Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-p2v8j Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-05-05T20:20:53.223Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Natural rates of growth and longevity of Nautilus belauensis

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 April 2016

W. Bruce Saunders
W. Bruce Saunders*
Affiliation:
Department of Geology, Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania 19010
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Capture-mark-recapture of Nautilus belauensis in Palau shows that (a) immature animals added an average of 0.1 mm of shell per day at the ventral circumference (projected mean annual increment of 37 mm), but this rate decreases rapidly as maturity is approached; (b) rate of growth line secretion is irregular, ranging from 4 to 8 days per growth line in immature animals; (c) overall weight is an imprecise measure of size and growth in Nautilus due to fluctuations in crop content and chamber liquid; (d) this species is shown to live for at least 4 yr beyond maturity. Age estimates based on the highest growth rate obtained (0.12 mm/day = 43.8 mm/yr) range from 14.5 to 17 yr for seven animals recaptured 45–355 days after release. Combined, these data indicate that the life span of Nautilus may exceed 20 yr.

Type
Research Article
Information
Paleobiology , Volume 9 , Issue 3 , Summer 1983 , pp. 280 - 288
Copyright
Copyright © The Paleontological Society 

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

Literature Cited

Brody, S. 1945. Bioenergetics and Growth. 1023 pp. Rheinhold; New York.Google Scholar
Cochran, J. K. and Landman, N. H. 1983. Growth rate of Nautilus belauensis in nature. Geol. Soc. Amer. Abstr. 15:546.Google Scholar
Cochran, J. K., Rye, D. M., and Landman, N. H. 1981. Growth rate and habitat of Nautilus pompilius inferred from radioactive and stable isotope studies. Paleobiology. 7:469–480.Google Scholar
Denton, E. J. and Gilpin-Brown, J. B. 1966. On the buoyancy of the pearly Nautilus. J. Mar. Biol. Assoc. (UK). 46:723–759.Google Scholar
Everhart, W. S. and Youngs, W. D. 1981. Principles of Fishery Science. 349 pp. Comstock Publishing Associates, Cornell Univ. Press; Ithaca, N.Y., and London.Google Scholar
Graaf, F. de. 1981. Nautilus pompilius in captivity. Vie marine. 3:81–84.Google Scholar
Holmes, O. W. 1858. The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table. 321 pp. Houghton, Mifflin & Co.; Boston.Google Scholar
Hughes, W. W. 1979. Matters arising: nautiloid growth rhythms and lunar dynamics. Nature. 279:453–454.Google Scholar
Jones, D. S. and Thompson, I. 1979. Matters arising: nautiloid growth rhythms and lunar dynamics. Nature. 279:454–455.Google Scholar
Kahn, P. G. K. and Pompea, S. M. 1978. Nautiloid growth rhythms and dynamical evolution of the Earth-Moon system. Nature. 275:606–611.Google Scholar
Martin, A. W., Catala-Stucki, I. and Ward, P. D. 1978. The growth rate and reproductive behavior of Nautilus macromphalus. N. Jb. Geol. Paläont. Abh. 156:207–225.Google Scholar
Saunders, W. B. 1981a. A new species of Nautilus from Palau. Veliger. 24:1–7.Google Scholar
Saunders, W. B. 1981b. The species of living Nautilus and their distribution. Veliger. 24:8–17.Google Scholar
Saunders, W. B.Studies of living Nautilus in Palau. Natl. Geog. Soc. Res. Rep. In press.Google Scholar
Saunders, W. B.Living Nautilus in its natural habitat: evidence from deep water remote camera photosequences. In prep.Google Scholar
Saunders, W. B. and Spinosa, C. 1978. Sexual dimorphism in Nautilus from Palau. Paleobiology. 4:349–358.Google Scholar
Saunders, W. B. and Spinosa, C. 1979. Nautilus movement and distribution in Palau, Western Caroline Islands. Science. 204:1199–1201.Google Scholar
Saunders, W. B. and Ward, P. D. 1979. Nautiloid growth and lunar dynamics. Lethaia. 12:172.Google Scholar
Simpson, G. G., Roe, A., and Lewontin, R. C. 1960. Quantitative Zoology. 440 pp. Harcourt, Brace & World; New York.Google Scholar
Ward, P. and Chamberlain, J. A. 1983. Radiographic observation of chamber formation in Nautilus pompilius. Nature. 304:57–59.Google Scholar
Ward, P., Greenwald, L., and Magnier, Y. 1981. The chamber formation cylce in Nautilus macromphalus. Paleobiology. 7:481–493.Google Scholar