Temporal and spatial patterns of organic carbon are linked to egg deposition by beach spawning horseshoe crabs (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Limulus polyphemus</Emphasis>) |
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Authors: | Mark L Botton Robert E Loveland |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Natural Sciences, Fordham College at Lincoln Center, 113 West 60th Street, New York, NY 10023, USA;(2) Department of Ecology Evolution, and Natural Resources, Rutgers, The State University, New Brunswick, NJ 08903, USA |
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Abstract: | The spring spawning by the American horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus L.) results in temporally and spatially discrete inputs of eggs onto sandy beaches in Delaware Bay, USA. We tested the hypothesis
that seasonal patterns of sediment organic carbon on Delaware Bay beaches is linked to this pulsed input of horseshoe crab
eggs. At a location with minimal horseshoe crab spawning activity (Higbee Beach), there was little seasonal variation in sediment
organic carbon, no distinction between organic carbon levels as a function of shoreline position or sediment depth, and no
significant correlation between the abundance of crab eggs and percent organic carbon. Conversely, at a prime horseshoe crab
spawning habitat (North Beach), organic carbon levels were seasonally pulsed and were correlated with egg abundance. Moreover,
the strongest evidence of seasonality was seen at the middle foreshore location at the 15–20 cm depth, consistent with the
highest input of horseshoe crab eggs. Although some of the organic carbon contributed by horseshoe crab eggs in May–June leaves
the beach in the form of hatched larvae later in the year, there is a net input of organic carbon to the system in the form
of unfertilized and/or dead eggs, egg membranes, and embryonic molts. We suggest that the inputs of eggs from horseshoe crabs
and other beach spawning animals, such as grunion and capelin, make significant contributions to the energy budget of sandy
beaches. |
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