Element ratio (Sr/Ca, Ba/Ca, B/Ca, and Mg/Ca) profiles throughout the larval life stage of Mytilus edulis, 2011 ...

• Main Authors: Dawber, Caroline F, Branson, O, Elderfield, Henry, Harper, Elizabeth M, Greaves, Mervyn, Gazeau, Frédéric, Gattuso, Jean-Pierre, Middelburg, Jack J
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: PANGAEA 2011
• Subjects: Species; Sample ID; Calcium; Boron/Calcium ratio; Magnesium/Calcium ratio; Strontium/Calcium ratio; Barium/Calcium ratio; Mytilus edulis, weight, shell; Inductively coupled plasma-quadrupole-mass spectrometry; European Project on Ocean Acidification EPOCA; Ocean acidification
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.1594/pangaea.769719; https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.769719

Rising anthropogenic CO2 in the surface ocean has raised serious concerns for the ability of calcifying organisms to secrete their shells and skeletons. Previous mollusc carbonate perturbation experiments report deleterious effects at lowered pH (7.8-7.4 pH units), including reduced shell length and thickness and deformed shell morphology. It is not clear whether the reduced shell growth results from a decrease in calcification rate due to lowered aragonite saturation or from an indirect effect on mollusc metabolism. We take a novel approach to discerning between these two processes by examining the impact of lowered pH on the 'vital-effect' associated with element ratios. Reported herein are the first element ratio (Sr/Ca, Ba/Ca, B/Ca, Mg/Ca and Mn/Ca) profiles throughout the larval life stage of Mytilus edulis. Element ratio data for individuals reared in ambient conditions provide new insights into biomineralization during larval development. Sr/Ca ratios are consistent with Sr incorporation in the ...