Seawater carbonate chemistry and clearance rate, valve opening behaviour, byssus strength and shell characteristics of mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis

• Main Authors: Lassoued, Jihene, Padín, Xose Antonio, Comeau, Luc A, Bejaoui, Nejla, Pérez, Fiz F, Babarro, Jose M F
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: PANGAEA 2021
• Subjects: Alkalinity; total; standard error; Animalia; Aragonite saturation state; Behaviour; Benthic animals; Benthos; Bicarbonate ion; Bottles or small containers/Aquaria (<20 L); Byssus attachment strength; Calcite saturation state; Calculated using CO2SYS; Calculated using seacarb after Nisumaa et al. (2010); Carbon; inorganic; dissolved; Carbonate ion; Carbonate system computation flag; Carbon dioxide; Clearance rate per individual; Coast and continental shelf; Compression strength; Condition index; Experiment duration; Fugacity of carbon dioxide (water) at sea surface temperature (wet air); Growth/Morphology; Identification; Laboratory experiment; Mediterranean Sea; Mollusca; Mytilus galloprovincialis; North Atlantic; OA-ICC; Ocean Acidification International Coordination Centre; Organic matter; Origin; Other studied parameter or process; Partial pressure of carbon dioxide (water) at sea surface temperature (wet air); Ocean acidification
• Online Access: https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.931962; https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.931962

The impact of simulated seawater acidification and warming conditions on specimens of the mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis locally adapted to very distinct, widely separated sites in the Mediterranean Sea (Tunisia) and Atlantic Sea (Galicia, NW Spain) was evaluated in relation to key behavioral and eco-physiological parameters. Over the 2-month exposure to the experimental conditions, mussels were fed optimally to ensure that there are no synergistic interactions between climate change drivers and energetic status of the individuals. In general, regardless of origin (Atlantic or Mediterranean), the mussels were rather resilient to acidification for most of the parameters considered and they were able to grow in strongly acidified seawater through an increased feeding activity. However, shell strength decreased (40%) consistently in both mussel populations held in moderately and highly acidified seawater. The observed reduction in shell strength was not explained by slight alterations in organic matter, shell thickness or aragonite: calcite ratio. The combined effects of high acidification and warming on the key response of byssus strength caused a strong decline in mussel performance, although only in Galician mussels, in which the valve opening time decreased sharply as well as condition index (soft tissue state) and shell growth. By contrast, the observed negative effect of highly acidified scenario on the strength of Tunisian mussel shells was (partly but not totally) counterbalanced by the higher seawater temperature. Eco-physiological and behavioral interactions in mussels in relation to climate change are complex, and future scenarios for the ecology of the species and also the feasibility of cultivating them in Atlantic and Mediterranean zones are discussed.