The feeding ecology and microbiome of the pteropod Limacina helicina antarctica

The pteropod (pelagic snail) Limacina helicina antarctica is a dominant grazer alongthe Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) and plays an important role in regional food web dynamics and biogeochemical cycling. For the first time, we examined the gut microbiome and feeding ecology of L. h. antarctica b...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Thibodeau, Patricia S., Song, Bongkeun, Moreno, Carly M., Steinberg, Deborah K.
Format: Text
Language:unknown
Published: W&M ScholarWorks 2022
Subjects:
Zooplankton
Gut microbiome
Southern Ocean
Diatom
Dinoflagellate
Mollicutes bacteria
Biological Sciences Peer-Reviewed Articles
Marine Biology
Antarctic
Antarctic Peninsula
Austral
Antarc*
Antarctica
Limacina helicina
Online Access:https://scholarworks.wm.edu/vimsarticles/2270
https://doi.org/10.3354/ame01981;
https://scholarworks.wm.edu/context/vimsarticles/article/3271/viewcontent/Thibodeau_AME_2022.pdf
https://scholarworks.wm.edu/context/vimsarticles/article/3271/filename/0/type/additional/viewcontent/Thibodeau_Supplement_.pdf
Description
Summary:The pteropod (pelagic snail) Limacina helicina antarctica is a dominant grazer alongthe Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) and plays an important role in regional food web dynamics and biogeochemical cycling. For the first time, we examined the gut microbiome and feeding ecology of L. h. antarctica based on 16S and 18S rRNA gene sequences of gut contents in the WAP during austral summer. Eukaryotic gut contents of L. h. antarctica indicate that this species predominantly feeds on diatoms and dinoflagellates, supplementing its diet with ciliates and foraminifera. Mollicutes bacteria were a consistent component of the gut microbiome. Determining the gut microbiome and feeding ecology of L. h.antarctica aids in identifying the underlying mechanisms controlling pteropod abundance and distribution in a region of rapid environmental change.

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