University of Tasmania
Browse

File(s) under permanent embargo

Importance of the invasive macroalga Undaria pinnatifida as trophic subsidy for a beach consumer

journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-19, 04:08 authored by Suarez-Jimenez, R, Hepburn, CD, Hyndes, GA, McLeod, RJ, Taylor, RB, Catriona HurdCatriona Hurd
Food webs on sandy beaches rely heavily on spatial subsidies of macroalgae and other detritus. Invasive macroalgal species are modifying many ecosystems worldwide, so the potential exists for them to alter the quantity and quality of food available to sandy beach consumers. We evaluated the suitability of the invasive kelp Undaria pinnatifida as a food for the talitrid amphipod Bellorchestia quoyana, an abundant consumer on sandy beaches in southern New Zealand. U. pinnatifida had similar gross nutritional and biomechanical properties to the three native macroalgal species (the kelps Macrocystis pyrifera and Durvillaea antarctica, and the green Ulva spp.). B. quoyana consumed U. pinnatifida at similar or higher rates than the native kelps in laboratory feeding assays (choice and no-choice assays with fresh tissues, and choice assays with tissue reconstituted into agar foods to remove structural properties). Our results indicate that U. pinnatifida is a usable alternative food source for B. quoyana and could, therefore, contribute to the local sandy beach food web. Understanding the role that invasive macroalgae play as a food source for beach consumers is essential to better comprehend how they may affect these subsidy-dependent ecosystems.

History

Publication title

Marine Biology

Volume

164

Issue

5

Article number

113

Number

113

Pagination

1-9

ISSN

0025-3162

Department/School

Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies

Publisher

Springer-Verlag

Place of publication

175 Fifth Ave, New York, USA, Ny, 10010

Rights statement

Copyright 2017 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

Repository Status

  • Restricted

Socio-economic Objectives

Ecosystem adaptation to climate change

Usage metrics

    University Of Tasmania

    Exports

    RefWorks
    BibTeX
    Ref. manager
    Endnote
    DataCite
    NLM
    DC