Prey utilization by Neptunea arthritica (Caenogastropoda: Buccinidae): predation on gastropods and size-related variation

作者：Ryusei Yamakami, Satoshi Wada · 发表于：Journal of Molluscan Studies · 年份：2021 · DOI：10.1093/mollus/eyab016 · 被引用次数：9 · 研究领域：Marine Bivalve and Aquaculture Studies、Marine Biology and Environmental Chemistry、Marine Biology and Ecology Research

ABSTRACT The whelk Neptunea arthritica (Buccinidae) is a common fishery species in Hokkaido, northern Japan. Although ecological information is needed for fisheries management, there is only one paper examining the foraging ecology of this species and it reported that N. arthritica preyed mainly on the invasive mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis. To date, no studies have examined utilization of native prey species by this whelk. Here, we report the findings of a study on the native prey utilization by N. arthritica in an area where M. galloprovincialis is not present. We conducted line transect sampling every month from May 2018 to May 2019 on the western coast of Hakodate Bay, southwestern Hokkaido, Japan. Prey items were composed mostly of gastropods (72%), followed by bivalves (24%) and only a small amount of carrion (<4%). Overlapping spatial distributions were observed among size classes of N. arthritica, while the prey utilization varied with body size. Small individuals (<30 mm in shell height) preyed mainly on the small colloniid gastropod Homalopoma sangarense, while larger individuals (>40 mm) preyed mainly on two tegulid gastropods (Chlorostoma lischkei and Omphalius rusticus) and two venerid bivalves (Protothaca euglypta and Ruditapes philippinarum). There were positive size relationships between whelk body size and prey size for prey categories (Vetigastropoda, Caenogastropoda and Bivalvia) and even for the same prey species (H. sangarense, O. rusticus and P. eugly...