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Thermal sensitivity of the crab Neosarmatium africanum in tropical and temperate mangroves on the east coast of Africa

  • MANGROVES IN CHANGING ENVIRONMENTS
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Abstract

Mangrove forests are amongst the tropical marine ecosystems most severely affected by rapid environmental change, and the activities of key associated macrobenthic species contribute to their ecological resilience. Along the east coast of Africa, the amphibious sesarmid crab Neosarmatium africanum (=meinerti) plays a pivotal role in mangrove ecosystem functioning through carbon cycling and sediment bioturbation. In the face of rapid climate change, identifying the sensitivity and vulnerability to global warming of this species is of increasing importance. Based on a latitudinal comparison, we measured the thermal sensitivity of a tropical and a temperate population of N. africanum, testing specimens at the centre and southern limit of its distribution, respectively. We measured metabolic oxygen consumption and haemolymph dissolved oxygen content during air and water breathing within a temperature range that matched the natural environmental conditions. The results indicate different thermal sensitivities in the physiological responses of N. africanum from tropical and temperate populations, especially during air breathing. The differences observed in the thermal physiology between the two populations suggest that the effect of global warming on this important mangrove species may be different under different climate regimes.

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Acknowledgements

The study was supported by SP3-People (Marie Curie) IRSES Project CREC (No. 247514). FG was funded by the Intra-European Fellowship (ex Marie Curie) Number 221017, FP7. This work is based upon research supported by the South African Research Chairs Initiative of the Department of Science and Technology and the National Research Foundation. MF and DD were supported also by DD baseline funding from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). We thank Jenny Marie Booth, Sara Cilio, Bruce Mostert, Laura Sbaragli and Irene Ortolani for fundamental help during Kenyan and South African laboratory and fieldwork.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biological and Environmental Sciences & Engineering Division (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia

    Marco Fusi & Daniele Daffonchio

  2. Department of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, 50019, Sesto Fiorentino, Italy

    Simone Babbini, Sara Fratini & Stefano Cannicci

  3. Department of Agronomy Food Natural resources Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Viale dell’università, 16, 35020, Legnaro, PD, Italy

    Folco Giomi

  4. Laboratory of Systems Ecology and Resource Management, Department of Organism Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Université Libre de Bruxelles – ULB, Avenue F.D. Roosevelt 50, CPI 264/1, 1050, Brussels, Belgium

    Farid Dahdouh-Guebas

  5. Ecology & Biodiversity, Laboratorium voor Algemene Plantkunde en Natuurbeheer (APNA), Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences and Bio-engineering Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel – VUB, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium

    Farid Dahdouh-Guebas

  6. Coastal Research Group, Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa

    Christopher David McQuaid & Francesca Porri

  7. South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB), Somerset Street, Grahamstown, 6139, South Africa

    Francesca Porri

  8. The Swire Institute of Marine Science and The School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong

    Stefano Cannicci

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  1. Marco Fusi
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  2. Simone Babbini
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Correspondence to Marco Fusi.

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Guest editors: K. W. Krauss, I. C. Feller, D. A. Friess, R. R. Lewis III / Causes and Consequences of Mangrove Ecosystem Responses to an Ever-Changing Climate

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Fusi, M., Babbini, S., Giomi, F. et al. Thermal sensitivity of the crab Neosarmatium africanum in tropical and temperate mangroves on the east coast of Africa. Hydrobiologia 803, 251–263 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-017-3151-1

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