Inter- and intra-specific competition between Paracentrotus lividus and Arbacia lixula in resource-limited barren areas

Privitera, Davide; Chiantore, Mariachiara; Mangialajo, Luisa; Glavić, Nikša; Kozul, Walter; Cattaneo‐Vietti, Riccardo

doi:10.1016/j.seares.2008.07.001

Cited by 71 publications

(55 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…The results clearly confirmed that Paracentrotus lividus feeds mainly by gentler 'grazing' and by 'drift-trapping' Cystoseira algae with its aboral tube feet. Arbacia lixula, having a strong Aristotle's lantern and tube feet exclusively on the oral side, adopted a scraping behaviour (Privitera et al, 2008) all around the thalli of Cystoseira, possibly looking for sessile prey on the cobble. Interestingly, results indicated a deep difference in Cystoseira handling and dislodging ability between the two sea urchins, probably affected not only by differences in feeding traits themselves but also by movement ability.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Role of two co-occurring Mediterranean sea urchins in the formation of barren from Cystoseira canopy

Agnetta¹,

Badalamenti²,

Ceccherelli

et al. 2015

Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Role of two co-occurring Mediterranean sea urchins in the formation of barren from Cystoseira canopy

Agnetta¹,

Badalamenti²,

Ceccherelli

et al. 2015

Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Paracentrotus lividus is an opportunistic generalist species able to exploit a number of food sources, although brown macroalgae and seagrasses constitute the main feeding resource (Boudouresque and Verlaque 2007;Privitera et al 2008). Arbacia lixula, however, shows a strong preference for encrusting corallines (Frantzis et al 1988;Privitera et al 2008). It has been reported that the quality and quantity of food aVects the reproductive maturation and growth of sea urchins (Fernán-dez and Pergent 1998;Meidel and Scheibling 1999), and that they also modify the biochemical composition of gonads (Hammer et al 2006;Fernández 1997;LiyanaPathirana and Shahidi 2002a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Males and females gonad fatty acids of the sea urchins Paracentrotus lividus and Arbacia lixula (Echinodermata)

2009

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The aim of this study was to analyze male and female gonad fatty acids of two sea urchin species, Paracentrotus lividus and Arbacia lixula, from the south coast of Spain. Additionally, we investigated possible diVerences between two locations. The ovaries of both species showed higher percentages of 14:0, 16:0, 16:1n-7, 18:2n-6, 18:3n-3 and 18:4n-3 than testes and lower levels of 18:0, 22:1n-9, 20:4n-6 and 22:5n-3. In P. lividus but not in A. lixula, the level of 20:5n-3 was higher in testes than in ovaries. These diVerences between sexes probably indicate diVerent requirements of males and females during gametogenesis although the presence of a large number of gametes in the mature gonad may also have inXuences on fatty acid composition. SigniWcant diVerences in gonad fatty acid proWles where also found when individuals of P. lividus collected at a location of the Mediterranean region were compared with specimens collected at the Atlantic coast. The most remarkable changes were the lower levels of 14:0, 18:1n-7, 20:1n-9, 20:4n-6 and 22:4n-6 and the higher values of 20:1n-11, 20:5n-3 and 22:6n-3 found in males and females of the Mediterranean specimens compared to those of the Atlantic coast. These diVerences probably reXect the diVerences in potential food sources at each location.

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“…The feeding behaviour and the herbivorous nature of P. lividus have been repeatedly assessed; however, much less information is available about the ecological role played by A. lixula in Mediterranean ecosystems. In fact, Privitera et al (2008) demonstrated that both species occupy different trophic niches in resource-limited (barren) areas, again in the sense that A. lixula feeds mainly on encrusting corallines while P. lividus feeds on non-encrusting macrophytes. A knowledge gap persists about the effective diet of A. lixula; however information on this is essential for designing and interpreting ecological studies.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

A wolf in sheep’s clothing: carnivory in dominant sea urchins in the Mediterranean

Wangensteen¹,

Turon²,

García-Cisneros³

et al. 2011

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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Arbacia lixula and Paracentrotus lividus are the dominant sea urchins in the Mediterranean sublittoral, where they are key structuring species due to their grazing activity. It has been commonly accepted that competition between both species is minimized by specializing in different algal foods. A. lixula is considered to feed mainly on encrusting coralline algae, while P. lividus prefers fleshy macroalgae. We used stable isotope analysis to test if these species occupy different trophic positions at 3 locations in the western Mediterranean and one in Macaronesia. Our results show unambiguously that A. lixula always occupies a higher trophic level than P. lividus, with a δ 15 N comparable in some locations to strict carnivores such as Actinia schmidti or Marthasterias glacialis. A temporal monitoring at one locality showed that this signature of a higher trophic level is consistent throughout the year. These results are incompatible with the current belief of an herbivorous diet for A. lixula and suggest that it must be considered an omnivore tending to carnivory in Mediterranean ecosystems, feeding at least partially on sessile animals such as Cirripedia, Hydrozoa or Bryozoa. A parallel analysis of gut contents showed a predominance of vegetal items in both species, although A. lixula consistently had a higher abundance of animal components than P. lividus. Our results challenge the validity of using gut content observations alone for characterizing the trophic behaviour of omnivorous marine invertebrates that feed on a variety of food sources with different digestibility. KEY WORDS: Arbacia lixula · Paracentrotus lividus · Trophic relationships · Benthic community · Stable isotope analysis. Resale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisherMar Ecol Prog Ser 441: [117][118][119][120][121][122][123][124][125][126][127][128] 2011 This herbivorous behaviour described in Arbacia lixula is, however, in sharp contrast with other species in the genus Arbacia, where omnivorous or unambiguously carnivorous diets have been reported. North American A. punctulata feeds on sessile invertebrate species, sand dollars and other Arbacia individuals, as well as some algae (Harvey 1956, Karlson 1978, Cobb & Lawrence 2005. The diet of South Atlantic A. dufresnei is mainly carnivorous (Penchaszadeh 1979, Penchaszadeh & Lawrence 1999. The Pacific A. spatuligera showed preference for animal food over common species of algae from its habitat (Silva et al. 2004). Moreover, some observations indicate omnivorous or carnivorous behaviour of A. lixula outside the Mediterranean (Marques 1984, Oliveira 1991, Tavares & Borzone 2005.The crucial importance of sea urchins in shaping benthic ecosystems (Lawrence 1975) has been demonstrated by many ecological experiments along the Mediterranean coasts (e.g. Benedetti-Cecchi & Cinelli 1995, Sala & Zabala 1996, Benedetti-Cecchi et al. 1998, Palacín et al. 1998a, Bulleri et al. 1999, Guidetti et al. 2004, Bonaviri et al. 2011. The underlying premise in these ...

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Inter- and intra-specific competition between Paracentrotus lividus and Arbacia lixula in resource-limited barren areas

Cited by 71 publications

References 42 publications

Role of two co-occurring Mediterranean sea urchins in the formation of barren from Cystoseira canopy

Role of two co-occurring Mediterranean sea urchins in the formation of barren from Cystoseira canopy

Males and females gonad fatty acids of the sea urchins Paracentrotus lividus and Arbacia lixula (Echinodermata)

A wolf in sheep’s clothing: carnivory in dominant sea urchins in the Mediterranean

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