Bioerosion of gastropod shells: with emphasis on effects of coralline algal cover and shell microstructure

Organisms boring into fifty nine species of gastropod shells on reefs around Guam were the bryozoan Penetrantia clionoides; the acrothoracian barnacles Cryptophialus coronorphorus, Cryptophialus zulloi and Lithoglyptis mitis; the foraminifer Cymbaloporella tabellaeformis, the polydorid Polydora sp. and seven species of clionid sponge. Evidence that crustose coralline algae interfere with settlement of larvae of acrothoracian barnacles, clionid sponges, and boring polychaetes came from two sources: (1) low intensity of boring in limpet shells, a potentially penetrable substrate that remains largely free of borings by virtue of becoming fully covered with coralline algae at a young age and (2) the extremely low levels of boring in the algal ridge, a massive area of carbonate almost entirely covered by a layer of living crustose corallines. There was a strong negative correlation between microstructural hardness and infestation by acrothoracian barnacles and no correlation in the case of the other borers. It is suggested that this points to a mechanical rather than a chemical method of boring by the barnacles. The periostracum, a layer of organic material reputedly a natural inhibitor of boring organisms, was bored by acrothoracican barnacles and by the bryozoan. The intensity of acrothoracican borings is shown to have no correlation with the length of the gastropod shell.     

Ichnospecies Teredolites longissimus and Teredinid Body Fossils from the Early Eocene of India—Taphonomic and Palaeoenvironmental Implications

Extensively bored log-grounds with ichnospecies Teredolites longissimus and body fossils of the causative teredinid molluscs are recorded from the Early Eocene subsurface beds of the Cambay Shale Formation at Vastan lignite Mine in western India. Three sizes of T. longissimus observed in Vastan mostly represent animals in different stages of maturity or successive infestation of substrate. Orientation of a majority of small borings suggests that teredinid larvae preferred to initiate boring across the wood grain and subsequently turned to become parallel to grain exhibiting adult boring behavior. Variations in morphology of recovered shells indicate involvement of at least two teredinid taxa in constructing T. longissimus from Vastan—one is identified as Bankia isp. based on pallets and the other remains unidentified and may possibly represent another bankiine, Nototeredo. Evidences of traumatic as well as attritional mortality are noticeable. The xylic substrates having affinity with woods of a modern tree genus Aglaia (Meliaceae) were apparently transported from their natural habitat of an inland moist tropical forest to the coastal region where they were colonized by the teredinid bivalves. The profusely infested wood logs were buried in a near shore lagoon or a tidal flat setting, which is corroborated by the known biota (vertebrate, invertebrate as well as plants) as well as sedimentary facies of the Cambay Shale Formation in Vastan section.     

Comparison of volatile organic compounds from uninfested and Monochamus alternatus Hope infested Pinus massoniana Lamb.

Monochamus alternatus is a destructive stem‐boring herbivore of Pinus massoniana, and the principal vector of pine wood nematode. To investigate the impacts of boring by M. alternatus larvae on the emission of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from their host trees, the VOCs from uninfested and M. alternatus larvae infested P. massoniana trees were observed using a gas chromatograph–mass spectrometer. We detected 12, 9, 18 and 14 volatile organic compounds from infested xylem, infested phloem, uninfested xylem and uninfested phloem, respectively. In P. massoniana xylem, the boring of M. alternatus larvae induced cyclosativene, and inhibited 4‐carene, humulene, styrene, α‐phellandrene, β‐myrcene, β‐phellandrene and γ‐terpinene. The relative amounts of camphene, copacamphene, longicyclene, longifolene, tricyclene and α‐longipinene were significantly increased, and the relative amounts of α‐pinene and β‐pinene were significantly decreased by the boring behaviors of M. alternatus larvae. In P. massoniana phloem, the boring of M. alternatus larvae induced 2‐bornanone, copacamphene, longicyclene and α‐longipinene, and inhibited 2‐carene, 4‐carene, styrene, α‐phellandrene, β‐myrcene, β‐phellandrene, β‐pinene, γ‐terpinene and ο‐cymene. The relative amounts of camphene, caryophyllene and longifolene were significantly increased by the boring behaviors of M. alternatus larvae. The results indicate that the boring behaviors of M. alternatus larvae changed both the sorts and contents of the VOCs from P. massoniana trees.     

