Abstract
Feeding responses of the generalist herbivore, Littorina littorea (L.), to the perceived ‘taste’ of macroalgae were assessed with respect to the effects of recent dietary intake and to overlapping versus non-overlapping distributions of winkles and algae. The extent of grazing on artificial substrates impregnated with crude algal extracts was used as a measure of rate of response to the odour of preferred algae, and of feeding preference among less preferred algae, in a variety of designs. Adult L. littorea collected from a site where a range of algae were present showed preference among extracts of fucoids, whereas adults from a nearby site showed no such preference. Juvenile L. littorea of two weight cohorts collected from the former site responded faster to Porphyra umbilicalis extract-containing substrate than similar-sized animals from the latter site. Juveniles, fed either Porphyra, Ulva lactuca, or starved for two weeks in the laboratory, responded similarly to Ulva versus Porphyra extracts in a dose-dependent manner across a range of concentrations, although the Porphyra-maintained group consumed more of each, and the starved group less over seven days. Juveniles maintained on a mixed diet of Ulva and Porphyra consumed more Porphyra extract and less Ulva extract over the same period. These results are discussed in relation to the possible role of ingestive conditioning and previous dietary history in determining the occurrence and extent of chemically-mediated feeding preference in L. littorea.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Audesirk, G. J. & T. E. Audesirk, 1986. Behaviour of gastropod molluscs. In A. O. D. Willows (ed.), The Moll’usca, vol. 8: Neurobiology and Behaviour, Part 1. Academic Press, Lond.: 1–94.
Audesirk, T. E., 1975. Chemoreception in Aplysia californica. I. Behavioural localization of distance chemoreceptors used in food-finding. Behay. Biol. 15: 45–55.
Benjamin, P. R., 1983. Gastropod feeding: Behavioural and neural analysis of a complex multicomponent system. In A. Roberts and B. L. Roberts (eds), Neural Control of Rhythmic Movements. Cambridge University Press, Lond.: 159–193.
Bertness, M. D., P. O. Yund & A. F. Brown, 1983. Snail grazing and the abundance of algal crusts on a sheltered New England rocky beach. J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol. 71: 147–164.
Bovbjerg, R. V., 1965. Feeding and dispersal in the snail Stagnicola reflexa (Basomatophora: Lymnaeidae). Malacologia 2: 199–207.
Bovbjerg, R. V., 1968. Responses to food in Lymnaeid snails. Physiol. Zool. 41: 412–423.
Croll, R. P. & R. Chase, 1980. Plasticity of olfactory orientation to foods in the snail Achatina fulica. J. comp. Physiol. 136: 267–277.
Hall, S. J., C. D. Todd & A. D. Gordon, 1982. The influence of ingestive conditioning on the prey species selection in Aeolidia papillosa (Mollusca: Nudibranchia). J. anim. Ecol. 51: 907–921.
Hall, S. J., C. D. Todd & A. D. Gordon, 1984. Prey-species selection by the anemone predator Aeolidia papillosa (L.): the influence of ingestive conditioning and previous dietary history, and a test for switching behaviour. J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol. 82: 11–33.
Hawkins, S. J. & R. G. Hartnoll, 1983. Grazing of intertidal algae by marine invertebrates. Oceanogr. mar. Biol. ann. Rev. 21: 195–202.
Hughes, R. N., 1980. Optimal foraging theory in the marine context. Oceanogr. mar. Biol. ann. Rev. 18: 423–481.
Imrie, D. W., S. J. Hawkins & C. R. McCrohan, 1989. The olfactory-gustatory basis of food preference in the herbivorous prosobranch Littorina littorea (L.). J. moll. Stud. 55: 217–225.
Meddis, R., 1984. Statistics using Ranks: a Unified Approach. Blackwell, N.Y., 449 pp.
Murdoch, W. W., 1969. Switching in general predators: experiments on predator specificity and stability of prey populations. Ecol. Monogr. 39: 335–354.
Padilla, D. K., 1984. The importance of form: differences in competitive ability, resistance to consumers and environmental stress in an assemblage of coralline algae. J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol. 79: 105–127.
Padilla, D. K., 1985. Structural resistance of algae to herbivores. Mar. Biol. 90: 103–109.
Parsons, T. R., Y. Maita & C. M. Lalli, 1984. A Manual of Chemical and Biological Methods for Seawater Analysis. Pergamon Press, Oxford, 173 pp.
Petraitis, P. S., 1987. Factors organizing rocky intertidal communities of New England: herbivory and predation in sheltered bays. J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol. 109: 117–136.
Steneck, R. S. & L. Watling, 1982. Feeding capabilities and limitations of herbivorous molluscs: a functional group approach. Mar. Biol. 68: 299–319.
Thomas, J. D., 1982. Chemical ecology of the snail hosts of schistasomiasis: snail-snail and snail-plant interactions. Malacologia 22: 81–91.
Watson, D. C. & T. A. Norton, 1985. Dietary preferences of the common periwinkle, Littorina littorea (L.). J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol. 88: 193–211.
Williams, L. G., D. Rittscoff, B. Brown & M. R. Carriker, 1983. Chemotaxis of oyster drills Urosalpinx cineria to competing prey odors. Bull. mar. biol. Lab. Woods Hole 164: 536–548.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1990 Kluwer Academic Publishers
About this paper
Cite this paper
Imrie, D.W., McCrohan, C.R., Hawkins, S.J. (1990). Feeding behaviour in Littorina littorea: a study of the effects of ingestive conditioning and previous dietary history on food preference and rates of consumption. In: Johannesson, K., Raffaelli, D.G., Hannaford Ellis, C.J. (eds) Progress in Littorinid and Muricid Biology. Developments in Hydrobiology, vol 56. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-0563-4_15
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-0563-4_15
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-010-6741-6
Online ISBN: 978-94-009-0563-4
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive