The impact of bait-pumping on populations of the ghost shrimp Trypaea australiensis Dana (Decapoda: Callianassidae) and the sediment environment

Contessa, Leanne; Bird, Fiona L.

doi:10.1016/j.jembe.2003.11.021

Cited by 47 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Bioturbation by this sandprawn negatively affects the abundance of Zostera capensis, and consequently the invertebrates intimately linked to it (Angel et al 2006, Siebert & Branch 2007. Although the abundance of C. kraussi declined in Klein Oesterwal between 1988 and 2007, probably due to bait collecting and trampling (Wynberg & Branch 1997, Contessa & Bird 2004, one cannot dismiss the possible role of C. kraussi bioturbation in the demise of Z. capensis.…”

Section: Changes In Abundance Of Wading Birds Between 1978 and 2007mentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecosystem change in a South African marine reserve (1960–2009): role of seagrass loss and anthropogenic disturbance

Pillay¹,

Branch²,

Griffiths³

et al. 2010

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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Seagrass ecosystems are disappearing throughout the world, raising several concerns for ecosystem functioning and biodiversity. In the present study we document changes in intertidal sandflat ecosystems over the last 5 decades in Langebaan Lagoon, a marine reserve on the west coast of South Africa, following large-scale losses of seagrass Zostera capensis. Aerial photography and GIS revealed a 38% loss of seagrass at sites in Langebaan Lagoon between 1960 and 2007. Longterm monitoring of one particular site, Klein Oesterwal, indicated a major shift in invertebrate communities between 1983, when Z. capensis was abundant, and 2009, when Z. capensis had virtually disappeared. Abundance and species richness of invertebrates declined significantly over this period. Seagrass-associated species such as the limpets Siphonaria compressa and Fissurella mutabilis, and the starfish Parvulastra exigua, declined almost to extinction locally. Generalists such as the gastropod Assiminea globulus also declined in abundance. However, sandflat species, particularly burrowers, increased in abundance and vertical range. Wading birds also appeared to be affected by changes in seagrass cover. The terek sandpiper, which depends on Z. capensis for feeding, showed 3 local population crashes, each corresponding to periods of seagrass collapse. Abundance of wading birds that were not dependant on this seagrass was more stable. The loss of seagrasses in the system, together with anthropogenic disturbance such as bait harvesting and trampling, may have had severe impacts on invertebrates, the most significant being the virtual extinction locally of the critically endangered limpet S. compressa. Cascading effects on wading birds, possibly through changes in availability of invertebrate prey, were also evident.

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Section: Changes In Abundance Of Wading Birds Between 1978 and 2007mentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecosystem change in a South African marine reserve (1960–2009): role of seagrass loss and anthropogenic disturbance

Pillay¹,

Branch²,

Griffiths³

et al. 2010

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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“…However, McPhee and Skilleter (2002a) found only 5.1% of females to be ovigerous, which is similar to the current study where 4% and 14% of T. australiensis females were found to be ovigerous in 2004-2005 and 2006-2007 respectively. This is an interesting fi nding as the most recent studies found less ovigerous females than studies conducted over 20 years earlier, perhaps a refl ection of the large increase in collection of these species for bait in these areas during this period (McPhee and Skilleter, 2002b;Contessa and Bird, 2004). It has been suggested that large individuals are collected for bait in preference to smaller individuals (McPhee and Skilleter, 2002b) and this would include removing sexually mature or ovigerous females from the populations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 68%

Population biology of the ghost shrimps, Trypaea australiensis and Biffarius arenosus (Decapoda: Thalassinidea), in Western Port, Victoria

Butler¹,

Reid²,

Bird

2009

MMV

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This study compared the population biology of two co-existing species of ghost shrimps, Trypaea australiensis Dana 1952 and Biffarius arenosus (Poore 1975), over a two year period at Warneet and Crib Point in Western Port, Victoria, south-eastern Australia. Overall, the sex ratio in populations of T. australiensis varied considerably (male and female biases were found at different times) whereas the sex ratio of B. arenosus was generally 1:1 or female biased. A male biased sex ratio was found in the juvenile size class of populations of T. australiensis (both years) and B. arenosus (one year only). Both species reproduced in spring and summer in Western Port and juveniles appeared to recruit into the populations all year round. The embryo and clutch size of T. australiensis females was signifi cantly larger than B. arenosus, and a signifi cant relationship between female body size and clutch size (but not embryo size) was found for both species. Comparisons between this and other population studies of T. australiensis and B. arenosus were made to highlight any latitudinal variation in the reproduction and breeding biology of these species along the eastern coast of Australia.

