Tumidotheres maculatus

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Tumidotheres maculatus
Scientific classification
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T. maculatus
Binomial name
Tumidotheres maculatus
(Say, 1818)
Synonyms   [1]
  • Cancer parasiticusLinnaeus, 1763
  • Cancer pinnophylaxLinnaeus, 1767
  • Pinnotheres maculatusSay, 1818

Tumidotheres maculatus is a species of crab that lives commensally or parasitically in the mantle cavity of molluscs. It is found along much of the western Atlantic Ocean and was first described by Thomas Say in 1818.

Contents

Distribution

Tumidotheres maculatus has a wide range in the western Atlantic Ocean, extending from the seas of Martha's Vineyard (United States) to San Matías Gulf (Argentina). [1]

Description

There is conspicuous sexual dimorphism in T. maculatus which corresponds with the differing ecology of the two sexes. Males are typically less than 6 millimetres (0.24 in) in carapace width, and are able to leave the host. Females grow up to 16 mm (0.63 in) wide, [2] and, having reached adulthood, spend their entire lives in the host. [3]

Ecology

Tumidotheres maculatus is an endosymbiont of molluscs; it is unclear whether the host is harmed by the crabs presence, that is whether the relationship is commensal or parasitic. [3] It is associated with a wide range of mollusc hosts, most of which are bivalves. They include Argopecten irradians , Atrina rigida , Modiolus americanus , Mytilus edulis [3] and Flexopecten felipponei . [4] It has also been found in a tunicate of the genus Molgula , in the tubes of the tubeworm Chaetopterus variopedatus and on the asteroid (starfish) Asterias rubens . [5]

In molluscan hosts, T. maculatus uses its legs to cling to the gills of its host, and feeds on strands of food aggregated by the host. [3] Reported rates of infestation of T. maculatus on mollusc hosts vary widely, from 0%–20% on Argopecten irradians at St. Joseph Bay, Florida, to 97.6% on Mytilus edulis at Quicks Hole, Massachusetts. [3]

Taxonomy

Tumidotheres maculatus was first described by Thomas Say in 1818, under the name Pinnotheres maculatus. It was transferred to the new genus Tumidotheres , alongside T. margarita by Ernesto Campos in 1989. [6] It may be the species referred to by Carl Linnaeus as Cancer parasiticus in his 1763 work Centuria Insectorum , and the one he called Cancer pinnophylax in the 1767 12th edition of Systema Naturae . [7]

Related Research Articles

Shellfish Culinary and fisheries term for exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates

Shellfish is a colloquial and fisheries term for exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates used as food, including various species of molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish are harvested from saltwater environments, some are found in freshwater. In addition, a few species of land crabs are eaten, for example Cardisoma guanhumi in the Caribbean. Shellfish are among the most common food allergens.

Bivalvia Class of molluscs

Bivalvia, in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class of marine and freshwater molluscs that have laterally compressed bodies enclosed by a shell consisting of two hinged parts. Bivalves as a group have no head and they lack some usual molluscan organs like the radula and the odontophore. They include the clams, oysters, cockles, mussels, scallops, and numerous other families that live in saltwater, as well as a number of families that live in freshwater. The majority are filter feeders. The gills have evolved into ctenidia, specialised organs for feeding and breathing. Most bivalves bury themselves in sediment where they are relatively safe from predation. Others lie on the sea floor or attach themselves to rocks or other hard surfaces. Some bivalves, such as the scallops and file shells, can swim. The shipworms bore into wood, clay, or stone and live inside these substances.

Scallop Common name for several shellfish, many edible

Scallop is a common name that is primarily applied to any one of numerous species of saltwater clams or marine bivalve mollusks in the taxonomic family Pectinidae, the scallops. However, the common name "scallop" is also sometimes applied to species in other closely related families within the superfamily Pectinoidea, which also includes the thorny oysters.

New Zealand pea crab Species of crab

The New Zealand pea crab, Nepinnotheres novaezelandiae, is a small, parasitic crab that lives most commonly inside New Zealand green-lipped mussels. Adult females are about the size and shape of a pea, while adult males are smaller and flatter. Adult New Zealand pea crabs are completely reliant on their host mussel for shelter and food, which it steals from the mussel's gills. The New Zealand pea crab is found throughout New Zealand and can infect up to 70% of natural populations. These crabs are of concern to green-lipped mussel aquaculture because they reduce the size and growth of mussels, although infected mussels can be harvested and consumed.

Blue mussel Species of mollusc

The blue mussel, also known as the common mussel, is a medium-sized edible marine bivalve mollusc in the family Mytilidae, the mussels. Blue mussels are subject to commercial use and intensive aquaculture. A species with a large range, empty shells are commonly found on beaches around the world.

<i>Cancer pagurus</i> species of crustacean

Cancer pagurus, commonly known as the edible crab or brown crab, is a species of crab found in the North Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, and perhaps the Mediterranean Sea. It is a robust crab of a reddish-brown colour, having an oval carapace with a characteristic "pie crust" edge and black tips to the claws. A mature adult may have a carapace width up to 25 cm (10 in) and weigh up to 3 kg (6.6 lb). C. pagurus is a nocturnal predator, targeting a range of molluscs and crustaceans. It is the subject of the largest crab fishery in Western Europe, centred on the coasts of the British Isles, with more than 60,000 tonnes caught annually.