A New Ichnospecies of Gastrochaenolites Leymerie from the Pleistocene Port Morant Formation of Southeast Jamaica and the Taphonomy of Calcareous Linings in Clavate Borings

The ichnospecies Gastrochaenolites pickerilli isp. nov. is based on ten borings found in a shell of the gastropod Strombus gigas Linné from the Pleistocene (Sangamonian) Port Morant Formation of southeast Jamaica. These borings bear morphological similarities to Gastrochaenolites torpedo Kelly and Bromley but differ from all other Gastrochaenolites ispp. in having prominent and numerous calcareous meniscate structures arrayed adjacent to one side of the boring. These menisci are concave towards the center of the boring and are the remnants of calcareous tubes that lined earlier boreholes, that the boring bivalve treated as part of the lithified substrate when relocating. They are thus evidence of the former positions of borings that, unusually, were breached as the bivalve migrated sideways. Although this was a common behavior for Gastrochaenolites-producing bivalves within this substrate, the reason for it occurring is uncertain.     

Bioerosion in the Miocene Reefs of the northwest Red Sea,Egypt

Macroborings provide detailed information on the bioerosion, accretion and palaeoenvironment of both modern and fossil reefs. Dolomitized reefal carbonates in the Um Mahara Formation exhibit an outstanding example of spatially distributed, well‐preserved bioerosion structures in tropical to subtropical syn‐rift Miocene reefs. Ten ichnospecies belonging to five ichnogenera are identified; three belonging to the bivalve‐boring ichnogenus Gastrochaenolites, three attributed to the sponge‐boring ichnogenus Entobia, and four ichnospecies assigned to three worm‐boring ichnogenera Trypanites, Maeandropolydora and Caulostrepsis. The distribution of the reported borings is strongly linked to the palaeo‐reef zones. Two distinctive ichnological boring assemblages are recognized. The Gastrochaenolites‐dominated assemblage reflects shallower‐marine conditions, under water depths of a few metres, mostly in back‐reef to patch‐reef zones of a back‐reef lagoon. The Entobia‐dominated assemblage signifies relatively deeper marine conditions, mostly in reef core of the fringing Miocene reefs. These ichnological assemblages are attributed herein to the Entobia sub‐ichnofacies of the Trypanites ichnofacies. This ichnofacies indicates boring in hard carbonate substrates (such as corals, rhodoliths, carbonate cements and hardgrounds) during periods of non‐sedimentation or reduced sediment input.     

Perforation of ABS pipes by boring bivalve Martesia striata: a case study

Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) pipes are considered to be immune for boring organisms. However, inspection of the offshore cooling water conduits of Lumut combined cycle power plant, Malaysia show that ABS pipes may not necessarily be immune for wood boring pholads, Martesia striata. M. striata caused heavy damage by drilling holes in ABS pipes used (about 5 years) for transportation of hypochlorite from the station towards the intake domes. Hole sizes ranged from 3 to 19 mm² with an average of 11 mm². Unlike other boring animals (e.g. Lithophaga), M. striata penetration is not assisted by chemical dissolution of the substrates and therefore, attack is not limited to calcium carbonate substrates. In this context, material like low dense concrete and rocks, wood, PVC, ABS, etc. is subject to attack of M. striata. It is unknown which synthetic polymerics can be expected to be completely immune for boring bivalves.     

Temporal variations of macroborers in massive Porites lobata on Moorea,French Polynesia

