Abstract
Plumes of re-suspended sediment potentially smother and clog the aquiferous system of filter-feeding sponges with unknown implications for their health. For the first time, we examined the physiological responses of repeated exposure to natural sediment in the glass sponge Vazella pourtalesii, which forms dense sponge grounds in Emerald Basin off Nova Scotia, Canada. Ex situ chamber-based measurements of bacterial clearance and oxygen consumption (respiration) rates indicated that individuals subjected to elevated concentrations of suspended sediment expressed normal clearance and respiration rates over 7 days of sediment exposure, indicating an ability to cope with elevated concentrations of indigestible sediment particles. However, clearance rates significantly declined after 14 days of sediment exposure, suggesting an inability to cope with long-term exposure to increased sediment load. Therefore, long-term exposure to elevated concentrations of suspended sediment should be avoided in order to minimize adverse effects on the abundant Vazella sponge grounds.
Highlights
Sponges (Porifera) play a pivotal role within the marine ecosystems they inhabit from tropical shallow waters to abyssal depths
All 10 sponges in the treatment group survived repeated exposure to suspended sediment over the course of the 21-day experiment and no structure necrosis or other signs of decreased health status were observed in the treatment group over the course of the experiment
The present study on the physiological response of V. pourtalesii to a concentration of natural suspended sediment may act as a blueprint for the design of these elaborate experiments. In this aquaria-based ex situ study, V. pourtalesii was found to cope with increased levels of natural suspended sediment for a period of 7 days
Summary
Sponges (Porifera) play a pivotal role within the marine ecosystems they inhabit from tropical shallow waters to abyssal depths. Sponges are key players in benthic-pelagic energy transfer and biochemical processing by filtering large volumes of seawater (Maldonado et al, 2012, 2017; De Goeij et al, 2013; Pham et al, 2019). The use of advanced technologies such as remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) has provided evidence of the vast diversity and abundance of sponges in the majority of deep-sea ecosystems (Maldonado et al, 2017). Over the past decade, such spongedominated deep-sea habitats have been characterized as sponge grounds (Hogg et al, 2010)
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