Environment-specific shell shape variation in the boring mytilid Leiosolenus patagonicus

MÁRQUEZ, FEDERICO; FRIZZERA, ANTONELLA C.; VÁZQUEZ, NURIA

MARINE BIOLOGY RESEARCH

TAYLOR & FRANCIS AS

Año: 2017 vol. 13 p. 246 - 252

1745-1000

Environmental conditions induce phenotypic responses (behavioural, morphological andphysiological) in many marine species. The boring mytilid Leiosolenus patagonicus inhabitsdifferent types of substrata, such as sandstone intertidal and hard subtidal substrata (herecalled ?lifeless-substratum?) and shells of bivalve species (here called ?live-substratum?), wherethey are exposed to different restrictions in their growth. We used geometric morphometricmethods to compare the contour shell shapes from each type of substratum (live andlifeless) since we expected the body shape to differ between individuals from these differentsubstrata. The results showed that the shell shape depends on the type of substratum wherethe larvae recruit. The mean shell shapes of individuals from the live-substratum are moreslender than those of the individuals growing inside the lifeless-substratum. Individuals fromlive-substratum can adapt their phenotype depending on the oyster?s anti-parasitismresponses, while in lifeless-substratum they are able to build their own refuges.