Abstract
The relationship between seasonal changes in temperature and the size of zooids within cheilostome bryozoans is explored by comparing zooid size and contemporaneous carbonate mineralogy within a single colony of a perennial species that grew in a highly sea- sonal environment. Previously published oxygen isotope profile data from two fronds of a large colony of Pen- tapora foliacea from the Irish Sea record the cyclical patterns related to seasonal changes in temperature experienced by the colony over 3 years of growth. Zooid size data gathered from the same points at which the oxygen isotope data were taken reveal that zooid size and contemporaneous d 18 O values covary. These and previously published data show that zooid size profiling can be confidently used to easily estimate rates of growth and longevity of bryozoan colonies, and further illus- trate the negative relationship between zooid size and ambient temperature. Some inconsistencies in timing between zooid size and d 18 O data may provide insights into the mechanisms behind temperature mediated body size changes in poikilothermic animals.
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