<i>Carcinus maenas</i> Species of crab

Carcinus maenas is a common littoral crab. It is known by different names around the world. In the British Isles, it is generally referred to as the shore crab, or green shore crab. In North America and South Africa, it bears the name green crab or European green crab. In Australia and New Zealand, it is referred to as either the European green crab or European shore crab.

<i>Carcinus</i> Genus of crabs

Carcinus is a genus of crabs, which includes Carcinus maenas, an important invasive species, and C. aestuarii, a species endemic to the Mediterranean Sea.

Pea crab Species of crab

The pea crab, Pinnotheres pisum, is a small crab in the family Pinnotheridae that lives as a parasite in oysters, clams, mussels, and other species of bivalves.

Oyster crab Species of crab

The oyster crab is a small, whitish or translucent crab in the family Pinnotheridae.

Chilean mussel Species of bivalve

The Chilean mussel or Chilean blue mussel is a species of blue mussel native to the coasts of Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, the Falkland Islands and the Kerguelen islands. In the scientific literature, it has also been referred to as Southern Mytilus edulis, or Mytilus edulis platensis, or Mytilus chilensis.

<i>Argopecten irradians</i> Species of bivalve

Argopecten irradians, formerly classified as Aequipecten irradians, common names Atlantic bay scallop or bay scallop, is a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Pectinidae, a species of scallop. An edible saltwater clam, it is native to the northwest Atlantic from Cape Cod to the Gulf of Mexico.

Scallop aquaculture Commercial activity of cultivating (farming) scallops

Scallop aquaculture is the commercial activity of cultivating (farming) scallops until they reach a marketable size and can be sold as a consumer product. Wild juvenile scallops, or spat, were collected for growing in Japan as early as 1934. The first attempts to fully cultivate scallops in farm environments were not recorded until the 1950s and 1960s. Traditionally, fishing for wild scallops has been the preferred practice, since farming can be expensive. However worldwide declines in wild scallop populations have resulted in the growth of aquaculture. Globally the scallop aquaculture industry is now well established, with a reported annual production totalling over 1,200,000 metric tonnes from about 12 species. China and Japan account for about 90% of the reported production.

San Matías Gulf Bay in Argentina

The San Matias Gulf is an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Patagonia, Argentina. It is bordered by the Río Negro Province to the north and west, and the Valdes Peninsula of the Chubut Province to the south. It is "one of the largest gulfs in the Patagonia region". The gulf is surrounded by plateaus and depressions below sea level similar to the gulf itself but that are not flooded by the sea at present.

<i>Ostrea equestris</i> Species of bivalve

Ostrea equestris, commonly known as the crested oyster or horse oyster, is a species of bivalve mollusc in the family Ostreidae. It can be found along the Atlantic coast of North and South America, ranging from Virginia to Patagonia.

Nematopsis (Nee-mah-top-cis) is a genus gregarine Apicomplexan of the family Porosporidae. It is an aquatic parasite of crustaceans with a molluscan intermediate host. Nematopsis has been distinguished from the similar genus Porospora by its resistant and encapsulated oocyst. Little molecular biology has been performed on the members of the Nemaptosis and species are described based on molluscan and crustacean hosts as well as oocyst structure. A total of 38 species have been described and are found all over the world.

<i>Tunicotheres</i> Genus of crabs

Tunicotheres is a monotypic genus of crabs in the family Pinnotheridae, and Tunicotheres moseri is the only species in the genus. This crab lives commensally in the atrial chamber of a small ascidian. It is found in the tropical western Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.

Calyptraeotheres garthi is a species of pea crab in the family Pinnotheridae. It is found in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean and is a parasitic castrator of the slipper limpet Crepidula cachimilla.

References

  1. 1 2 Peter Davie (2010). "Tumidotheres maculatus (Say, 1818)". World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved March 7, 2011.
  2. Maite Andrea Narvarte & María Natalia Saiz (2004). "Effects of the pinnotherid crab Tumidotheres maculatus on the Tehuelche scallop Aequipecten tehuelchus in the San Matías Gulf, Argentina". Fisheries Research . 67 (2): 207–214. doi:10.1016/j.fishres.2003.09.041.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Karen Kane & Gregory S. Farley (2006). "Body size of the endosymbiotic pea crab Tumidotheres maculatus: larger hosts hold larger crabs" (PDF). Gulf and Caribbean Research. 18: 27–33.
  4. Florencia Cremonte; Antonio Figueras & Eugene M. Burreson (2005). "A histopathological survey of some commercially exploited bivalve molluscs in northern Patagonia, Argentina". Aquaculture . 249 (1–4): 23–33. doi:10.1016/j.aquaculture.2005.01.024.
  5. Laura Schejter & Claudia S. Bremec (2007). "Epibionts on Flexopecten felipponei (Dall, 1922), an uncommon scallop from Argentina". American Malacological Bulletin . 22 (1): 75–82. doi:10.4003/0740-2783-22.1.75. hdl: 1834/1815 .
  6. Ernesto Campos (1989). "Tumidotheres, a new genus for Pinnotheres margarita Smith, 1869, and Pinnotheres maculatus Say, 1818 (Brachyura: Pinnotheridae)". Journal of Crustacean Biology . 9 (4): 672–679. doi:10.1163/193724089x00674. JSTOR   1548597.
  7. Peter K. L. Ng; Danièle Guinot & Peter J. F. Davie (2008). "Systema Brachyurorum: Part I. An annotated checklist of extant Brachyuran crabs of the world" (PDF). Raffles Bulletin of Zoology . 17: 1–286.