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Citizen science via social media revealed conditions of symbiosis between a marine gastropod and an epibiotic alga.

ABSTRACT: Environmental factors promote symbiosis, but its mechanism is not yet well understood. The alga Pseudocladophora conchopheria grows only on the shell of an intertidal gastropod Lunella correensis, and these species have a close symbiotic relationship which the alga reduces heat stress of the gastropod. In collaboration with general public, we investigated how environmental conditions alter the symbiotic interaction between the alga and the gastropod. Information about the habitats of each gastropod and images of shells was obtained from the Japanese and Korean coasts via social media. We constructed the hierarchical Bayesian model using the data. The results indicated that the proportion of shell area covered by P. conchopheria increased as the substrate size utilized by the gastropod increased. Meanwhile, temperature did not affect the proportion of P. conchopheria on the shell. These suggested that the alga provides no benefits for the gastropod on small substrates because gastropod can reduce the heat stress by diving into the small sediment. Further, the gastropod's cost incurred by growing the alga on the shell seems to be low as the algae can grow even in cooler places where no benefits of heat resistance for gastropods. Different environments can yield variable conditions in symbiosis.

SUBMITTER: Kagawa O

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7665050 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Citizen science via social media revealed conditions of symbiosis between a marine gastropod and an epibiotic alga.

Kagawa Osamu O Uchida Shota S Yamazaki Daishi D Osawa Yumiko Y Ito Shun S Chiba Satoshi S

Scientific reports 20201112 1

Environmental factors promote symbiosis, but its mechanism is not yet well understood. The alga Pseudocladophora conchopheria grows only on the shell of an intertidal gastropod Lunella correensis, and these species have a close symbiotic relationship which the alga reduces heat stress of the gastropod. In collaboration with general public, we investigated how environmental conditions alter the symbiotic interaction between the alga and the gastropod. Information about the habitats of each gastro ...[more]

PMID: 33184315

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Project description:Background:Citizen science is increasingly popular and has the potential to collect extensive datasets at lower costs than traditional surveys conducted by professional scientists. Ferries have been used to collect data on cetacean populations for decades, providing long-term time series for monitoring of cetacean populations. One cetacean species of concern is the common dolphin, which has been found stranded around the north-east Atlantic in recent years, with high numbers on French coasts being attributed to fisheries bycatch. We estimate common dolphin densities in the north-east Atlantic and investigate the ability of citizen science data to identify changes in marine mammal densities and areas of importance. Materials and Methods:Data were collected by citizen scientists on ferries between April and October in 2006-2017. Common dolphin sightings data from two ferry routes across three regions, Bay of Biscay (n = 569); south-west United Kingdom to the Isles of Scilly in the Celtic Sea (n = 260); and English Channel (n = 75), were used to estimate density across ferry routes. Two-stage Density Surface Models accounted for imperfect detection, and tested the influence of environmental (chlorophyll a, sea surface temperature, depth, and slope), spatial (latitude and longitude) and temporal terms (year and Julian day) on occurrence. Results:Overall detection probability was highest in the areas sampled within the English Channel (0.384) and Bay of Biscay (0.348), and lowest on the Scilly's route (0.158). Common dolphins were estimated to occur in higher densities on the Scilly's route (0.400 per km2) and the Bay of Biscay (0.319 per km2), with low densities in the English Channel (0.025 per km2). Densities on the Scilly's route appear to have been relatively stable since 2006 with a slight decrease in 2017. Densities peaked in the Bay of Biscay in 2013 with lower numbers since. Densities in the English Channel appear to have increased over time since 2009. Discussion:This study highlights the effectiveness of citizen science data to investigate the distribution and density of cetaceans. The densities and temporal changes shown by this study are representative of those from wider-ranging robust estimates. We highlight the ability of citizen science to collect data over extensive periods of time which complements dedicated, designed surveys. Such long-term data are important to identify changes within a population; however, citizen science data may, in some situations, present challenges. We provide recommendations to ensure high-quality data which can be used to inform management and conservation of cetacean populations.

Dataset Information

Citizen science via social media revealed conditions of symbiosis between a marine gastropod and an epibiotic alga.

Publications

Citizen science via social media revealed conditions of symbiosis between a marine gastropod and an epibiotic alga.

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