Behavioral responses of free-ranging blue crabs to episodic hypoxia. II. Feeding

Bell, GW; Eggleston, David B.; Wolcott, TG

doi:10.3354/meps259227

Cited by 45 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…In the York, the diets of benthic predators shifted to include more infaunal species during and immediately after hypoxia , and episodic hypoxia increased the predation rate on M. balthica threefold in a caging experiment , with mortality due to predation under hypoxia seven times greater than mortality from hypoxic stress. These studies were done in mildly hypoxic areas; more intense hypoxia may exclude predators or decrease predation (Bell et al 2003;Seitz et al 2003;Montagna and Ritter 2006).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hypoxia in Chesapeake Bay Tributaries: Worsening effects on Macrobenthic Community Structure in the York River

Long

Seitz

2009

Estuaries and Coasts

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We assessed the effects of hypoxia on macrobenthic communities in the York and Rappahannock Rivers, Chesapeake Bay, in box-core samples before and after hypoxic episodes in 2003 and 2004. Hypoxia occurred in both years and was associated with a decrease in biomass and a shift in community structure toward opportunistic species in both rivers. Long-term data indicate that the frequency of hypoxia in the York has increased over the last 22 years. In previous work from ∼20 years ago, the macrobenthic community structure did not change in response to hypoxia in the York; however, in the present study hypoxia was associated with a reduction in community biomass and a change in community structure. We conclude that currently hypoxia is a more important environmental problem in the York than in previous years. Hypoxia likely negatively affects the estuarine food web, as lower macrobenthic biomass could decrease food availability to epibenthic predators.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hypoxia in Chesapeake Bay Tributaries: Worsening effects on Macrobenthic Community Structure in the York River

Long

Seitz

2009

Estuaries and Coasts

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“…obs.). Adult and late-stage juvenile blue crabs are abundant during summer in Pepper Creek; however, Bell et al (2003) reported that their feeding rates were somewhat suppressed when exposed to DO levels between 2 and 4 mg O 2 l -1…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Juvenile weakfish Cynoscion regalis distribution in relation to diel-cycling dissolved oxygen in an estuarine tributary

Tyler¹,

Targett²

2007

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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Shallow estuarine waters that serve as nurseries for fishes along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the USA can undergo wide diel dissolved oxygen (DO) fluctuations (< 2 to ~20 mg O 2 l -1 ) during summer. In this study, the distribution of juvenile weakfish Cynoscion regalis was investigated in relation to diel-cycling DO during summer 2001 in a mesohaline tributary of Indian River Bay, Delaware, USA. Weakfish were collected at 3 sites (upper, middle, and lower) along the ~5 km length of Pepper Creek on 15 d using an otter trawl. Near-bottom DO was monitored continuously over the summer, every 15 min, using multi-parameter sondes. Peak abundance of weakfish coincided with the greatest frequency, intensity, and spatial extent of severe diel-cycling hypoxia events (< 2 mg O 2 l -1 ). Severe hypoxia first occurred in early June in the upper creek and recurred there almost daily for periods of 1 to 4 h until early September. Whenever bottom DO was > 2.0 mg O 2 l -1 , weakfish were more abundant at the upper site than at the middle and lower sites, which also experienced severe hypoxia but at much lower frequency. However, under all environmental conditions they were absent from the upper site whenever bottom DO was < 2 mg O 2 l -1 , and returned within 2 h of DO exceeding 2 mg O 2 l -1. Daily up-and down-creek movement occurred over a distance of ~1 km. These findings indicate an avoidance threshold of ~2.0 mg O 2 l -1 for juvenile weakfish and demonstrate very temporally dynamic DO-related movement. Their rapid return to these areas as DO conditions improve, and relatively high density in tidal tributary headwaters, suggests that these relatively small areas provide important habitat for fishes.

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Section: Ecological Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…The functional relationships of blue crab and their benthic prey are well documented to be fundamentally altered by hypoxia (e.g., Nestlerode and Diaz, 1998;Bell et al, 2003b;Seitz et al, 2003). More specifically, Bell et al (2003b) noted that some free-ranging individuals reduce feeding activity even during episodes of "mild hypoxia" (2-4 mg L −1 ), while others continued feeding at oxygen levels as low as 1 mg L −1 . They also noted that blue crab did not increase feeding during "relaxation events" (i.e., recovery of benthic oxygen levels back towards normoxia after hypoxic episodes) in spite of increased prey availability resulting from reduction in their burial depths (i.e., prey fauna moving nearer to the surface during hypoxia) (Diaz et al, 1992;Taylor and Eggleston, 2000).…”

Section: Ecological Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 97%

The ability of blue crab (Callinectes sapidus, Rathbun 1886) to sustain aerobic metabolism during hypoxia

Brill

Bushnell

Elton

et al. 2015

Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology

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Behavioral responses of free-ranging blue crabs to episodic hypoxia. II. Feeding

Cited by 45 publications

References 24 publications

Hypoxia in Chesapeake Bay Tributaries: Worsening effects on Macrobenthic Community Structure in the York River

Hypoxia in Chesapeake Bay Tributaries: Worsening effects on Macrobenthic Community Structure in the York River

Juvenile weakfish Cynoscion regalis distribution in relation to diel-cycling dissolved oxygen in an estuarine tributary

The ability of blue crab (Callinectes sapidus, Rathbun 1886) to sustain aerobic metabolism during hypoxia

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