Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-gbm5v Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-22T17:40:50.006Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Reproductive Patterns and Tidal Effects on Spat Settlement of Mytilus Edulis Populations in Dundrum Bay, Northern Ireland

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2009

L.M. Snodden  and
D. Roberts
L.M. Snodden
Affiliation:
School of Biology and Biochemistry, The Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland, BT7 INN
D. Roberts
Affiliation:
School of Biology and Biochemistry, The Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland, BT7 INN
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

The gametogenic and spat settlement patterns of two Mytihis edulis beds were studied in Dundrum Inner Bay, Northern Ireland. There was evidence of gonad development throughout the year with the main development period between November and March. Spawning was protracted, lasting from May to November. Slight inter-annual and inter-population differences in the riming of the phases were observed but the cycles at both beds were broadly similar to each other and to those of other British and Irish sites. Settlement occurred throughout the year and there was evidence of both primary and secondary spat settlement at both sites. Although the reproductive cycles were similar, distinct seasonal and inter-site differences in spatfall were apparent. At the Downshire Bridge bed, settlement peaked during summer and was dominated by spat in the 0·;5-1·0 mm size range. At Ballykinler, settlement levels were highest in the winter months and larger (>1 mm) spat dominated the samples. The orientation of spat collection pads also significantly affected numbers of the larger (>1 mm) spat. Collectors facing the flood tide attracted significantly more secondary settlers than ebb-facing collectors. This effect varied seasonally and was greater at the Ballykinler bed. It is suggested that hydrodynamic regimes may be an important factor in the differences in settlement patterns of M. edulis.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 77 , Issue 1 , February 1997 , pp. 229 - 243
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 1997

