Ocean Acidification Affects Larval and Juvenile Growth in the Olympia Oyster, Ostrea lurida
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Authors
Forsch, Margaux Alexandria
Issue Date
2010
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
Increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide has led to a reduction in ocean pH and
carbonate saturation, making it difficult for many calcifying marine organisms to secrete
their shells. We investigated the effects of.ocean acidification on larval and juvenile
growth in the native West Coast Olympia oyster (Ostrea lurida). Adult oysters were
collected from an estuary in Tomales Bay, California known to have a native population
of O. lurida. Larvae and juveniles from four independent parental groups were reared in
the laboratory under three carbon dioxide concentrations (380,540, and 970 ppm)
representing present-day atmospheric concentrations and two projected scenarios for the
year 2100. Oysters were exposed to treatment conditions continuously for 19 days,
encompassing larval release and development, followed by settlement and early juvenile
life. After nine days of exposure, larvae in the .970 ppm treatment (pH = 7.78) had grown
16% less in shell area than larvae held under control conditions at 380 ppm (pH = 7.99).
These effects continued into the benthic phase; shell size at settlement was 7% smaller in
the 970 ppm treatment than in control conditions. Moreover, the magnitude of these
negative effects increased during the early juvenile phase; eight days after settlement,
juveniles in the 970 ppm treatment. had grown 41 % less in shell size than juveniles held
under control conditions. There was significant variation in growth among parental
groups only on day five of the experiment. Thereafter, there was no evidence of
intraspecific growth variation in response to the C02 treatments. Because larval and
juvenile phases can be critical population bottlenecks for oysters and other marine
invertebrates, our results strongly suggest that the Olympia oyster may be particularly
vulnerable to the effects of ocean acidification.
Description
iv, 27 p.
Citation
Publisher
Kalamazoo College
License
U.S. copyright laws protect this material. Commercial use or distribution of this material is not permitted without prior written permission of the copyright holder.