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“…Under natural conditions, sediments lacking C. kraussi usually have microalgal biomasses 2-to 4-fold greater than those in areas occupied by this sandprawn, while experimental manipulations of C. kraussi densities resulted in 2-to 3-fold reductions in microalgal biomass in the presence of C. kraussi (Pillay et al 2007c). Ecosystem engineering in the form of sediment turnover by other burrowing marine shrimps and prawns also reduce the microalgal biomass of surface sediments (Contessa & Bird 2004, Webb & Eyre 2004. Our results indicate that by reducing microalgal biomass, Callichirus kraussi can also indirectly affect the growth of Liza richardsonii, leading to reductions in both fish biomass and length.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Indirect effects of bioturbation by the burrowing sandprawn Callichirus kraussi on a benthic foraging fish, Liza richardsonii

Pillay¹,

Williams²,

Whitfield³

2012

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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The alteration of sediments by bioturbating organisms plays a major role in aquatic ecosystems, from both ecological and evolutionary perspectives. Several studies have highlighted the ability of bioturbators to alter sedimentary biogeochemical processes and community structure, but the potential influence of bioturbators on pelagic species is unexplored in marine ecology. In the present study, we investigated the direct effects of bioturbation by a southern African burrowing sandprawn, Callichirus kraussi, on primary producers (benthic microalgae) and the indirect effects on the growth of a fish (grey mullet Liza richardsonii) that consumes microalgae. A mesocosm experiment was undertaken in which similar-sized L. richardsonii at 2 densities were exposed to 3 increasing densities of C. kraussi. After 3 wk of exposure to the effects of C. kraussi, the fish were weighed and their lengths measured to calculate their physical condition and growth rates. At the termination of the experiment, the microalgal biomass and sediment turnover were measured in each mesocosm. Higher C. kraussi densities resulted in an increase in sediment turnover and caused reductions in microalgal biomass, which in turn led to a reduction of the biomass and lengths of L. richardsonii. Increasing densities of C. kraussi evidently enhance sediment turnover from burrows to the sediment surface, leading to the burial of microalgae and indirect reductions in food availability to L. richardsonii. This reduction in turn leads to metabolic losses and reductions in the growth of this fish species. These results indicate that benthic bioturbators can have strong effects on aquatic ecosystems, especially by modulating energy flow to nektonic species. KEY WORDS: Bioturbation · Food webs · Marine benthos · Sediment turnover · Benthic-pelagic coupling Resale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisherMar Ecol Prog Ser 453: 151-158, 2012, Pillay & Branch 2011. Bioturbating organisms feature prominently in driving changes at both evolutionary and ecological scales. At the evolutionary level, burrowing species and bioturbation have been implicated in the Cambrian-substrate revolution, in which burrowers are thought to have contributed to the transition between pre-and postCambrian animal life in marine sediments (Meysman et al. 2006). Burrowing species, through their bioturbative activities, can also indirectly drive microevolutionary change that ultimately influences the evolution of novel morphology, behaviour and social interactions (Pillay 2010).At the ecological level, bioturbation influences a number of processes and properties, including nutrient fluxes, sediment granulometry and pore-water characteristics (Suchanek 1983, Lohrer et al. 2004, Meysman et al. 2006). These modifications translate into significant effects on the associated softsediment communities. Bioturbators have been shown to influence the community structure, abundance and distribution of the major benthic biotic components (Suchanek 1983, Flach...

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The impact of bait-pumping on populations of the ghost shrimp Trypaea australiensis Dana (Decapoda: Callianassidae) and the sediment environment

Cited by 47 publications

References 40 publications

Ecosystem change in a South African marine reserve (1960–2009): role of seagrass loss and anthropogenic disturbance

Ecosystem change in a South African marine reserve (1960–2009): role of seagrass loss and anthropogenic disturbance

Population biology of the ghost shrimps, Trypaea australiensis and Biffarius arenosus (Decapoda: Thalassinidea), in Western Port, Victoria

Indirect effects of bioturbation by the burrowing sandprawn Callichirus kraussi on a benthic foraging fish, Liza richardsonii

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