Massive colonies of Porites lobata on the barrier reef of Tiahura, Moorea, can be divided into four categories: living colonies, colonies consisting of 50% live coral and 50% dead skeleton, 100% dead coral and colonies which have been reduced to a basal plate. Replicate samples of each of these colony types were collected in the same vicinity of the barrier reef during October 1987. The macroborers were extracted, identified, counted and their volumes determined by displacement. Kruskal-Wallis tests showed that three different boring communities occur within these four categories of Porites colonies. Live colonies are characterised by only 3 species, the bivalve, Lithophaga laevigata; the vermetid Dendropoma maximun; and the non boring serpulid polychaete Spirobranchus. The completely dead colonies contain up to 17 boring species, with five to six individuals per 100 cm. Sipunculans are the dominant bioeroders with the most abundant species being Aspidosiphon elegans, sp A and sp B. Colonies of Porites which have been reduced to basal plates contain up to 18 boring species of which the bivalve Lithophaga hanleyana and the sipunculan Aspidosiphon sp. B are the most abundant.The cumulative volume of CaCO₃ lost by boring activity increases from 0.1 cm³ per 100 cm³ in a completely dead Porites colony to 1.4 cm³ per 100 cm³ in the residual basal plates of Porites. These can be extrapolated to minimum losses of 14.2 kg m^-3. We suggest that rates of boring increase with the time which has elapsed since the death of the colony and the dominant agents of boring also change with increasing age of the coral structure. There are significant additional losses of 5.25 kg m^-3 CaCO₃ caused by grazing echinoids and scarids.     

Stereotypic boring behaviour inferred from the earliest known octopod feeding traces: Early Eocene,southern England

Todd, JA. & Harper, EM. 2011: Stereotypic boring behaviour inferred from the earliest known octopod feeding traces: Early Eocene, southern England. Lethaia, Vol. 44, pp. 214–222. A bulk sample of 267 disarticulated valves of the bivalve Venericor clarendonensis (Wood) collected from the Lower Eocene London Clay (southern UK) yielded 38 individuals that had been perforated by small drill holes (0.70–2.14 mm in outer diameter). These drill holes had more or less circular plan views, with slightly irregular openings, and taper as they pass through the valve, conforming to the ichnotaxon Oichnus simplex Bromley. They show stereotypic positioning, being concentrated in the posterior region on the prey, moreover there is remarkable preference for perforating the sites of muscle attachment (principally the posterior adductor). We consider the most likely culprits to be octopods. As such these are the oldest octopod drill holes yet recorded. They provide the only evidence of these important top predators in this shallow marine community and also demonstrate that the sophisticated predatory behaviour shown by modern octopods had been evolved by at least the Early Eocene. □Eocene, octopod behaviour, Oichnus, stereotypic boring.     

Oichnus simplex Bromley infesting Hemipneustes striatoradiatus (Leske) (Echinoidea) from the Maastrichtian type area (Upper Cretaceous,The Netherlands)

Abstract

The large holasteroid echinoid Hemipneustes striatoradiatus (Leske) was exploited by diverse invertebrate encrusters and borers during the Maastrichtian, both pre- and post-mortem. In life, the specimen described herein was perforated by multiple Oichnus simplex Bromley borings close to the apical system. Each engendered a growth reaction from the echinoid, a mound-like swelling on the external surface of the test with the boring at the centre. These would have been moved away from the apical system as the echinoid grew and inserted new plates apically. Whether this infestation was the product of numerous individual organisms or, less likely, just one organism (gastropod?) that relocated when discouraged by each mound-like swelling is uncertain. Similar growth reactions are known from other echinoderms, but associated with non-penetrative Oichnus paraboloides Bromley.     

Wood Decomposition Following a Perennial Lupine Die-Off: A 3-Year Litterbag Study

Woody debris is a conspicuous feature of many ecosystems and can be a large pool of stored carbon and nutrients. In the California coastal prairie, yellow bush lupines (Lupinus arboreus) experience mass die-offs, producing large quantities of woody detritus. Live lupines are fed upon by the stem-boring caterpillars of the ghost moth, Hepialus californicus, and outbreaks of ghost moths are one factor contributing to lupine die-offs. A common detritivore, the terrestrial isopod Porcellio scaber, frequently inhabits ghost moth tunnels in lupine wood. We used a litterbag experiment to test the hypothesis that H. californicus increases decomposition of woody lupine detritus by facilitating its use by P. scaber. Isopod access to wood was crossed with simulated ghost moth boring to measure the independent and interactive effects of these two arthropods on total mass loss, as well as on carbon, nitrogen, and lignin dynamics. Isopods initially colonized litterbags but were not more abundant on L. arboreus logs that had simulated ghost moth boring than on logs without boring. They were rare in litterbags collected at 12 months or later and had no effect on wood decomposition. Simulated ghost moth boring increased wood decomposition (P = 0.0021), from 50.5 to 55.1% mass loss after 3 years. This effect was likely due to increased surface area for microbial utilization of the wood. Lupine wood had an initial lignin content of 14.70 ± 0.67%, but lignin did not appear to decompose during the 3 years of this study, and by the end of the experiment accounted for 32.6 ± 1.12% of the remaining wood. Neither ghost moth boring nor isopod access affected lignin loss. Lupine wood from a die-off in 2002 was estimated to have contained three times more nitrogen per unit area than the yearly input of annual grass litter. The slow decomposition of lupine wood, however, restricts the rate at which nitrogen is released into the soil and results in the storage of carbon and nutrients in lupine wood for several years following such die-offs.     

