Hostname: page-component-77c89778f8-m8s7h Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-23T10:56:12.234Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Population Dynamics of the Polychaete Nephtys Caeca in an Intertidal Estuarine Environment (Quebec, Canada)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2009

Alain Caron ,
Louis Boucher ,
Gaston Desrosiers  and
Christian Retiere
Alain Caron
Affiliation:
Centre Océanographique de Rimouski, Département d'Océanographie, Université du Québec à Rimouski, 310 Allée des Ursulines, Rimouski, Québec, G5L 3A1, Canada.
Louis Boucher
Affiliation:
Centre Océanographique de Rimouski, Département d'Océanographie, Université du Québec à Rimouski, 310 Allée des Ursulines, Rimouski, Québec, G5L 3A1, Canada.
Gaston Desrosiers
Affiliation:
Centre Océanographique de Rimouski, Département d'Océanographie, Université du Québec à Rimouski, 310 Allée des Ursulines, Rimouski, Québec, G5L 3A1, Canada.
Christian Retiere
Affiliation:
Laboratoire Maritime de Dinard, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, 17 Ave George V, BP 28, 35801 Dinard Cedex 05, France
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

An extensive study of an intertidal population of Nephtys caeca Fabricius (Annelida: Polychaeta) was conducted from 1986 to 1988 in I'Anse-à-l'Orignal on the southern shore of the lower St Lawrence Estuary. The sampling, carried out at three levels in the intertidal zone, was designed to study spatio-temporal variations in oocyte diameter (1988), age (1986), density (1986–1987) and individual body weight (1986–1987). The highest oocyte diameters were found in early May when breeding occurred. A relatively long period (from 20 June to 23 August), when oocytes were not visible with a binocular microscope, was also observed. Oocyte maturation began in late summer / early autumn. Settlement did not seem to take place in the intertidal zone, suggesting sublittoral larval recruitment. Peak densities occurred at the intermediate tidal level only in June. Nephtys caeca density varied significantly according to tidal levels, but only in 1987. The number of larger individuals (>320 mg in partial weight) increased markedly with decreasing level on the shore. At the lower tidal level a significant temporal variation in body weight was observed, while mean weight reached its maximum value in July or August 1986. Body weight later decreased progressively (July-November). In June and July 1986 arrivals of juveniles were seen to be greater at every level than during 1987. Six growth-rings were found in the pharyngeal jaws of the individuals in this intertidal population (November 1986). The decomposition of the polymodal weight-frequency distributions of individuals >75 or >85 mg in partial weight isolated four or five size-groups (MacDonald & Pitcher, 1979).

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 75 , Issue 4 , November 1995 , pp. 871 - 884
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 1995