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bayne, B.L., 1964. Primary and secondary settlement in Mytilus edulis L. (Mollusca). Journal of Animal Ecology, 33, 513–523.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Briggs, R.P., 1982. Community structure and growth of Mytilus edulis L. in Lough Foyle. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy B, 82, 245–259.Google Scholar
Butman, C.A., 1987. Larval settlement of soft-sediment invertebrates: the spatial scales of pattern explained by active habitat selection and the emerging role of hydrodynamical processes. Oceanography and Marine Biology. Annual Review. London, 25, 113–165.Google Scholar
Chipperfield, P.N.J., 1953. Observations on the breeding and settlement of Mytilus edulis (L.) in British waters. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 32, 449–476.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dare, P.J., 1976. Settlement, growth and production of the mussel, Mytilus edulis L., in Morecambe Bay, England. Fishery Investigations, Series 2. MAFF. London, 28, 25 pp.Google Scholar
Dare, P.J. & Edwards, D.B., 1975. Seasonal changes in flesh weight and biochemical composition of mussels (Mytilus edulis L.) in the Conwy Estuary, North Wales. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 18, 89–97.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eriksson, S. & Edlund, A.M., 1977. On the ecological energetics of 0-group Carcinus maenas (L.) from a shallow sandy bottom in Gullmar Fjord, Sweden. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 30, 233–248.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eyster, L.S. & Pechenik, J.A., 1987. Attachment of Mytilus edulis L. larvae on algal and byssal filaments is enhanced by water agitation. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 114, 99–110.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Honkoop, P., 1993. The influence of winter temperatures on the reproductive success of the marine bivalves Macoma balthica, Cerastoderma edule and Mytilus edulis. In Spatfall and recruitment of mussels (Mytilus edulis)and cockles (Cerastoderma edule) on different locations along the European coast (ed. R., Dijkema), pp. 11–13. International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (CM Papers and Reports) CM 1993/K: 62, 22 pp.Google Scholar
Hilbish, T.J. & Zimmerman, K.M., 1988. Genetic and nutritional control of the gametogenic cycle in Mytilus edulis. Marine Biology, 98, 223–228.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jensen, K.T. & Jensen, J.N., 1985. The importance of some epibenthic predators on the density of juvenile benthic macrofauna in the Danish Wadden Sea. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 89, 157–174.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kautsky, N., 1982. Quantitative studies on gonad cycle, reproductive output and recruitment in a Baltic Mytilus edulis population. Marine Biology, 68, 143–160.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
King, P.A., McGrath, D. & Britton, W., 1990. The use of artificial substrates in monitoring mussel (Mytilus edulis L.) settlement on an exposed rocky shore in the west of Ireland. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 70, 371–380.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
King, P.A., McGrath, D. & Gosling, E.M., 1989. Reproduction and settlement of Mytilus edulis L. on an exposed rocky shore in Galway Bay, west coast of Ireland. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 69, 355–365.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lane, D.J.W., Beaumont, A.R. & Hunter, J.R., 1985. Byssus drifting and the drifting threads of the young post-larval mussel, Mytilus edulis. Marine Biology, 84, 301–308.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lowe, D.M., Moore, M.N. & Bayne, B.L., 1982. Aspects of gametogenesis in the marine mussel Mytilus edulis L. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 62, 133–145.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McGrath, D., King, P. A. & Gosling, E.M., 1988. Evidence for the direct settlement of Mytilus edulis L. larvae onto adult mussel beds. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 47, 103–106.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McGrorty, S., Clarke, R.T., Reading, C.J. & Goss-Custard, J.D., 1990. Population dynamics of the mussel Mytilus edulis: density changes and regulation of the population in the Exe Estuary, Devon. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 67, 157–169.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McGrorty, S. & Goss-Custard, J.D., 1993. Population dynamics of the mussel Mytilus edulis along environmental gradients: spatial variations in density-dependent mortalities. Journal of Animal Ecology, 62, 415–427.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McKenzie, J.D., 1986. The reproductive cycle of Mytilus edulis L. from Lough Foyle. Irish Naturalists Journal, 22, 13–16.Google Scholar
Petraitis, P.S., 1991. Recruitment of the mussel Mytilus edulis L. on sheltered and exposed shores in Maine, USA. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 147, 65–80.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Raffaelli, D., Conacher, A., McLachlan, H. & Ernes, C., 1989. The role of epibenthic crustacean predators in an estuarine food web. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 28, 149–160.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reise, K., 1985. Tidal flat ecology. An experimental approach to species interaction. Berlin: Springer-Verlag. [Ecological Studies no. 54.]CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Roberts, D. & Montgomery, W.I., 1988. Tidal flows in Dundrum Inner Bays. Report. Department of the Environment (Northern Ireland), Countryside & Wildlife Branch.Google Scholar
Rodhouse, P.G., Roden, C.M., Burnell, G.M., Hensey, M.P., McMahon, T., Ottway, B. & Ryan, T.H., 1984. Food resource, gametogenesis and growth of Mytilus edulis on the shore and in suspended culture: Killary Harbour, Ireland. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 64, 513–529.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ruth, M., 1993. Research into parental stock, larval abundance and spatfall of mussels in the German Wadden Sea. In Spatfall and recruitment of mussels (Mytilus edulis) and cockles (Cerastoderma edule) on different locations along the European coast (ed. R., Dijkema), pp. 18–20. International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (CM Papers and Reports) CM 1993/K: 62, 22 pp.Google Scholar
Sand-Kristensen, P., 1993. A review of literature on the influence of recruitment success by predation on spat. In Spatfall and recruitment of mussels (Mytilus edulis)and cockles (Cerastoderma edule) on different locations along the European coast (ed. R., Dijkema), pp. 20–22. International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (CM Papers and Reports) CM 1993/K: 62, 22 pp.Google Scholar
Seed, R., 1969. Ecology of Mytilus edulis L. (Lamellibranchiata) on exposed rocky shores. 1. Breeding and settlement. Oecologia, 3, 277–316.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Seed, R., 1975. Reproduction in Mytilus (Mollusca: Bivalvia) in European waters. Marine Ecology, 39, 317–334.Google Scholar
Seed, R., 1976. Ecology. In Marine mussels: their ecology and physiology (ed. B.L., Bayne), pp. 13–65. Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Seed, R. & Brown, R.A., 1977. A comparison of the reproductive cycles of Modiolus modiolus (L.), Cerastoderma (=Cardium) edule (L.) and Mytilus edulis (L.) in Strangford Lough, Northern Ireland. Oecologia, 30, 173–188.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Seed, R. & Suchanek, T.H., 1992. Population and community ecology of Mytilus. In The mussel Mytilus: ecology, physiology, genetics and culture (ed. E., Gosling), pp. 87–169. Amsterdam: Elsevier Press. [Developments in Aquaculture and Fisheries Science, vol. 25.]Google Scholar
Snodden, L.M., 1994. Effects of harvesting on the Mytilus edulis and Cerastoderma edule populations of Dundrum Inner Bay. PhD thesis, The Queen's University of Belfast, Northern Ireland.Google Scholar
Walker, P. & Dare, P.J., 1993. Monitoring mussel spat abundance in the Wash using artificial collectors. In Spatfall and recruitment of mussels (Mytilus edulis)and cockles (Cerastoderma edule,) on different locations along the European coast (ed. R., Dijkema), pp. 7–8. International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (CM Papers and Reports) CM 1993/K: 62, 22 pp.Google Scholar
Wilson, J.H. & Seed, R., 1974. Reproduction in Mytilus edulis L. (Mollusca: Bivalvia) in Carlingford Lough, Northern Ireland. Irish Fisheries Investigations. Series B (Marine). Dublin, no. 15, 30 pp.Google Scholar