Collaborative Research: Initiation and Maintenance of Population Maxima of the Ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi in Northern Coastal Waters

合作研究：北部沿海水域栉水母 Mnemiopsis leidyi 种群数量最大值的启动和维持

• 批准号: 0116236
• 负责人: John Costello
• 金额: $ 24.37万
• 依托单位: Providence College
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2001
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2001-09-01 至 2005-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0116236&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Initiation; Maintenance; Population

Initiation and Maintenance of Population Maxima of the Ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi in Northern Coastal WatersSubstantial increases in peak concentrations of the ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi have occurred in the last decade in Narragansett Bay, an estuary at the northern boundary of the geographic distribution of this species. The seasonal timing of Mnemiopsis pulses has also shifted from late summer to early spring during years with earlier warming of bay water temperatures. Significant ecological consequences of this temporal introduction are potentially great. Mnemiopsis is now abundant during the peak period of fish spawning in the region. Severely depleted stocks of zooplankton have been observed in spring and summer of 2000. Similar changes in seasonality and abundance of the species are likely to be occurring in other estuaries in the northeast. Despite the clear ecological importance of large pulses of ctenophores, the quantitative basis for understanding conditions giving rise to rapid population increases is limited. While temperature and food supply must ultimately be dominant variables controlling growth and reproduction of this species, there is little information about reproduction of over-wintering populations or conditionswhich favor growth of larvae in spring. In this study the investigators will conduct field and laboratory studies of Mnemiopsis over the full annual cycle to determine effects of temperature, food supply and food quality on reproductive rates and larval growth. The role of microzooplankton, addressed in only two previous laboratory studies will be fully addressed in both field and laboratory components. Areas of Narragansett Bay which have recently been observed to sustain unexpectedly large population of Mnemiopsis in winter, as well as areas in which populations pulses are delayed until spring will be compared. Hydrographic data will be collected and examined for both direct and indirect effects of physical factors on population growth, including the role of thermal stratification in population pulse initiation. Given the evidence for disruptive effects on ecosystems of seasonal or geographic invasions of Mnemiopis leidyi and the limited number of studies of this species at the northern edge of its geographic range, justification for this study is compelling. Quantitative information on the influence of temperature and food on both larval and adult M. leidyi at the level of detail collected in this study will significantly advance our understanding of factors required for initiation and maintenance of population pulses of this species.

北方沿海水域中栉水母Mnemiopsis leidyi种群最大值的形成和维持在过去的十年中，在该物种地理分布的北方边界的纳拉甘塞特湾，栉水母Mnemiopsis leidyi的峰值浓度发生了显著增加。在海湾水温较早变暖的年份，拟记忆花脉冲的季节性时间也从夏末转移到早春。这种暂时的引进的重大生态后果是潜在的巨大的。现在，在该地区鱼类产卵的高峰期，Mnemiopsis非常丰富。在2000年春季和夏季，浮游动物种群已严重枯竭。类似的季节性和物种丰富度的变化很可能发生在东北部的其他河口。尽管大脉冲的栉水母的明显的生态重要性，理解条件引起的人口迅速增长的定量基础是有限的。虽然温度和食物供应最终必须是控制该物种的生长和繁殖的主导变量，但关于越冬种群的繁殖或有利于春季幼虫生长的条件的信息很少。 在这项研究中，研究人员将在整个年度周期内进行Mnemiopsis的实地和实验室研究，以确定温度，食物供应和食物质量对繁殖率和幼虫生长的影响。微型浮游动物的作用，解决只有两个以前的实验室研究将在现场和实验室组件充分解决。纳拉甘塞特湾的地区，最近被观察到在冬季维持意外的大人口Mnemiopsis，以及人口脉冲延迟到春天的地区将进行比较。将收集水文数据，并审查物理因素对种群增长的直接和间接影响，包括温度分层在种群脉冲启动中的作用。鉴于对生态系统的破坏性影响的证据Mnemiopis leidyi的季节性或地理入侵和有限数量的研究，这个物种在其地理范围的北方边缘，这项研究的理由是令人信服的。温度和食物对幼虫和成虫影响的定量信息。leidyi在这项研究中收集的细节水平将显着推进我们对该物种种群脉冲启动和维持所需因素的理解。