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Macroalgae and seagrass contribution to gastropods in sub-tropical and temperate tidal flats

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 October 2008

Hideyuki Doi ,
Masatoshi Matsumasa ,
Mamoru Fujikawa ,
Keiichi Kanou ,
Takao Suzuki  and
Eisuke Kikuchi
Hideyuki Doi*
Affiliation:
Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, 2-1-1, Katahira, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8577, Japan
Masatoshi Matsumasa
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, Centre for Liberal Arts & Sciences, Iwate Medical University, Nishi-Tokuta 2-1-1, Yahaba-cho 028-3694, Japan
Mamoru Fujikawa
Affiliation:
Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, 2-1-1, Katahira, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8577, Japan
Keiichi Kanou
Affiliation:
Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, 2-1-1, Katahira, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8577, Japan
Takao Suzuki
Affiliation:
Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, 2-1-1, Katahira, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8577, Japan
Eisuke Kikuchi
Affiliation:
Center for Northeast Asian Studies, Tohoku University, Kawauchi, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8576, Japan
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: Hideyuki Doi, Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, 2-1-1, Katahira, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8577, Japan email: h-doi@agr.ehime-u.ac.jp
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Abstract

Macroalgal and seagrass communities are widely distributed in marine and brackish shallow water and have high productivity. The primary production in marine costal areas is often transported to intertidal flats by waves and currents and beached on the flats. Thus, we hypothesized that the macroalgae and seagrasses are food sources for benthic communities on intertidal flats where some gastropod species often dominate. We performed comparisons of food sources among different gastropod species on sub-tropical and temperate tidal flats (26° and 38°N, respectively), and used isotope mixing models using carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes. A mixing model for stable isotopes, IsoSource, revealed that main food sources for three snails were macroalgae (50–56%) and seagrass (39–45%) at the temperate site. The contributions of terrestrial plants, sediment organic matter and benthic microalgae were weaker than those of macroalgae and seagrasses. At the sub-tropical site, snails fed mainly on macroalgae. The differences in food sources between snail species were not remarkable, although the nitrogen values were slightly different. It would thus appear that macroalgae and seagrass play an important role in the food webs not only in their own habitats but also on the adjacent tidal flats.

Keywords

macroalgaeseagrassgastropodssub-tropical tidal flatstemperate tidal flats
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 89 , Issue 2 , March 2009 , pp. 399 - 404
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2008

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