Abstract
Oxygen uptake and feeding (clearance) rates were measured for the tuatua Pahpies donacina from an exposed sand beach characterised by variable levels of productivity (4–12 μg l−1chlorophyll a) and an annual temperature range between 8 and 19 °C. The aims of the study were to assess the ability of the surf clam to regulate feeding activity and oxygen uptake over a range of food concentrations and temperature conditions. Tuatuas, shell length 27–95 mm, were exposed to temperatures of 10, 15 and 20 °C in summer and 5, 10 and 15 °C in winter. Aquatic oxygen uptake depended on both body weight and exposure temperature with body weight explaining the majority of the variation in the multiple-regression equation. Weight specific oxygen uptake was similar at the two upper temperatures and significantly reduced at the lower temperature. For a standard length tuatua the oxygen uptake was similar at 10 °C in both summer and winter. Clearance rates of P. donacina feeding on laboratory cultures of Isochrysis galbana were low compared with other bivalves. They increased logarithmically with cell concentration up to a maximal rate, then declined at higher cell levels. The clearance rate depended upon shell length and dry tissue weight and was higher for tuatua acclimated at 10 °C than at 15 °C. It was concluded that P. donacina shows seasonal adjustment in oxygen uptake and filtration rate to compensate for seasonal temperature variation in the habitat. The 10 °C temperature optima for the clearance rate is consistent with the southern distribution of this species allowing it to feed effectively during periods of high food availability.
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Marsden, I.D. Respiration and feeding of the surf clam Paphies donacina from New Zealand. Hydrobiologia 405, 179–188 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1003823527514
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1003823527514