Insect herbivory stimulates allelopathic exudation by an invasive plant and the suppression of natives

Exotic invasive plants are often subjected to attack from imported insects as a method of biological control. A fundamental, but rarely explicitly tested, assumption of biological control is that damaged plants are less fit and compete poorly. In contrast, we find that one of the most destructive invasive plants in North America, Centaurea maculosa, exudes far higher amounts of (±)‐catechin, an allelopathic chemical known to have deleterious effects on native plants, when attacked by larvae of two different root boring biocontrol insects and a parasitic fungus. We also demonstrate that C. maculosa plants experimentally attacked by one of these biocontrols exhibit more intense negative effects on natives.     

Biological control of Rhamnus cathartica: is it feasible? A review of work done in 2002–2012

Rhamnus cathartica (common buckthorn) is a shrub (or small tree) of Eurasian origin, which has become invasive in North America. Internal feeders and sap suckers were prioritized for biological control from over 30 specialized insects identified from the target plant in its native European range. Five leaf‐feeding moths were also considered for further investigations. Field observations and preliminary host range tests with the stem‐boring beetle Oberea pedemontana, the root‐boring moth Synanthedon stomoxiformis, the shoot‐tip‐boring moth Sorhagenia janiszewskae and the leaf‐feeding moths Ancylis apicella, A. unculana, Triphosa dubitata, Philereme transversata and P. vetulata confirmed that all of these species were lacking host specificity in no‐choice conditions. Choice oviposition tests carried out with most of the prioritized species to assess their ecological host range yielded unreliable results. Three psyllids, Trichochermes walkeri, Cacopsylla rhamnicolla and Trioza rhamni are promising in terms of host specificity, but are infected with the plant disease ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma rhamni’. Fruit‐ or seed‐feeding insects may present the best potential for biological control of buckthorn in directly reducing seed set and thus seedling establishment. However, it was not possible to obtain adult fruiting trees of native North American Rhamnus species for testing. It is concluded that there are no promising arthropod agents based on what is known to date. Pathogens could offer new opportunities for biological control of R. cathartica in North America.     

Colonization of disturbed Scots pine trees by bark‐ and wood‐boring beetles

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Regular distribution of larvae and resource monopolization in the seed beetle Bruchidius dorsalis infesting seeds of the Japanese honey locust Gleditsia japonica

Larvae of the wild multivoltine bruchid seed beetle Bruchidius dorsalis infest dry mature seeds of the Japanese honey locust Gleditsia japonica. The frequency distribution of B. dorsalis larvae per seed was examined in the laboratory. First, preliminary observation showed that the first-instar B. dorsalis larva crawled from an eggshell and traveled in excess of 25 cm before boring into a seed. Larvae prefer boring into noninfested rather than infested seeds (indicated by a previous emergence hole). When a larva occasionally bored into a previously infested seed, it could emerge as an adult in spite of decreased body weight. Second, we conducted experiment 1 to investigate the frequency distributions of the number of boring holes per seed; results showed significantly regular distributions (a smaller variance than Poisson) in which most seeds had been bored by one larva. Third, we performed experiment 2 to examine the relationship between the initial number of larvae boring into one seed and the number of emerged adults and their body weight from a given seed. When we increased the ratio of egg density to seed abundance by experimental manipulation, multiple larvae (up to ten) could bore into one seed. However, only one adult emerged from each of about 85% seeds with multiple borings. When one adult emerged, the adult body weight was constant, independent of the initial number of larvae boring into the seed. Two adults occasionally emerged from one seed with a large difference in their body sizes. Even in this case, the larger adult was as heavy as that in a single emergence, although the other was significantly smaller (about 60%) than the normal size. These results show severe contest-type competition among B. dorsalis larvae within one seed. The winner often monopolizes almost all the resources even though a part of the seed resource still remains. Received: September 17, 2001 / Accepted: October 5, 2001     

