Functional morphology and feeding strategy of the hydrothermal-vent polychaete Archinome rosacea (family Archinomidae)

2003 ◽  
Vol 81 (4) ◽  
pp. 582-590 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan E Ward ◽  
Cheryl D Jenkins ◽  
Cindy Lee Man Dover
Keyword(s):  
Hydrothermal Vent ◽  
Trophic Ecology ◽  
Prey Capture ◽  
Feeding Strategy ◽  
Gut Content ◽  
Large Component ◽  
Feeding Mode ◽  
Morphological Studies ◽  
Toxic Materials ◽  
Content Analyses

Polychaetes are a large component of deep-sea hydrothermal-vent invertebrate faunas, yet little is known about the trophic ecology of most species. In this study, the feeding mode of a common and widespread vent polychaete, Archinome rosacea (order Amphinomida), is investigated through morphological studies and gut-content analyses. The foregut of this polychaete is similar in structure to that of other shallow-water Amphinomida. Prey capture is facilitated by a ventral muscular eversible proboscis with two glandular lateral-lip structures. Extracellular digestion is suggested by packets of digestive enzymes observed to be discharged from the apical ends of the midgut epithelial cells into the lumen. Midgut tissues also contain inclusions resembling spherocrystals, possibly sites where toxic materials are sequestered. Gut-content analyses indicate a preference for mobile prey, including polychaetes and crustaceans. We propose that predation and scavenging are important trophic strategies for A. rosacea.

Systematic revision, diversity patterns and trophic ecology of the tropical Indo-West Pacific sea slug genus Phanerophthalmus A. Adams, 1850 (Cephalaspidea, Haminoeidae)

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 1336 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Austin ◽  
Terrence Gosliner ◽  
Manuel A. E. Malaquias
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Molecular Phylogenetics ◽  
Trophic Ecology ◽  
Rrna Genes ◽  
28S Rrna ◽  
Gut Content Analysis ◽  
Gut Content ◽  
Central Pacific ◽  
Systematic Revision ◽  
West Pacific

Phanerophthalmus is a genus of Indo-West Pacific sea slugs inhabiting seagrass and coral reefs with up to now seven species currently recognised as valid. The goals of this study are to revise the systematics of Phanerophthalmus, infer its phylogeny and patterns of diversity, as well as study its diet. Morphology was combined with molecular phylogenetics based on two mitochondrial (cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, 16S rRNA) and one nuclear (28S rRNA) genes. Molecular species delimitation methods (ABGD, DISSECT) were employed to aid delimiting species. Diet was assessed by gut content analysis. Seventeen species were recognised, 10 of them new to science (P. albotriangulatum, sp. nov., P. anettae, sp. nov., P. batangas, sp. nov., P. boucheti, sp. nov., P. cerverai, sp. nov., P. lentigines, sp. nov., P. paulayi, sp. nov., P. purpura, sp. nov., P. rudmani, sp. nov., P. tibiricae, sp. nov.). Phanerophthalmus has its highest diversity in the Western Pacific where 13 species occur with a peak in the Coral Triangle (11 species; three only known from here). Diversity decreases towards the Central Pacific with five species and Indian Ocean/Red Sea with four species. Only two species are distributed across the Indo-West Pacific. Preliminary gut content analysis suggests these slugs feed on diatoms.

scholarly journals First evidence of prey capture and meat eating by wild Yunnan snub-nosed monkeys Rhinopithecus bieti in Yunnan, China

2010 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 227-231 ◽  
Author(s):  
Baoping Ren ◽  
Dayong Li ◽  
Zhijin Liu ◽  
Baoguo Li ◽  
Fuwen Wei ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nonhuman Primates ◽  
Prey Capture ◽  
Dietary Diversity ◽  
Group Structure ◽  
Feeding Strategy ◽  
Rhinopithecus Bieti ◽  
Spatial Spread ◽  
Meat Eating ◽  
Begging Behavior ◽  
Animal Consumption

Abstract Most extant nonhuman primates occasionally prey on fast-moving, warm-blooded animals; however, Indriidae, Lepilemuridae, and Colobinae either scavenged for meat or did not eat meat at all. Here we report six cases of animal consumption by the snub-nosed monkey Rhinopithecus bieti in a wild, habituated group between 2004 and 2009 in Yunnan, China. At present, only males in an all-male unit within the study group were involved in active hunting. Such a male-biased activity may be related to the group structure and spatial spread of R. bieti. Two females were observed eating freshly killed birds. The findings confirmed that R. bieti engaged in scavenging and, when hunting, employed a cranio-cervical bite to kill their prey. Meat eating is likely a nutrient maximization feeding strategy in R. bieti, especially in males. A begging behavior occurred after successful prey capture. Although begging was observed, no sharing of the meat was seen. The present findings illuminate the dietary diversity of R. bieti and their ability to expand their dietary spectrum.

