Observations on seaweed attachment to bivalve shells in Peter the Great Bay (East Sea) and their taphonomic implications

Abstract

Observations in beach, intertidal and upper subtidal environments in Peter the Great Bay (north-western East Sea) have shown that attached algae were found on empty shells of 13 species of epifaunal and infaunal bivalve mollusks. Thirteen algae species were identified on empty dislodged shells but more than 50 species are known to be epibiotic on living bivalves. The dislodgement of shells with attached algae takes place in semi-enclosed, low-energy areas, as well as those which are open and affected by strong wave action, indicating the large scale of this phenomenon. The significance of seaweed transportation of living mollusks and their empty shells in the coastal zone, involving both taphonomic and ecological processes, is stressed. Algae appear to be a taphonomic agent and play a similar role as compared to birds or hermit crabs, but they act passively and contribute to environmental mixing in death assemblages in coastal environments.