Intraspecific burrow plasticity of an intertidal population ofCallianassa filholi(Crustacea: Decapoda: Thalassinidea) in relation to environmental conditions

Abstract

Burrow morphology and intraspecific burrow plasticity in relation to environmental conditions were examined for an intertidal population of Callianassa filholi Milne-Edwards, 1878 in southeastern New Zealand. Multivariate analysis of burrow features revealed no significant differences in burrow morphology between seasons. However, dissimilarities between burrows from different seasons could be identified and included differences in lateral extent, total length, and volume of burrows. These size parameters each showed low values in winter, coinciding with low seawater temperature and high organic content of the sediment. There was no significant relationship between any of the three size parameters and sediment grain size or shore height of the burrow, but lateral extent and total length of the burrow were significantly related to organic content of the sediment, decreasing with increasing organic content. Furthermore, there was a significant positive relationship between seawater temperature and total length of the burrow. Data from the present study imply that intraspecific variation in burrow morphology for callianassids is dependent on environmental variables, which has consequences for the construction of useful burrow models. M99050

Bioturbating shrimp alter the structure and diversity of bacterial communities in coastal marine sediments

“…Pielou's evenness (Pielou, 1966) was calculated from OTU abundance matrices using the diverse test in Primer 6.1. Microbial community structure in shrimp burrows B Laverock et al shrimp behaviour, which would in turn impact on the biogeochemical and microbial signature of the burrow (Aller et al, 1983;Berkenbusch and Rowden, 2000;Bertics and Ziebis, 2009). Visually, the burrows of U. deltaura and C. subterranea are very different, and the two species show differing burrow-building and irrigation behaviours.…”

“…There is also likely to be some level of abiotic control. For instance, callianassid shrimp show intraspecific plasticity in burrow morphology according to prevailing environmental conditions, such as temperature and organic content (Berkenbusch and Rowden, 2000;Rowden and Jones, 1995). Marinelli et al (2002) found that the irrigation frequency of mimic burrows had no effect on the microbial community structure in sediment surrounding the burrow.…”

“…For instance, Stief et al (2004) showed that the almost constant irrigation activities of filter-feeding mayfly larvae led to consistently high oxygen levels within their burrows, which increased both the production and consumption of nitrate within burrow walls. Thalassinideans exhibit a high level of plasticity in their irrigation behaviour (Nickell and Atkinson, 1995;Berkenbusch and Rowden, 2000). Whereas deposit feeders may spend a large proportion of their time under hypoxic conditions deep within their burrow, suspension or filter feeders rely on more regular burrow irrigation and their burrows tend to be well oxygenated throughout (Nickell and Atkinson, 1995;Howe et al, 2004;Webb and Eyre, 2004).…”

A study of burrow morphology in representative axiidean and gebiidean mud shrimps, from the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, Iran

“…Some authors, such as Nickell and Atkinson (1995), believe that particular burrow features most likely relate to feeding strategies. Berkenbusch and Rowden (2000) suggested that the variation in burrow morphology of Biffarius (as Callianassa) filholi, in New Zealand waters is linked to seawater temperature and/or sediment organic content. Similarly, Griffis and Chavez (1988) suggested that sediment type and environmental factors such as tidal height and tidal exposure influenced the depth and burrow morphology of Neotrypaea (as Callianassa) californiensis and N. gigas in the Eastern Pacific.…”

“…According to Dworschak et al (2012) burrow morphology varies in different families and genera, from the simple U-or Y-shaped structure for members of the Upogebiidae to complex burrow patterns with chambers and branches; such as those seen in the Callianassidae. Berkenbusch and Rowden (2000) suggested that some parameters such as seawater temperature and organic content of the sediment influence the burrow morphology of callianassid mud shrimps, while earlier, Griffis and Chavez (1988) suggested that burrow morphology was related to sediment type in two eastern Pacific species of callianassid. Biological factors, such as population density and competition with associated macroinfauna, have also been suggested to influence burrow morphology (Nash et al, 1984).…”