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Alheit, J., 1979. Long and short term population trends in the polychaete genus Nephtys. In Cyclic phenomena in marine plants and animals (ed. E., Naylor and R.G., Hartnoll), pp. 49–56. Oxford: Pergamon Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bellan, G., 1977. Contribution à l'étude des annélides polychètes de la Province du Québec (Canada). 1. Les facteurs du milieu et leurs influences. Tethys, 4, 365–374.Google Scholar
Bentley, M.G., Olive, P.J.W, Garwood, P.R. & Wright, N.H., 1984. The spawning and spawning mechanism of Nephtys caeca (Fabricius, 1780) and Nephtys hombergii (Savigny, 1818) (Annelida: Polychaeta). Sarsia, 69, 63–68.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Boon, J.P., Van Zantvoort, M.B., Govaert, M.J.M.A. & Duinker, J.C., 1985. Organochlorines in benthic polychaetes (Nephtys spp.) and sediments from southern North Sea. Identification of individual PCB components. Netherlands Journal of Sea Research, 19, 93–109.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Caron, A., Desrosiers, G., Retière, C. & Hudier, E., 1993a. Comparaison démographique des populations de deux annélides polychètes selon l'orientation des baies dans l'estuaire du Saint-Laurent. Oceanologica Ada, 16, 403–412.Google Scholar
Caron, A., Olivier, M., Desrosiers, G., Hudier, E., Côté, S., Koutitonsky, V., Miron, G. & Retière, C., 1993b. Distribution spatiale d'une espèce benthique épitoque en zone intertidale: rôle de l'hydrodynamisme? Vie et Milieu, 43, 85–93.Google Scholar
Cazaux, C., 1972. Développement larvaire d'Annélides Polychètes (Bassin d'Arcachon). Archives de Zoologie Expérimentale et Générale, 113, 71–108.Google Scholar
Cazaux, C., 1981. Évolution et adaptation larvaires chez les polychètes. Oceanis, 7, 43–77.Google Scholar
Clark, R.B., 1962. Observations on the food of Nephtys. Limnology and Oceanography, 7, 380–385.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Côté, S., 1991. Modélisation numérique de la circulation, identification des mécanismes de transport de I'Anse à I'Orignal. MS Thesis, Université du Québec à Rimouski.Google Scholar
Curtis, M.A., 1977. Life cycles and population dynamics of marine benthic polychaetes from the Disko Bay area of west Greenland. Ophelia, 16, 9–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Desrosiers, G., Caron, A., Olivier, M. & Miron, G., 1995. Cycle de développement d'une population intertidale de Nereis virens (Polychaeta: Nereidae) sur la rive sud de l'estuaire maritime du Saint-Laurent. Oceanologica Ada, 17, in press.Google Scholar
Desrosiers, G., Vincent, B., Retière, C. & Boucher, L., 1988. Comparaison de critères utilisables pour l'étude de la structure des populations du polychète Nereis virens (Sars). Canadian Journal of Zoology, 66, 1454–1459.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
El-Sabh, M.I., 1988. Physical oceanography of the St Lawrence Estuary. In Hydrodynamics of estuaries, vol. 2 (ed. B., Kjerfve), pp. 61–78. Boca Raton: CRC Press.Google Scholar
Estcourt, I., 1975. Population structure of Aglaophamus verilli (Polychaeta: Nephtyidae) from Tasman Bay. New Zealand Oceanographic Institute Records, 2, 149–154.Google Scholar
Gibbs, P.E. & Bryan, G.W., 1984. Calcium phosphate granules in muscle cells of Nephtys (Annelida, Polychaeta) – a novel skeleton? Nature, London, 310, 494—495.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kirkegaard, J.B., 1970. Age determination of Nephtys (Polychaeta: Nephtyidae). Ophelia, 7, 277–281.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lacalli, T., 1981. Annual spawning cycles and planktonic larvae of benthic invertebrates from Passamaquoddy Bay, New Brunswick. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 59, 433–440.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Macdonald, P.D.M. & Pitcher, T.J., 1979. Age-groups from size-frequency data: a versatile and efficient method of analysing distribution mixtures. Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada, 36, 987–1001.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mathivat, M.H. & Cazaux, C., 1985. Recrutement benthique de l'Annélide Polychète Nephtys hombergii. Journal de Recherches Océanographiques, 10, 142–145.Google Scholar
Mathivat-Lallier, M.H. & Cazaux, C., 1991. Life-history of Nephtys hombergii in Arcachon Bay. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 32, 1–9.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miron, G.Y. & Desrosiers, G.L., 1990. Distributions and population structures of two intertidal estuarine polychaetes in the lower St. Lawrence Estuary, with special reference to environ-mental factors. Marine Biology, 105, 297–306.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Olive, P.J.W., 1977. The life-history and population structure of the polychaetes Nephtys caeca and Nephtys hombergii with special reference to the growth rings in the teeth. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 57, 133–150.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Olive, P.J.W., 1978. Reproduction and annual gametogenic cycle in Nephtys hombergii and N. caeca (Polychaeta: Nephtyidae). Marine Biology, 46, 83–90.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Olive, P.J.W., Bentley, M.G., Wright, N.H. & Morgan, P.J., 1985. Reproductive energetics, endocrinology and population dynamics of Nephtys caeca and N. hombergii. Marine Biology, 88, 235–246.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Olive, P.J.W., Garwood, P.R. & Bentley, M.G., 1981a. Reproductive failure and oosorption in Polychaeta in relation to their reproductive strategies. Bulletin de la Société Zoologiaue de France, 106, 263–268.Google Scholar
Olive, P.J.W., Garwood, P.R., Bentley, M.G. & Wright, N., 1981b. Reproductive success, relative abundance and population structure of two species of Nephtys in an estuarine beach. Marine Biology, 63, 189–196.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Olive, P.J.W. & Morgan, P.J., 1983. A survey of the age structure of beach populations of Nephtys spp. in the British Isles, the basis of population fluctuations. Oceanologica Ada, 141–145. [Actes du 17e Symposium Européen de Biologie Marine, Brest, 27 Septembre – 1 Octobre 1982.]Google Scholar
Olivier, M., Desrosiers, G., Retière, C. & Brêthes, J.-C., 1993. Variations spatio-temporelles de l'alimentation du polychète Nereis virens en zone intertidale (Estuaire maritime du Saint-Laurent, Québec). Vie et Milieu, 43, 1–12.Google Scholar
Olivier, M., Desrosiers, G. & Vincent, B., 1992. Variations in growth and mortality of juveniles of the phyllodocid Eteone longa (Fabricius) on a tidal flat. Canadian journal of Zoology, 70, 663–669.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Oyenekan, J. A., 1986. Population dynamics and secondary production in an estuarine population of Nephtys hombergii (Polychaeta: Nephtyidae). Marine Biology, 93, 217–223.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pettibone, M.H., 1963. Marine polychaete worms of the New England region. 1. Aphroditidae through Tochochaetidae. Bulletin. United States National Museum, 227, 1–356.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Price, R. & Warwick, R.M., 1980. Temporal variations in annual production and biomass in estuarine populations of two polychaetes, Nephtys hombergii and Ampharete acutifrons. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 60, 481–187.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rainer, S.F., 1991a. Distribution, growth and production of Nephtys hombergii and N. assimilis (Polychaeta: Nephtyidae) in benthic communities of the North Sea. Third International Polychaete Conference held at the California State University, Long Beach, California, 6–11 August 1989. Bulletin of Marine Science, 48, 330–345.Google Scholar
Rainer, S.F., 1991b. The genus Nephtys (Polychaeta: Phyllodocida) of northern Europe: a review of species, including the description of IV. pulchra sp. n. and a key to the Nephtyidae. Helgoländer Meeresuntersuchungen, 45, 65–96.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Retiere, C., 1976. Détermination des classes d'âge des populations de Nephtys hombergii (Annélide Polychète) par la lecture des mâchoires en microscopie électronique a balayage. Structure des populations en Ranee Maritime. Comptes Rendus Hebdomadaires des Séances de I'Académie des Sciences. Paris, 282D, 1555–1556.Google Scholar
Warwick, R.M. & Price, R., 1975. Macrofauna production of an estuarine mud-flat. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 55, 1–18.CrossRefGoogle Scholar