goms Recommended Citation Beddingfield, S. D. and J. B. McClintock. 1999. Food Resource Utilization in the Sea Urchin Lytechinus variegatus in Contrasting Shallow-Water Microhabits of Saint Joseph Bay, Florida. Gulf of Mexico Science 17 (1). Retrieved from https://aquila.usm.edu/goms/vol17/iss1/3 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by The Aquila Digital Community. It has been accepted for inclusion in Gulf of Mexico Science by an authorized editor of The Aquila Digital Community. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Beddingfield and McClintock: Food Resource Utilization in the Sea Urchin Lytechinus variegatus Gulf of Mexico Science, 1999(1), pp. 27-34 Food Resource Utilization in the Sea Urchin Lytechinus variegatus in Contrasting Shallow-Water Microhabitats of Saintjoseph Bay, Florida STEPHEN D. BEDDINGFIELD AND JAMES B. McCLINTOCK The feeding activity and relative percentages of different foods consmned by the regular sea urchin Lytechinus variegatus in three contrasting microhabitats were examined over a 2-yr period in Saint Joseph Bay, FL, at its northern limits of distribution. In 1993, feeding activity levels of individuals at a site dominated by the seagrass Thalassia testudinum were higher on average than at a site character­ ized mostly by sand substrates alone or a site dominated by the seagrass Syringo­ dium jiliforme. No other significant difference in feeding activity levels was de­ tected between sites or years. Feeding activity was markedly reduced at all sites in winter months of both years. Lytechinus variegatus in Saint Joseph Bay displayed generalist feeding behaviors with diets that appeared to be governed by the avail­ ability and palatability of food items. Foods consmned by sea urchins varied sea­ sonally at each site, apparently in response to changes in food availability. Some seasonally abundant algae (e.g., the fleshy red alga Laurencia porteaur) were not consmned, presmnably due to chemical defenses. Seasonal depressions in re­ source utilization and changes in food types likely impact aspects of growth and reproduction of individuals comprising subpopulations of L. variegatus that fringe on the northern limits of their biogeographic distribution. number of sea urchins display feeding 1962; Moore et al., 1963; Kier and Grant, A preferences both in the field and in the 1965; Greenway, 1976; Lowe and Lawrence, laboratory (see Lawrence, 1975, for review; Va­ 1976; Serafy, 1979; Vadas et al., 1982; Klinger, das, 1977; Chiu, 1985; Prince and LeBlanc, 1984; Lessios, 1985; Beddingfield and Mc­ 1992). Nonetheless, individuals may occur in Clintock, in press). habitats that support different types or abun­ Lytechinus variegatus includes both living dances of foods, and intraspecific differences and dead plant material in the diet, as well may occur in the diets of sea urchins from dif­ as animal foods (Mortensen, 1943; Moore et ferent areas (Lasker and Giese, 1954; al., 1963; Kier and Grant, 1965; Camp et al., Lawrence, 1975). Seasonal differences in the 1973; Greenway, 1976, 1995; Klinger, 1982; diets of sea urchins also occur (see Lawrence, McClintock et al., 1982; Klinger and 1975, for review; Chiu, 1985). Such changes in Lawrence, 1984; Valentine and Heck, 1991; diet may reflect the relative availability of dif­ Heck and Valentine, 1995). Sand grains en­ ferent food items in the environment crusted with organic material and detritus (Lawrence, 1975). Variations in body size, may also be important components of the growth rates, and reproductive output in pop­ diet of L. variegatus (Vadas et al., 1982). An­ ulations of sea urchins have been related to imal foods may also be consumed. Mc­ quantitative and qualitative differences in diets Clintock et al. ( 1982) found that L. variegatus (Fuji, 1967; Ebert, 1968; McPherson, 1969; Dix, readily consume food models containing bi­ 1970, 1972; Lawrence and Lane, 1982; White valve tissues. et al., 1985). Although diets of L. vmiegatus are known to Lytechinus variegatus (Lamarck, 1816) is a vary across broad geographic scales, to date no regular echinoid that inhabits a variety of studies have been reported of seasonal varia­ shallow sublittoral habitats from the coast of tion in feeding activity or diet for any one lo­ North Carolina to Brazil, including the Ca­ cality. Accordingly, the present study examines ribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. The wide temporal and spatial patterns of food resource variety of substrates on which L. variegatus is utilization in L. vmiegatus from contrasting mi­ found include sand flats, sand with shell crohabitats of Saint Joseph Bay, FL. Moreover, hash, areas dominated by seagrasses (e.g., because this bay is located at the northern lim­ Thalassia testudinum, Syringodium filifonne, Cy­ its of the biogeographic distribution of L. vm~ modocea manatorum, or Halodule wrightii), and iegatus, our findings provide insights on the Halimeda algal beds, in addition to hard bot­ feeding activities of "fringing" subpopulations toms covered with algae (Sharp and Gray, of the species. © 1999 by the Marine Environmental Sciences Consortium of Alabama Published by The Aquila Digital Community, 1999 1 Gulf of Mexico Science, Vol. 17 [1999], No. 1, Art. 3 28 GULF OF MEXICO SCIENCE, 1999, VOL. 17(1) MATERIALS AND METHODS = 586 ± 67 and 672 ± 43 g/m2 in January 1993 and February 1994, respectively; n = 5) Study sites.