Experimental assessment ofPosidonia oceanica-associated gastropods grazing on an early-successional biofilm community: nutrient availability and species-specific effects

Abstract

Although grazing is considered an essential process controlling epiphyte biomass on seagrass leaves, there is still a lack of fundamental knowledge about the species-specific consumption rates of the most common grazers in Mediterranean meadows. This study experimentally assessed the effect of Posidonia oceanica-associated gastropod grazing on early successional biofilm and the species-specific relationship between biofilm consumption rates and biofilm biomass. Two biofilms on artificial substrata, both developed in situ (in a P. oceanica meadow), one under ambient conditions and the other under nutrient-enriched conditions, were offered in aquaria assays to nine species of grazers found in P. oceanica meadows. Biofilm consumption rates and their association with biofilm biomass were assessed. It was found that: (i) there was a positive association between biofilm consumption and biofilm biomass up to 20 mg Chl a·m−2 for Bittium reticulatum, Gibbula ardens, Jujubinus exasperatus and Tricolia pullus; (ii) Alvania montagui, B. reticulatum and Jujubinus striatus showed the highest consumption rates and are thus expected to be amongst the leading consumers in early-successional epiphytic communities; (iii) there was not an increase of consumption rate when a substratum colonized under nutrient-enriched conditions was offered to any of the nine studied species. This study provides species-specific consumption rates knowledge that is useful for the assessment of the strength of grazer–epiphyte interactions and trophic fluxes in P. oceanica meadows.