The role of olfactory cues in the sequential radiation of a gall‐boring beetle,Mordellistena convicta

1. Herbivorous insects often have close associations with specific host plants, and their preferences for mating and ovipositing on a specific host‐plant species can reproductively isolate populations, facilitating ecological speciation. Volatile emissions from host plants can play a major role in assisting herbivores to locate their natal host plants and thus facilitate assortative mating and host‐specific oviposition. 2. The present study investigated the role of host‐plant volatiles in host fidelity and oviposition preference of the gall‐boring, inquiline beetle, Mordellistena convicta LeConte (Coleoptera: Mordellidae), using Y‐tube olfactometers. Previous studies suggest that the gall‐boring beetle is undergoing sequential host‐associated divergence by utilising the resources that are created by the diverging populations of the gall fly, Eurosta solidaginis Fitch (Diptera: Tephritidae), which induces galls on the stems of goldenrods including Solidago altissima L. (Asteraceae) and Solidago gigantea Ait. 3. Our results show that M. convicta adults are attracted to galls on their natal host plant, avoid the alternate host galls, and do not respond to volatile emissions from their host‐plant stems. 4. These findings suggest that the gall‐boring beetles can orient to the volatile chemicals from host galls, and that beetles can use them to identify suitable sites for mating and/or oviposition. Host‐associated mating and oviposition likely play a role in the sequential radiation of the gall‐boring beetle.     

Bivalve borings in Lower Jurassic Lithiotis fauna from northeastern Italy and its palaeoecological interpretation

Random shell sections of the Pliensbachian (Early Jurassic) larger bivalve Opisoma from columns within the Main Post Office building of Ferrara, northern Italy, have been discovered to bear neat clavate-shape boreholes. These boreholes belong to the ichnogenus Gastrochaenolites Leymerie and represent bivalve borings. Opisoma is a subordinate component of the Lithiotis fauna characterised by aberrant shells thriving in tropical lagoonal settings which were widespread throughout the Tethyan and Panthalassa coasts. Although the Lithiotis fauna is well known in the palaeontological literature, no bivalve boring have been so far been formally described. The uniqueness of the morphology, size and substrate of these borings merits the designation of the new species Gastrochaenolites messisbugi ichnosp. nov. which thereby represents the first ichnospecies described from this fauna. The morphology of the boreholes and the included bivalves allows the boring activity to be ascribed to a mytilid bivalve. Palaeoecological and taphonomic analyses allowed the presence of the boreholes to be correlated to the Opisoma mode of life (epifaunal, free-living form) as well as to generally low sedimentation rates and seasonal mesotrophic conditions during an overall oligotrophic regime.

http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:CCF77B32-D459-4305-BC86-93F228852E50     

Compatible invasion of a phylogenetically distant host embryo by a hymenopteran parasitoid embryo

Embryonic invasion into the tissue of genetically different organisms has been known only in mother-embryo interactions of viviparous organisms. Hence, embryonic invasions have been thought to occur only within the same or closely related species. For endoparasitic Hymenoptera, which are oviposited in their host egg but complete their development in the later stages, entry into the host embryo is essential. To date, the entry of these parasitoids is known to be accomplished by either egg deposition directly into the embryo or by the newly hatched larva boring into the embryo. However, Copidosoma floridanum is a polyembryonic parasitoid whose development is characterized by a prolonged embryonic stage, and which lacks a larval form during its host embryogenesis. We have analyzed the behavior and fate of C. floridanum embryos co-cultured with their host embryo in vitro. Here, we show that the morula-stage embryo of C. floridanum actively invades the host embryo. Histological analyses have demonstrated that C. floridanum embryonic invasion is associated with adherent junction to host cells rather than causing an obvious wound on the host cells. These findings provide a novel case of embryonic invasion into a phylogenetically distant host embryo, ensuring cellular compatibility with host tissues.     