Detailed comparative morphology of the peri-oral structures of the Mysidacea and Euphausiacea (Crustacea): an indication for the food preference

2001 ◽  
Vol 81 (2) ◽  
pp. 235-241 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. De Jong-Moreau ◽  
B. Casanova ◽  
J.-P. Casanova
Keyword(s):  
Food Preference ◽  
Feeding Habits ◽  
Comparative Morphology ◽  
Gut Content ◽  
Scanning Microscope ◽  
Content Analyses ◽  
Carnivorous Species ◽  
Meganyctiphanes Norvegica ◽  
Molar Process

Scanning microscope investigations were carried out on mandibles, labrum and paragnaths of several species of Mysidacea and Euphausiacea. Gut content analyses were in agreement with morphological observations. It appears that the morphology of the peri-oral structures and especially of the mandibles reflect the feeding habits, and that the well known relationships between the size of the molar process and the incisor one, i.e. a large molar process is associated with herbivorous feeding, is not always verified. Bacescomysis abyssalis and Bentheuphausia amblyops are believed to be mostly saprophagous, Boreomysis inermis and Meganyctiphanes norvegica are mostly phytophagous, Hemimysis speluncola is omnivorous, while Siriella armata and Thysanopoda orientalis are carnivorous species.

scholarly journals Trophodynamics at the Longqi hydrothermal vent field and comparison with the East Scotia and Central Indian Ridges

2020 ◽  
Vol 167 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
W. D. K. Reid ◽  
B. D. Wigham ◽  
L. Marsh ◽  
J. N. J. Weston ◽  
Y. Zhu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stable Isotope ◽  
Hydrothermal Vent ◽  
Hydrothermal Vents ◽  
Trophic Ecology ◽  
Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle ◽  
Isotope Analysis ◽  
Southwest Indian Ridge ◽  
Food Sources ◽  
Model Based Clustering ◽  
Indian Ridge

Abstract The Longqi vent field, situated on the Southwest Indian Ridge, is ecologically distinct among known hydrothermal vents fields. It hosts a combination of previously unknown species and those shared at species or genus level with other hydrothermal vents on the Central Indian Ridge (CIR) and East Scotia Ridge (ESR). We investigate the size-based and trophodynamics of consumers at Longqi vent field and compared these with ESR and CIR vent fields using stable isotope analysis. Intra-specific variability in δ13C and δ15N values in relationship to shell length was observed in Gigantopelta aegis but absent in Chrysomallon squamiferum. A model-based clustering approach identified four trophic groupings at Longqi: species with the lowest δ13C values being supported by carbon fixed via the Calvin–Benson–Bassham cycle, the highest δ13C values being supported by the reductive tricarboxylic acid cycle and intermediate values potentially supported by a mix of these primary production sources. These clusters were driven by potential differences in resource partitioning. There were also differences in the spread of stable isotope values at the vent field level when comparing Bayesian stable isotope ellipse areas among Longqi, CIR and ESR vent fields. This was driven by a combination of the range in δ13C value of macrofauna, and the negative δ15N values which were only observed at Longqi and CIR vent fields. Many of the shared species or genera showed inter-vent field differences in stable isotope values which may be related to site-specific differences in food sources, geochemistry or potential intra-field competition. This study provides important information on the trophic ecology of hydrothermal vent macrofauna found within an area of seabed that is licensed for seabed mining exploration.

Trophic ecology ofPomatoschistus micropswithin an intertidal bay (Roscoff, France), investigated through gut content and stable isotope analyses

2013 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 261-270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Charles Leclerc ◽  
Pascal Riera ◽  
Laure M.-L. J. Noël ◽  
Cédric Leroux ◽  
Ann C. Andersen
Keyword(s):  
Stable Isotope ◽  
Trophic Ecology ◽  
Gut Content ◽  
Stable Isotope Analyses ◽  
Isotope Analyses

scholarly journals Cambrian cinctan echinoderms shed light on feeding in the ancestral deuterostome

2015 ◽  
Vol 282 (1818) ◽  
pp. 20151964 ◽  
Author(s):  
Imran A. Rahman ◽  
Samuel Zamora ◽  
Peter L. Falkingham ◽  
Jeremy C. Phillips
Keyword(s):  
Fluid Dynamics ◽  
Common Ancestor ◽  
Feeding Strategy ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Filter Feeder ◽  
Feeding Mode ◽  
Active Feeding ◽  
Filter Feeders ◽  
Drag And Lift ◽  
Shed Light

