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Microstructural shell strength of the Subantarctic pteropod Limacina helicina antarctica

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Abstract

Anthropogenic inputs of CO2 are changing ocean chemistry and will likely affect calcifying marine organisms, particularly aragonite producers such as pteropods. This work seeks to set a benchmark analysis of pteropod shell properties and variability using nanoindentation and electron microscopy to measure the structural and mechanical properties of Subantarctic pteropod shells (Limacina helicina antarctica) collected in 1998 and 2007. The 1998 shells were collected by a sediment trap deployed at 2000 m, 47°S, 142°E, and the 2007 shells were collected using nets from mixed-layer waters in the region (44°–54°S, 140°–155°E). Transmission electron microscopy revealed that the shells are composed of a polycrystalline structure, and no obvious porosity was visible. The hardness and modulus of the shells were measured using shell cross-section nanoindentation, across various regions of the shell from the inner to outer whorl. No change in mechanical properties was found with respect to the region of the shell cross-section probed. There was no statistically significant difference in the mean modulus or hardness of the shells between the 1998 and 2007 data sets. No major changes in the mechanical properties of these pteropod shells were detected between the 1998 and 2007 data sets, and we discuss the possible biases in the sampling techniques in complicating our analysis. However, quantifying the mechanical properties and microstructure of calcified may still provide insights into the responses of calcification to environmental changes, such as ocean acidification.

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Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge Dr. Thomas Trull for the sediment trap samples, which was supported by the Australian Government through the Department of Industry Cooperative Research Centres Program, the Australian Antarctic Sciences program (AAS #1156) and the Australian Marine National Facility. The SAZ-Sense voyage was supported by the Australian Government through the Department of Climate Change, the Australian Cooperative Research Centres Program and the Australian Antarctic Division (AAS Grant #2720). The authors thank Dr. Karsten Goemann and Dr. Sandrin Feig of the Electron Scanning Facility at the Central Science Laboratory, University of Tasmania, for their assistance with the electron microscopy, the ANFF (ACT Node) for use of the FIB, and Dr. Simon Wotherspoon of the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, for assistance with the statistical analysis. JEB is funded by an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research School of Physics and Engineering, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia

    Clara M. H. Teniswood & Jodie E. Bradby

  2. Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 80, Hobart, TAS, 7001, Australia

    Donna Roberts & Stephen G. Bray

  3. School of Earth Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia

    William R. Howard

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  1. Clara M. H. Teniswood
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Correspondence to Clara M. H. Teniswood.

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Teniswood, C.M.H., Roberts, D., Howard, W.R. et al. Microstructural shell strength of the Subantarctic pteropod Limacina helicina antarctica . Polar Biol 39, 1643–1652 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-016-1888-z

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