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waders and their estuarine food supplies - Vlaams Instituut voor de ...

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50 OOF<br />

310.00<br />

I 5.00<br />

^ 1.00<br />

3=" 0.50<br />

g><br />

1<br />

° 0.10lr<br />

•5 0.05<br />

0.01 -<br />

FEEDING RADIUS, BURYING DEPTH AND SIPHON SIZE<br />

Scrobicularia plana Macoma balihica<br />

10 15 20 25 30 40<br />

shell length (mm)<br />

5.00-<br />

5 10 15 20<br />

shell length (mm)<br />

Ug. 3. Siphon weight (mg AFDW)ol A. Scrobicularia m = I121 <strong>and</strong> B. Macoma (n = 741 in June (O) <strong>and</strong> October 1992 (•>. The upper line<br />

<strong>and</strong> SJ nibols reler to the total weighl. The grey fields indicate Ihe range ol siphon weights measured in the study area nui several years (from<br />

Zwarts A: Wanink 1989). The lower line <strong>and</strong> symbols give the total siphon weighl divi<strong>de</strong>d by siphon length, calculated from dala given in I ig-<br />

I <strong>and</strong> 2.<br />

siphon measured 8.5 cm. below the maximum of 11<br />

cm <strong>and</strong> 11.5 cm found by Kamemians & Huitema<br />

(1994) <strong>and</strong> Pekkarinen (1984). respectively lor Macoma<br />

of similar size.<br />

The siphons of Scrobicularia <strong>and</strong> Macoma were<br />

relatively heavy in June <strong>and</strong> October 1992. compared<br />

to the long-term average for the same months dig. 3),<br />

but the trends are similar: in boih species, siphon<br />

weight is an allomeiric function of shell si/e. although<br />

the slope in Macoma is much lower than in Scrobicularia.<br />

Siphon cropping, feeding radius <strong>and</strong> bury ing<br />

<strong>de</strong>pth<br />

There was little variation over time in the burying<br />

<strong>de</strong>pth of the individual bivalves held in containers, but<br />

<strong>their</strong> feeding radius did vary. As an example. Fig. 4<br />

shows the <strong>de</strong>pth <strong>and</strong> radius measurements for two<br />

Scrobicularia <strong>and</strong> two Macoma. Simulated siphon<br />

cropping reduced the feeding radius, but did not cause<br />

a change in burying <strong>de</strong>pth. Deposit feeding continued<br />

after the siphon top was lost, as was also observed by<br />

Hodgson (1982b) <strong>and</strong> <strong>de</strong> Vlas (1985): the woun<strong>de</strong>d<br />

118<br />

siphon heals very quickly (Hodgson 1981). An average<br />

of 10'. of the siphon weight of Scrobicularia was<br />

removed <strong>and</strong> accounted completely for the smaller<br />

feeding radius. On average. Macoma (11 animals) lost<br />

18'' of ihe siphon weight, <strong>and</strong> the average siphon was<br />

shortened by I29f or 6 mm. The radius <strong>de</strong>creased by<br />

an even greater amount (38% or 10 mm) because, contrary<br />

to expectation, siphon cropping resulted in Macoma<br />

burying themselves more <strong>de</strong>eply i4 mm or 21%).<br />

The contrary result was found in the field experiment.<br />

All Macoma had been buried by us at the same<br />

<strong>de</strong>pth of 3 cm. The 44 individuals from which 20 to<br />

IsY'c ol the siphon had been removed were found ihe<br />

next day al a <strong>de</strong>pth of 1.4 cm <strong>and</strong> so had reduced <strong>their</strong><br />

<strong>de</strong>pth hy 1.6 cm (SE = 0.1 cm). The 17 controls from<br />

which no siphon tissue had been removed had also<br />

moved closer to the surface, but only by 0.7 cm (SE =<br />

0.2 cm). As the burying <strong>de</strong>pth of both groups did not<br />

change over the following days, we calculated the average<br />

burying <strong>de</strong>pth over this period for each individual<br />

<strong>and</strong> related this average lo the weight of the remaining<br />

siphon <strong>and</strong> to the cut part of the siphon.<br />

Heavily cropped animals moved nearer to the surface

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