Reconstructing the feeding mode of the latest common ancestor of deuterostomes is key to elucidating the early evolution of feeding in chordates and allied phyla; however, it is debated whether the ancestral deuterostome was a tentaculate feeder or a pharyngeal filter feeder. To address this, we evaluated the hydrodynamics of feeding in a group of fossil stem-group echinoderms (cinctans) using computational fluid dynamics. We simulated water flow past three-dimensional digital models of a Cambrian fossil cinctan in a range of possible life positions, adopting both passive tentacular feeding and active pharyngeal filter feeding. The results demonstrate that an orientation with the mouth facing downstream of the current was optimal for drag and lift reduction. Moreover, they show that there was almost no flow to the mouth and associated marginal groove under simulations of passive feeding, whereas considerable flow towards the animal was observed for active feeding, which would have enhanced the transport of suspended particles to the mouth. This strongly suggests that cinctans were active pharyngeal filter feeders, like modern enteropneust hemichordates and urochordates, indicating that the ancestral deuterostome employed a similar feeding strategy.

scholarly journals A unique feeding strategy of the extinct marine mammal Kolponomos : convergence on sabretooths and sea otters

2016 ◽  
Vol 283 (1826) ◽  
pp. 20160044 ◽  
Author(s):  
Z. Jack Tseng ◽  
Camille Grohé ◽  
John J. Flynn
Keyword(s):  
Prey Capture ◽  
Driving Forces ◽  
Feeding Strategy ◽  
Structural Stiffness ◽  
Sea Otters ◽  
Form Function ◽  
Masticatory Biomechanics ◽  
Prey Killing ◽  
Head Flexion ◽  
Shape Analyses

Mammalian molluscivores feed mainly by shell-crushing or suction-feeding. The extinct marine arctoid, Kolponomos , has been interpreted as an otter-like shell-crusher based on similar dentitions. However, neither the masticatory biomechanics of the shell-crushing adaptation nor the way Kolponomos may have captured hard-shelled prey have been tested. Based on mandibular symphyseal morphology shared by Kolponomos and sabre-toothed carnivores, we hypothesize a sabretooth-like mechanism for Kolponomos prey-capture, whereby the mandible functioned as an anchor. Torque generated from jaw closure and head flexion was used to dislodge prey by prying, with prey then crushed using cheek teeth. We test this hypothesized feeding sequence using phylogenetically informed biomechanical simulations and shape analyses, and find a strongly supported, shared high mandibular stiffness in simulated prey-capture bites and mandibular shape in Kolponomos and the sabre-toothed cat Smilodon . These two distantly related taxa converged on using mandibles to anchor cranial torqueing forces when prying substrate-bound prey in the former and sabre-driving forces during prey-killing in the latter. Simulated prey-crushing bites indicate that Kolponomos and sea otters exhibit alternative structural stiffness-bite efficiency combinations in mandibular biomechanical adaptation for shell-crushing. This unique feeding system of Kolponomos exemplifies a mosaic of form-function convergence relative to other Carnivora.

Predation on feather stars by regular echinoids as evidenced by laboratory and field observations and its paleobiological implications

Paleobiology ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 274-285 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angela Stevenson ◽  
Forest J. Gahn ◽  
Tomasz K. Baumiller ◽  
George D. Sevastopulo
Keyword(s):  
Field Observations ◽  
Gut Content ◽  
Bathymetric Range ◽  
Photographic Evidence ◽  
Content Analyses ◽  
Reef Environments ◽  
Large Populations ◽  
Stalked Crinoids ◽  
Feather Star ◽  
Feather Stars

AbstractAmong extant crinoids, the feather stars are the most diverse and occupy the greatest bathymetric range, being especially common in reef environments. Feather stars possess a variety of morphological, behavioral and physiological traits that have been hypothesized to be critical to their success, especially in their ability to cope with predation. However, knowledge of their predators is exceptionally scant, consisting primarily of circumstantial evidence of attacks by fishes. In this study the question whether regular echinoids, recently shown to consume stalked crinoids, also consume feather stars is explored. Aquarium observations indicate that regular echinoids find feather stars palatable, including feather stars known to be distasteful to fish, and that regular echinoids can capture and eat live feather stars, including those known to swim. Gut-content analyses of the echinoidAraeosoma fenestratum(Thomson, 1872), which is commonly observed with large populations of the feather starKoehlermetra porrecta(Carpenter, 1888) in video transects from marine canyons off the coast of France, revealed elements of feather stars in the guts of 6 of 13 individuals. The high proportion of crinoid material (up to 90%), and the presence of articulated crinoid skeletal elements in the gut ofA. fenestratum, suggest that these echinoids consumed at least some live crinoids, although they may have also ingested some postmortem remains found in the sediment. Additionally, photographic evidence from the northeast Atlantic suggests that another regular echinoid,Cidaris cidaris(Linnaeus, 1758), preys on feather stars. Thus in spite of the broad suite of antipredatory adaptations, feather stars are today subject to predation by regular echinoids and may have been since the Mesozoic, when this group of crinoids first appeared.

