Chemical ecology and the search for marine antifoulants

Gerhart, Donald J.; Rittschof, Daniel; Mayo, Sara W.

doi:10.1007/bf01013485

Cited by 95 publications

(59 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Gorgonians appear to serve as refuges against predation for palatable algae (Littler et al 1987) and invertebrates (Patton 1972, Gerhart et al 1988). As C. gibbosum feeds, it exposes the axial skeleton of Plexaura homomalla and other gorgonian species (Silveira & Van't Hof 1977, Harvell & Suchanek 1987).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Bakus (1981) demonstrated that most gorgonians and other conspicuous, sessile reef invertebrates contained extractable substances that were toxic to fish. Recent experiments have shown that the calcium carbonate sclerites and secondary metabolites of some gorgonians can deter fish feeding (Gerhart 1984, Pawlik et al 1987, Gerhart et al 1988, Harvell et al 1988, Harvell & Fenical 1989.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Fouling and gastropod predation: consequences of grazing for a tropical octocoral

Gerhart¹

1990

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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The ovulid gastropod Cyphoma gibbosum Linnaeus is a specialist consumer of gorgonian octocorals. Although the direct effects of its feeding do not appear to be great, the indirect consequences may be substantial. An 8 wk study of the gorgonian Plexaura hornornalla Esper in Curaqao found that C. g~bbosum occurred primarily on the lower 30 cm of colonies, and that there were significant correlations between C glbbosum density and the extent of colony fouling on the lower 30 cm of colonies. This correlation occurred whether one measured in~tial fouling, final fouhng, or change in fouling during the 8 wk. There were no significant correlations of C. gibbosum density and fouling for colony portions more than 30 cm above the holdfast. These findings and direct observations in the field suggest that feeding by C. gibbosum increases fouling of gorgonians by exposing the axial skeleton and providing settling sites for fouling propagules. Because fecundity of P. homornalla is reduced when fouhng separates colonies into a series of smaller aggregates, the indirect effects of C. g~b b o s u m grazing could strongly affect the fitness of P. hornornalla and other gorgonians.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fouling and gastropod predation: consequences of grazing for a tropical octocoral

Gerhart¹

1990

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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“…Manipulative experiments on the deterrent qualities of spicules in invertebrates or calcified thalli in seaweeds are less extensive and more variable. Spicules from gorgonians (Gerhart et al, 1988;Harvell et al, 1988; and soft corals significantly deter fish feeding, while spicules from an ascidian (Lindquist et al, 1992) and numerous species of sponges do not. Combining these separate assays to determine how chemical and structural defenses might combine to affect prey susceptibilities would be informative, and would more closely mimic the characteristics of real prey.…”

Section: Integrated Pest Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Marine chemical ecology: what's known and what's next?

Hay

1996

Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology

553

375

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In this review, I summarize recent developments in marine chemical ecology and suggest additional studies that should be especially productive. Direct tests in both the field and laboratory show that secondary metabohtes commonly function as defenses against consumers. However, some metabolites also diminish fouling, inhibit competitors or microbial pathogens, and serve as gamete attractants; these alternative functions are less thoroughly investigated. We know little about how consumers perceive secondary metabolites or how ecologically realistic doses of defensive metabolites affect consumer physiology or fitness, as opposed to feeding behavior. Secondary metabolites have direct consequences, but they do not act in isolation from other prey characteristics or from the physical and biological environment in which organisms interact with their natural enemies. This mandates that marine chemical ecology be better integrated into a broader and more complex framework that includes aspects of physiological, population, community, and even ecosystem ecology. Recent advances in this area involve assessing how chemically mediated interactions are affected by physical factors such as flow, desiccation, UV radiation, and nutrient availability, or by biological forces such as the palatability or defenses of neighbors, fouling organisms, or microbial symbionts. Chemical defenses can vary dramatically among geographic regions, habitats, individuals within a local habitat, and within different portions of the same individual. Factors affecting this variance are poorly known, but include physical stresses and induction due to previous attack. Studies are needed to assess which consumers induce prey defenses, how responses vary in environments with differing physical characteristics, and whether the 'induced' responses are a direct response to consumer attack or are a defense against microbial pathogens invading via feeding wounds. Although relatively unstudied, ontogenetic shifts in concentrations and types of defenses occur in marine species, and patterns of larval chemical defenses appear to provide insights into the evolution of complex life cycles and of differing modes of development among marine invertebrates. The chemical ecology of marine microbes is vastly underappreciated even though microbes produce metabohtes that can have devastating indirect effects on non-target organisms (e.g., red tide related fish kills) and significantly affect entire ecosystems. The natural functions of these metabolites are poorly understood, but they appear to deter both consumers and other microbes. Additionally, marine macro-organisms use metabolites from microbial symbionts to deter consumers, subdue prey, and defend their embryos from pathogens. Microbial chemical ecology offers unlimited possibilities for investigators that develop rigorous and more ecologically relevant approaches.