-Three locations in Saint Joseph and was found growing on shell fragments. Bay, FL (30°N, 85.5"W) were selected as sam­ During the fall and early winter months of pling sites for L. variegatus, each representative both years, decaying T. testudinum seagrass of a discrete habitat type. All three sites were blades (mean ± 1 SD wet wt = 278 ± 83 and at depths that ranged from 0.75 to 1.5 mover 311 ± 74 g/m2 for November 1993 and 1994, normal tidal cycles. Sites dominated by the sea­ respectively; n = 5) were found settled into de­ grass T. testudinum ( Thalassia site) and by sand pressions on the sea floor. alone (sand site) were selected within SaintJo­ The seagrass S. filiforme (manatee grass) con­ seph Peninsula State Park, whereas a third site stituted the main plant component of the Sy1~ dominated by the seagrass S. filiforme (Syringo­ ingodium site (mean ± 1 SD wet wt = 363 ± dium site) was located directly offshore of the 32, 266 ± 46, 45 ± 17, and 64 ± 16 g/m2 in city of Port Saint Joe (see Beddingfield, 1997, July, November, and January 1993 and April for further details of sites). Both types and 1994, respectively; n = 5). Syringodium filiforme abundances of potential plant and animal grass blades were colonized by epibionts (pri­ foods were markedly different among the marily red calcareous algae and hydroids) dur­ three study sites and within sites during differ­ ing the summer and fall (mean ± 1 SD wet wt ent seasons. Although a detailed quantitative = 129 ± 22 and 95 ± 27 g/m2 in July and analysis of the spatial and temporal availability November 1993, respectively; n = 5). In con­ of all potential foods in the field is beyond the trast to the Thalassia site, no infaunal mussels scope of the present study, a broad overview of were present. The red fleshy alga Laurencia pm~ potential foods available at each site is pre­ teaur ( = L. porter) occurred in abundance at sented below. both seagrass sites during late spring and sum­ The dominant components of the flora and mer months. fauna at the Thalassia site, 200 m east of the northern point of Eagle Harbor, were dense Methods.-At each of the three study sites, the beds of the seagrass T. testudinum (mean ± 1 test diameter, feeding activity, and foods being SD wet wt = 345 ± 65, 230 ± 24, 69 ± 11, and consumed by up to the first 50 L. variegatus 104 ± 22 g/m2 aboveground biomass in July, encountered within a series of up to 15 1-m2 November, and January 1993 and April 1994, quadrats, each randomly positioned along a respectively; n = 5) interspersed with rich in­ 50-m transect line, were recorded monthly faunal populations of the mussel Modiolus amer~ from January 1993 to December 1994. Sea ur­ icanus (mean ± 1 SD density= 151 ± 51 mus­ chins were recorded as actively feeding if, sels/m2 in fall 1993; n = 10). Epibionts, con­ upon immediate examination, plant or animal sisting mainly of epiphytic algae (primarily red material was found grasped between their calcareous algae) and hydro ids, occurred teeth. Percentages of feeding activity of indi­ (mean ± 1 SD wet wt = 86 ± 14 and 34 ± 8 viduals were compared across the three sites by g/m2 in July and November 1993, respectively; a Kruskal-Wallis nonparametric one-way anal­ n = 5) on grass blades of T. testudinum. Decay­ ysis by ranks and between years within each site ing drift seagrass was present during all seasons on arcsine transformed data with paired t-tests of the year (mean ± 1 SD wet wt = 30 ± 11, (Zar, 1984). The frequency percentages of di­ 168 ± 34, 68 ± 17, and 47 ± 9 g/m2 in July, etary items detected in the grasp of the teeth November, and January 1993 and April 1994, of individuals over the 2-yr study period were respectively; n = 5). compared between sites with a contingency ta­ The sand site was 100 m north of the Saint ble (Sokol and Rohlf, 1981). Joseph Peninsula State Park Marina and con­ In addition to direct observations of feeding sisted of a shallow sand flat with abundant shell in the field, gut contents of similarly sized hash scattered on the sea floor.
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