Seawater carbonate chemistry and larval and early juvenile survival, molt-stage duration, and morphology of king crab

• Main Authors: Gravinese, Philip M, Perry, Shelby A, Spadaro, Angelo Jason, Boyd, Albert E, Enochs, I C
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: PANGAEA 2022
• Subjects: Alkalinity; total; standard deviation; Animalia; Aragonite saturation state; Arthropoda; Benthic animals; Benthos; Bicarbonate ion; Bottles or small containers/Aquaria (<20 L); 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; Coast and continental shelf; Development; Fugacity of carbon dioxide (water) at sea surface temperature (wet air); Identification; Laboratory experiment; Maguimithrax spinosissimus; Mortality/Survival; North Atlantic; Number of broods; OA-ICC; Ocean Acidification International Coordination Centre; Partial pressure of carbon dioxide; Partial pressure of carbon dioxide (water) at sea surface temperature (wet air); Pelagos; pH; Salinity; Single species; Species; unique identification; Stage; Ocean acidification
• Online Access: https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.950374; https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.950374

Coastal habitats are experiencing decreases in seawater pH and increases in temperature due to anthropogenic climate change. The Caribbean king crab, Maguimithrax spinosissimus, plays a vital role on Western Atlantic reefs by grazing macroalgae that competes for space with coral recruits. Therefore, identifying its tolerance to anthropogenic stressors is critically needed if this species is to be considered as a potential restoration management strategy in coral reef environments. We examined the effects of temperature (control: 28 °C and elevated: 31 °C) and pH (control: 8.0 and reduced pH: 7.7) on the king crab's larval and early juvenile survival, molt-stage duration, and morphology in a fully crossed laboratory experiment. Survival to the megalopal stage was reduced (13.5% lower) in the combined reduced pH and elevated temperature treatment relative to the control. First-stage (J1) juveniles delayed molting by 1.5 days in the reduced pH treatment, while second-stage (J2) crabs molted 3 days earlier when exposed to elevated temperature. Juvenile morphology did not differ among treatments. These results suggests that juvenile king crabs are tolerant to changes associated with climate change. Given the important role of the king crab as a grazer of macroalgae, its tolerance to climate stressors suggests that it could benefit restoration efforts aimed at making coral reefs more resilient to increasingly warm and acidic oceans into the future.