scholarly journals Ontogenetic Changes of the Aquatic Food Uptake Mode in the Danube Crested Newt (Triturus dobrogicus Kiritzescu 1903)

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nikolay Natchev ◽  
Kristina Yordanova ◽  
Sebastian Topliceanu ◽  
Teodora Koynova ◽  
Dimitar Doichev ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prey Capture ◽  
Feeding Strategy ◽  
Body Movement ◽  
Evolutionary Development ◽  
Integrative Approach ◽  
Feeding Apparatus ◽  
Locomotor System ◽  
Locomotor Apparatus ◽  
Food Uptake ◽  
Crested Newt

The study of the feeding mechanisms in vertebrates requires an integrative approach since the feeding event consists of a chain of behaviors. In the present study we investigated the food uptake behavior in different ontogenetic stages in the Danube crested newt (Triturus dobrogicus). We focused on the coordination in the kinematics of the elements of the locomotor and the feeding systems at the transition between the approach of the newt to the prey and the food uptake start. In the feeding strategy of the larvae of T. dobrogicus, the phase of food search is replaced by an initial “food detection phase.” In both larvae and adult specimens, the animals approached the food to a close distance by a precise positioning of the snout besides the food item. The larvae were able to reach food items offered at over 80° relative to the longitudinal midline of the head. When the food was offered at a large distance or laterally, the food uptake was either not successful or the coordination chain at the transition between food approach and food uptake was interrupted. In young larvae we detected an abrupt change in the activity of the locomotor system and the feeding system. The larvae approached the food by tail undulation and after reaching the final position of attack, no further activity of the locomotor apparatus was detectable. The larvae used a pure form of inertial suction to ingest food. In pre-metamorphic larvae and adults we registered an integrated activation of the locomotor apparatus (both limbs and tail) and the feeding apparatus during prey capture in the form of compensatory suction. The drastic change in the feeding mode of the pre-metamorphotic larvae and the adults compared to the younger larvae in T. dobrogicus may indicate the evolutionary development of a defined relation in the activity of the locomotor system and the control of the feeding apparatus. We propose that in newts, the interaction between the control execution in both systems switched from successive (body movement – feeding) into integrated (body movement – body movement and feeding) during the ontogeny. The main trigger for such a switch (at least in T. dobrogicus) is the formation of functional limbs during the late larval development.

scholarly journals Habitat use and food habitats of a gecko population in a west African suburban area

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Nioking Amadi ◽  
Golden Chizi Gladstone ◽  
Chimela Wala ◽  
Leonardo Vignoli ◽  
Adaobi Ugbomeh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pinus Ponderosa ◽  
Trophic Ecology ◽  
Dietary Habits ◽  
Elaeis Guineensis ◽  
Feeding Strategy ◽  
Independent Set ◽  
Foraging Strategy ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Habitat Types ◽  
Diet Diversity

1.The spatial and trophic ecology of Afrotropical gecko populations are poorly known. Here, we report ecological observations on Brook’s House Gecko (Hemidactylus angulatus), a widespread gekkonid species, in the Rivers State University of Science and Technology campus, Port Harcourt, Nigeria.2. A total of 488 gecko individuals were recorded during the present study, in two surveyed habitat types: (i) plantationm trees (PTH) and (ii) buildings (BDH). In PTH, they were observed in 13 out of 15 species of trees present in the study area, with their (log) frequency of sightings being positively correlated to the (log) frequency of surveyed trees per species.3. The geckos used substantially the non-native ornamental trees of the PTH habitat. Pinus ponderosa and Elaeis guineensis were significantly preferred by geckos over all the other tree species.4. Geckos also used frequently the buildings (BDH habitat) at the university campus. There was no correlationbetween (log) area of each building and (log) number of observed lizards.5. We collected faeces from 51 gecko individuals in dry season and 66 in wet season. There were no significantdietary differences between seasons, with Diptera and adult Lepidoptera dominating in the diet.6. Dietary habits of geckos differed significantly between habitat types, with Araneae and Lepidoptera (larvae)being eaten much more frequently in BDH, and in Coleoptera and Isopoda that were eaten much more frequently in PTH The diversity dietary metrics (Shannon and Dominance indices) were very similar either between seasons or between habitats.7. Our independent set of analyses (diet diversity metrics; contingency tables on taxonomic dietary compositionand rank-abundance diagrams) showed that lizards exhibited a same feeding strategy in both wet and dry seasons as well as in the two habitat types, although the diet composition differed significantly between habitats.8. A “mixed” foraging strategy was apparently used by Hemidactylus angulatus at the study area, as also observed in other gekkonid species from elsewhere.

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