No Cover Image

E-Thesis 638 views 172 downloads

The potential competitive impact of the climate change indicator Montagu’s crab (Xantho hydrophilus Herbst, 1790) on juvenile edible crab (Cancer pagurus Linnaeus, 1758) / JOSEPH DOWLING

Swansea University Author: JOSEPH DOWLING

  • Dowling_Joseph_MRes_Thesis_Final_Redacted_Signature.pdf

    PDF | E-Thesis – open access

    Copyright: The author, Joseph P. Dowling, 2022.

    Download (1.62MB)

Abstract

Climate change is driving distribution shifts globally, and these shifting species can be considered indicators for the environment. The northward range expansion of Montagu’s crab Xantho hydrophilus, a shift recently observed along the southeast coast of the UK, has earned this Lusitanian xanthid t...

Full description

Published: Swansea 2022
Institution: Swansea University
Degree level: Master of Research
Degree name: MRes
Supervisor: Griffin, John N.
URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa61647
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
first_indexed 2022-10-24T13:37:53Z
last_indexed 2023-01-13T19:22:31Z
id cronfa61647
recordtype RisThesis
fullrecord <?xml version="1.0"?><rfc1807><datestamp>2022-10-24T15:25:19.3850182</datestamp><bib-version>v2</bib-version><id>61647</id><entry>2022-10-24</entry><title>The potential competitive impact of the climate change indicator Montagu&#x2019;s crab (Xantho hydrophilus Herbst, 1790) on juvenile edible crab (Cancer pagurus Linnaeus, 1758)</title><swanseaauthors><author><sid>d4f2da1676604d4e999c9952e07512c3</sid><firstname>JOSEPH</firstname><surname>DOWLING</surname><name>JOSEPH DOWLING</name><active>true</active><ethesisStudent>false</ethesisStudent></author></swanseaauthors><date>2022-10-24</date><abstract>Climate change is driving distribution shifts globally, and these shifting species can be considered indicators for the environment. The northward range expansion of Montagu&#x2019;s crab Xantho hydrophilus, a shift recently observed along the southeast coast of the UK, has earned this Lusitanian xanthid the climate change indicator tag. X. hydrophilus densely populates rocky, boulder-rich shores, in which it likely competes with other intertidal animals. Of those, other crabs occupying an overlapping niche are likely to be X. hydrophilus&#x2019; most significant competitors, including the commercially important edible crab C. pagurus. In this study, laboratory experiments testing interference competition for refuge and prey between adult X. hydrophilus and juvenile C. pagurus were conducted through multiple trial treatments, which incorporated various species, size and density combinations. By running these trials, I sought to test my hypotheses that the more robust X. hydrophilus would outcompete, overpower and displace C. pagurus. Interspecific concurrence interfered with foraging for both species, however X. hydrophilus dominated size-matched C. pagurus in agonistic interactions, and were only matched by considerably size-advantaged C. pagurus. X. hydrophilus were also overwhelmingly dominant at refuge retention and displacement versus C. pagurus, yet more tolerant of cohabitation, particularly with conspecifics. In contrast, C. pagurus were hyperaggressive versus conspecifics yet more passive and subordinate to X. hydrophilus, which was evident in both foraging and refuge trials. This study suggests that X. hydrophilus is not only a superior competitor to juvenile C. pagurus, but could potentially saturate rocky shore refuge due to high degrees of refuge dependency and conspecific tolerance. This could result in the exclusion of C. pagurus from its nursery habitat, culminating in population bottlenecks. However, the poorly understood X. hydrophilus requires further research in order to substantiate the conclusions of this study and impel consideration for active population monitoring.</abstract><type>E-Thesis</type><journal/><volume/><journalNumber/><paginationStart/><paginationEnd/><publisher/><placeOfPublication>Swansea</placeOfPublication><isbnPrint/><isbnElectronic/><issnPrint/><issnElectronic/><keywords>Cancer pagurus; Xantho hydrophilus; Climate change indicator; Distribution shift; Species interactions; Competition; Refuge; Intertidal zone</keywords><publishedDay>21</publishedDay><publishedMonth>10</publishedMonth><publishedYear>2022</publishedYear><publishedDate>2022-10-21</publishedDate><doi/><url/><notes/><college>COLLEGE NANME</college><CollegeCode>COLLEGE CODE</CollegeCode><institution>Swansea University</institution><supervisor>Griffin, John N.</supervisor><degreelevel>Master of Research</degreelevel><degreename>MRes</degreename><degreesponsorsfunders>Swansea University (BSD1001-115)</degreesponsorsfunders><apcterm/><funders/><projectreference/><lastEdited>2022-10-24T15:25:19.3850182</lastEdited><Created>2022-10-24T14:35:39.8283142</Created><path><level id="1">Faculty of Science and Engineering</level><level id="2">School of Biosciences, Geography and Physics - Biosciences</level></path><authors><author><firstname>JOSEPH</firstname><surname>DOWLING</surname><order>1</order></author></authors><documents><document><filename>61647__25565__0092905b55484b2aa00e991a667c4712.pdf</filename><originalFilename>Dowling_Joseph_MRes_Thesis_Final_Redacted_Signature.pdf</originalFilename><uploaded>2022-10-24T14:43:16.4506925</uploaded><type>Output</type><contentLength>1701932</contentLength><contentType>application/pdf</contentType><version>E-Thesis &#x2013; open access</version><cronfaStatus>true</cronfaStatus><documentNotes>Copyright: The author, Joseph P. Dowling, 2022.</documentNotes><copyrightCorrect>true</copyrightCorrect><language>eng</language></document></documents><OutputDurs/></rfc1807>