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“…Several studies have examined the defense capabilities of octocorals, especially gorgonians (Pawlik et al 1987, Harvell & Fenical 1989, Lapid & Chadwick 2006. Both structural (Gerhart et al 1988, Harvell et al 1988) and chemical (Pawlik et al 1987, Harvell et al 1988) attributes of octocorals have demonstrated significant anti-predator defenses against fish and invertebrate predators. For those colonies lying on the seafloor, most of the peduncles and the tissues of the rachis below the polyps (approximately 15 cm) were generally not consumed by Tritonia diomedea.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Response of the sea whip Halipteris willemoesi to simulated trawl disturbance and its vulnerability to subsequent predation

Malecha¹,

Stone²

2009

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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The sea whip Halipteris willemoesi occurs in habitats coincident with bottom trawl fisheries in the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea and can be damaged by passing trawls. Little is known about the long-term fate of sea whips damaged by trawl gear. Sea whip responses to simulated trawl disturbance were observed in situ over a period of about 1 yr in order to assess delayed mortality from sublethal injuries. Colonies of H. willemoesi were randomly assigned to 3 treatment groups and 1 control group. Treatments were designed to mimic trawl damage including dislodgement, fracture of the axial rod, and soft tissue abrasion. Fifty percent of dislodged colonies demonstrated the ability to rebury their peduncles and recover to an erect position. Most of these colonies eventually became dislodged again without further disturbance and only one was erect at the final observation. None of the fractured colonies were able to repair their axial rods and only one was erect at the experiment's conclusion. Light tissue abrasion caused only minor tissue losses that lessened over time, and all abraded and control colonies remained erect throughout the experiment. Tissue losses among the dislodged and fractured sea whips increased throughout the experimental period and were mainly due to predation by the nudibranch Tritonia diomedea, which appeared to react with a strong scavenging response to sea whips lying on the seafloor. The presence of predators in areas where sea whips are disturbed may exacerbate trawl effects since damaged or dislodged colonies are more vulnerable to predation. 388: 197-206, 2009 entire shelf averaged 2.4% swept annually, but in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska many areas were trawled more than 5 times per year and one area was trawled 17 times per year (Rose & Jorgensen 2005). Similar intensities have been reported for heavily trawled areas on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean (Floderus & Pihl 1990, Auster et al. 1996. KEY WORDS: Trawling · Sea whip · Halipteris willemoesi · Seafloor habitat · Nudibranch · Tritonia diomedea Resale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisherMar Ecol Prog SerSea whips have a relatively simple morphology consisting of a bulbous basal peduncle (which serves as an anchor in soft sediments) and a vertical rachis or shaft extending distally from the peduncle. An axial rod, composed of magnesium calcite, supports the entire colony, and the rachis is populated with rows of polyps. Ten species of pennatulaceans are known to occur in Alaska (Stone & Shotwell 2007) and size varies considerably among species. Halipteris willemoesi Kölliker, 1870(von Kölliker 1870 can reach heights greater than 300 cm (Stone & Shotwell 2007), while Protoptilum sp. may reach just 35 cm. Sea whips can form dense groves that provide vertical structure to low relief habitats. In Alaska, Stone et al. (2005) found densities at least as high as 16 and 6 m -2 for adult specimens of Protoptilum sp. and H. willemoesi, respectively. In British Columbia, Troffe et al. (2005) f...

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Chemical ecology and the search for marine antifoulants

Cited by 95 publications

References 29 publications

Fouling and gastropod predation: consequences of grazing for a tropical octocoral

Fouling and gastropod predation: consequences of grazing for a tropical octocoral

Marine chemical ecology: what's known and what's next?

Response of the sea whip Halipteris willemoesi to simulated trawl disturbance and its vulnerability to subsequent predation

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