Boring by Macro-organisms in the Coral Montastrea annularis on Barbados Reefs

The fauna boring into Montastrea annularis includes sponges, bivalves, sipunculid and polychaete worms and barnacles. Sponges are most important in hard tissue destruction and account for more than 90% of the total boring in most heads. Bivalves and barnacles are locally important. Sipunculids and sabellids account for less than 4% of the total boring. The volume removed from coral samples by boring ranged from 3–60% and samples from a deeper bank reef were more highly bored than fringing reef samples. An average of 20% of the volume of bank reef corals, and 5% of the volume of fringing reef corals, was removed by boring. The distribution of individual borers is not a function of depth. The density and variety of borers and the extent of boring in coral heads is greater in older heads. The ratio of living coral surface to dead encrusted areas on colonies also influences borer density and the extent of boring.     

The photoprotein pholasin as a luminescence substrate for detection of superoxide anion radicals and myeloperoxidase activity in stimulated neutrophils

Pholasin, the photoprotein of the common piddock Pholas dactylus, emits an intense luminescence upon oxidation. The contribution of superoxide anion radicals and myeloperoxidase (MPO) to Pholasin luminescence in stimulated neutrophils was investigated. Data on Pholasin luminescence were compared with results of superoxide anion radical generation detected by the cytochrome c test as well as with the release of elastase and MPO. In N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (fMLP) stimulated neutrophils, most of the luminescence is caused by superoxide anion radicals, whereas MPO shows only a small effect as shown by coincubation with superoxide dismutase (SOD) as well as potassium cyanide (KCN), an inhibitor of MPO. However, both, O₂^- and MPO contribute to light emission in fMLP/cytochalasin B and phorbol myristoyl acetate (PMA) stimulated cells. Thus, the kinetics of O₂^- generation and MPO release can be very well detected by Pholasin luminescence in stimulated neutrophils.

Degranulation of azurophilic granules was assessed using an ELISA test kit for released MPO or detection of elastase activity with MeO-Suc-Ala-Ala-Pro-Val-p-nitroanilide in the supernatant of stimulated cells. Both approaches revealed concurrently similar results concerning the amount and kinetics of enzyme release with data of Pholasin luminescence. Both, cytochrome c measurements and Pholasin luminescence indicate that fMLP/cytochalasin B and PMA stimulated neutrophils produce more O₂^- than fMLP stimulated cells. Thus, Pholasin luminescence can be used to detect, sensitively and specifically, O₂^- production and MPO release from stimulated neutrophils.     

Community‐wide impacts of herbivore‐induced plant regrowth on arthropods in a multi‐willow species system

It has been widely accepted that herbivory induces morphological, phenological, and chemical changes in a wide variety of terrestrial plants. There is an increasing appreciation that herbivore‐induced plant responses affect the performance and abundance of other arthropods. However, we still have a poor understanding of the effects of induced plant responses on community structures of arthropods. We examined the community‐level effects of willow regrowth in response to damage by larvae of swift moth Endoclita excrescence (Lepidoptera: Hepialidae) on herbivorous and predaceous arthropods on three willow species, Salix gilgiana, S. eriocarpa and S. serissaefolia. The leaves of sprouting lateral shoots induced by moth‐boring had a low C:N ratio. The overall abundance and species richness of herbivorous insects on the lateral shoots were increased on all three willow species. Densities of specialist chewers and sap‐feeders, and leaf miners increased on the newly emerged lateral shoots. In contrast, the densities of generalist chewers and sap‐feeders, and gall makers did not increase. Furthermore, ant and spider densities, and the overall abundance and species richness of predaceous arthropods increased on the lateral shoots on S. gilgiana and S. eriocarpa, but not S. serissaefolia. In addition to finding that effects of moth‐boring on arthropod abundance and species richness varied among willow species, we also found that moth‐boring, willow species, and their interaction differentially affected community composition. Our findings suggest that moth‐boring has community‐wide impacts on arthropod assemblages across three trophic levels via induced shoot regrowth and increase arthropod species diversity in this three willow species system.