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Species composition and vertical distribution of chitons (Mollusca: Polyplacophora) in a rocky intertidal zone of the Pacific coast of Costa Rica

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 June 2008

K.M. Jörger ,
R. Meyer  and
I.S. Wehrtmann
K.M. Jörger*
Affiliation:
Bavarian State Collection of Zoology, Münchhausenstrasse 21, 81247 München, Germany
R. Meyer
Affiliation:
Bavarian State Collection of Zoology, Münchhausenstrasse 21, 81247 München, Germany
I.S. Wehrtmann
Affiliation:
Escuela de Biología, Universidad de Costa Rica, 2060 San Pedro-San José, Costa Rica
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: Katharina Jörger Bavarian State Collection of Zoology Sektion Mollusca Münchhausenstr. 21 81247 MünchenGermany email: k_joerger@hotmail.com
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Abstract

The present study describes the species composition and vertical distribution of chitons in tide pools and on exposed rock areas of the intertidal zone of Samara, Guanacaste, Pacific Costa Rica. Nine different species of chitons were recorded, and their densities and sizes were determined using quadrate sampling. Physical (period of emersion, temperature and salinity range) and biotic (presence and diversity of food resources) factors were examined to assess their influence on distribution and abundance of each species. Ischnochiton dispar was the predominant species with densities of up to 200 ind m−2, representing 85.4% of all sampled individuals (N = 4193). The size of I. dispar was positively correlated with the size of the inhabited boulders. Two species (I. dispar and Stenoplax limaciformis) showed segregation in size: I. dispar being negatively and S. limaciformis positively correlated to the distance from the shore. Two of the nine species (Chiton stokesii and Acanthochitona hirundiniformis) occurred mainly on rocky areas outside the tide pools with variable amounts of exposure to air during each tidal cycle. In both species the tide pool specimens were significantly smaller than those collected in the rocky areas. Distribution of all other species was restricted to the tide pools and species had their peak abundance in the zones with more moderate conditions and a higher diversity of algae, resulting in the highest chiton diversity in these areas.

Keywords

chiton ecologysegregation in sizeabundancezonationIschnochiton dispar
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 88 , Issue 4 , August 2008 , pp. 807 - 816
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2008

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