An Ecological Study of the Fauna Inhabiting the Sublittoral Marine Alga Saccorhiza polyschides (Lightf.) Batt. (original) (raw)
Summary
The animals found on the fronds of the laminarian alga Saccorhiza polyschides are described. The sporophytes supported a fauna which was distinct from that of the surrounding rock, but was basically similar to that of other laminarian algae. Several animal species were however, much more abundant on S. polyschides than on other laminarians. A number of species were found to have a localised distribution on the host plant. The distribution of the epifauna on the alga seems to be chiefly the result of factors in the external environment particularly the degree of water movement and of silting. The epifauna varied in abundance and composition at different sites. In localities exposed to excessive water turbulence only a few species survived, although the gastropods Patina pellucida and Lacuna vincta were at their most abundant in such localities. Marked seasonal variations in the composition of the epifauna were found at Port Erin, Isle of Man, over a period of two years. The variations were related to both the seasonal behaviour of the animal species and to the annual cycle of growth and decay exhibited by the host plant. It is clear that the plant and its epifauna are each an important factor in the ecology of the other.
Zusammenfassung
Die Tiere, die auf den Wedeln der Laminaria-Alge Saccorhiza polyschides gefunden wurden, werden beschrieben. Die Sporophyten ernährten eine Fauna, die sich von der auf dem benachbarten Gestein unterschied, aber im Grunde der anderer Laminaria-Algen ahnelte. Verschiedene Tierarten waren jedoch viel zahlreicher auf S. polyschides als auf anderen Laminaria. Eine Reihe von Arten fanden sich an einzelnen Stellen auf dem Wirt. Die Verbreitung der Epifauna auf der Alge scheint in erster Linie das Ergebnis von Faktoren der Umwelt zu sein, v.a. des Grades der Wasserbewegung und der Verschlammung. Die Epifauna veränderte sich in Fülle and Zusammensetzung an verschiedenen Stellen. In Lokalitaten, die ausserordentlicher Wasserturbulenz ausgesetzt waren, überlebten nur ein paar Arten, obwohl die Gastropoden Patina pellucida und Lacuna vincta in solchen Lokalitäten am häufigsten vorkamen. Deutliche jahreszeitliche Veränderungen in der Zusammensetzung der Epifauna fanden sich in Port Erin, auf der Insel Man, über einen Zeitraum von zwei Jahren. Die Veränderungen standen im Zusammenhang mit dem jahreszeitlichen Verhalten der Tierarten und dem Jahreszyklus von Wachstum and Zerfall, der von der Wirtpflanze gezeigt wird. Es ist klar, dass die Pflanze and ihre Epifauna beide einen wichtigen Faktor in der Ökologie der Anderen darstellen.
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Authors and Affiliations
- Department of Botany, University of Glasgow, W.2., Glasgow, Scotland
Trevor A. Norton
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Norton, T.A. An Ecological Study of the Fauna Inhabiting the Sublittoral Marine Alga Saccorhiza polyschides (Lightf.) Batt..Hydrobiologia 37, 215–231 (1971). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00015570
- Received: 04 May 1970
- Issue date: March 1971
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00015570