Abstract
Abstract Pylaiella littoralis is a brown alga with a cosmopolitan distribution. A free-living form of the alga fouls the beaches of Nahant, Massachusetts (USA). The amphipod Gammarus tigrinus is found within the floating drifts of algae. Gut contents confirmed that G. tigrinus consumed P. littoralis. Significantly, culture studies revealed that ingested P. littoralis survives and grows from fecal pellets produced by G. tigrinus. Also, inefficient grazing produced vegetative fragments that grew and survived. δ 13C values for the amphipods and P. littoralis averaged −17.4 ‰ and −17.7 ‰, respectively, suggesting that G. tigrinus acquires most of its carbon from P. littoralis.
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