Abstract
The veined whelk Rapana venosa (Valenciennes, 1846) is an active, Asian, invasive mollusk predator that has been present along the coastal zone of Maldonado, Uruguay since 2004. The feeding rate of R. venosa on native mussels was estimated in a laboratory experiment. A flume with a constant water flow was used, in which the mean (± SD) temperature was 25.4 ± 1.8 °C, the mean (± SD) salinity was 18.5 ± 1.6, and a 15:9 light-dark schedule was followed. Each experimental trial lasted 9 days and a constant prey supply was maintained. Three size classes of predators and three size classes of prey (Brachidontes rodriguezii and Mytella charruana), were used. For all sizes of predator combined, the average (± SD) absolute consumption rate was 0.88 ± 0.3 g day -1 , and the relative consumption rate was 0.057 ± 0.034 g g -1 day -1 . No significant differences were found between the number of prey and total grams consumed among the three size categories of snails. However, for the relative consumption rate, small snails consumed significantly greater (0.10 g g -1 day -1 ) amounts than intermediate and large snails (0.04 and 0.02 g g -1 day -1 respectively). All sizes of snails consumed significantly more intermediate- than small-sized mussels. This study provides important knowledge for future research to assess the impact of this invasive species on native bivalve resources.
Highlights
The veined whelk Rapana venosa (Valenciennes, 1846) (Gastropoda, Muricidae) is a large carnivorous whelk native from Asia (Tsi 1983, Chung et al 1993)
Since 1947, R. venosa has spread to coastal waters in Asia (Drapkin 1963), Europe (Zolotarev 1996; Goulletquer 2000; Kerckhof et al 2006), and North America (Harding and Mann 1999)
Savini et al (2002) described an absolute daily consumption rate of 1.5 g of the clam Mercenaria mercenaria by R. venosa individuals of 101–160 mm Total length (TL) maintained at an average temperature of 26°C and Savini and Occhipinti-Ambrogi (2006) found that R. venosa of 104 mm TL consumed on average 1.2 g day-1 in wet weight during a field caging study
Summary
The veined whelk Rapana venosa (Valenciennes, 1846) (Gastropoda, Muricidae) is a large carnivorous whelk native from Asia (Tsi 1983, Chung et al 1993). Veined whelks show wide thermal and salinity tolerances (Chung et al 1993; ICES 2004), fast growth, high fertility (ICES 2004; Harding et al 2007a), a planktonic phase ranging from 14 to 80 days (Mann and Harding 2000), plus tolerance to water pollution and hypoxia (Zolotarev 1996). These traits have made this organism a successful invader. Recent work shows that the veined whelk is active predator of mussels in Río de la Plata (Lanfranconi et al 2009; Carranza et al 2010; Giberto et al 2006, 2011)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