spelling 2022-10-24T15:25:19.3850182 v2 61647 2022-10-24 The potential competitive impact of the climate change indicator Montagu’s crab (Xantho hydrophilus Herbst, 1790) on juvenile edible crab (Cancer pagurus Linnaeus, 1758) d4f2da1676604d4e999c9952e07512c3 JOSEPH DOWLING JOSEPH DOWLING true false 2022-10-24 Climate change is driving distribution shifts globally, and these shifting species can be considered indicators for the environment. The northward range expansion of Montagu’s crab Xantho hydrophilus, a shift recently observed along the southeast coast of the UK, has earned this Lusitanian xanthid the climate change indicator tag. X. hydrophilus densely populates rocky, boulder-rich shores, in which it likely competes with other intertidal animals. Of those, other crabs occupying an overlapping niche are likely to be X. hydrophilus’ most significant competitors, including the commercially important edible crab C. pagurus. In this study, laboratory experiments testing interference competition for refuge and prey between adult X. hydrophilus and juvenile C. pagurus were conducted through multiple trial treatments, which incorporated various species, size and density combinations. By running these trials, I sought to test my hypotheses that the more robust X. hydrophilus would outcompete, overpower and displace C. pagurus. Interspecific concurrence interfered with foraging for both species, however X. hydrophilus dominated size-matched C. pagurus in agonistic interactions, and were only matched by considerably size-advantaged C. pagurus. X. hydrophilus were also overwhelmingly dominant at refuge retention and displacement versus C. pagurus, yet more tolerant of cohabitation, particularly with conspecifics. In contrast, C. pagurus were hyperaggressive versus conspecifics yet more passive and subordinate to X. hydrophilus, which was evident in both foraging and refuge trials. This study suggests that X. hydrophilus is not only a superior competitor to juvenile C. pagurus, but could potentially saturate rocky shore refuge due to high degrees of refuge dependency and conspecific tolerance. This could result in the exclusion of C. pagurus from its nursery habitat, culminating in population bottlenecks. However, the poorly understood X. hydrophilus requires further research in order to substantiate the conclusions of this study and impel consideration for active population monitoring. E-Thesis Swansea Cancer pagurus; Xantho hydrophilus; Climate change indicator; Distribution shift; Species interactions; Competition; Refuge; Intertidal zone 21 10 2022 2022-10-21 COLLEGE NANME COLLEGE CODE Swansea University Griffin, John N. Master of Research MRes Swansea University (BSD1001-115) 2022-10-24T15:25:19.3850182 2022-10-24T14:35:39.8283142 Faculty of Science and Engineering School of Biosciences, Geography and Physics - Biosciences JOSEPH DOWLING 1 61647__25565__0092905b55484b2aa00e991a667c4712.pdf Dowling_Joseph_MRes_Thesis_Final_Redacted_Signature.pdf 2022-10-24T14:43:16.4506925 Output 1701932 application/pdf E-Thesis – open access true Copyright: The author, Joseph P. Dowling, 2022. true eng
title The potential competitive impact of the climate change indicator Montagu’s crab (Xantho hydrophilus Herbst, 1790) on juvenile edible crab (Cancer pagurus Linnaeus, 1758)
spellingShingle The potential competitive impact of the climate change indicator Montagu’s crab (Xantho hydrophilus Herbst, 1790) on juvenile edible crab (Cancer pagurus Linnaeus, 1758)
JOSEPH DOWLING
title_short The potential competitive impact of the climate change indicator Montagu’s crab (Xantho hydrophilus Herbst, 1790) on juvenile edible crab (Cancer pagurus Linnaeus, 1758)
title_full The potential competitive impact of the climate change indicator Montagu’s crab (Xantho hydrophilus Herbst, 1790) on juvenile edible crab (Cancer pagurus Linnaeus, 1758)
title_fullStr The potential competitive impact of the climate change indicator Montagu’s crab (Xantho hydrophilus Herbst, 1790) on juvenile edible crab (Cancer pagurus Linnaeus, 1758)
title_full_unstemmed The potential competitive impact of the climate change indicator Montagu’s crab (Xantho hydrophilus Herbst, 1790) on juvenile edible crab (Cancer pagurus Linnaeus, 1758)
title_sort The potential competitive impact of the climate change indicator Montagu’s crab (Xantho hydrophilus Herbst, 1790) on juvenile edible crab (Cancer pagurus Linnaeus, 1758)
author_id_str_mv d4f2da1676604d4e999c9952e07512c3
author_id_fullname_str_mv d4f2da1676604d4e999c9952e07512c3_***_JOSEPH DOWLING
author JOSEPH DOWLING
author2 JOSEPH DOWLING
format E-Thesis
publishDate 2022
institution Swansea University
college_str Faculty of Science and Engineering
hierarchytype
hierarchy_top_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
department_str School of Biosciences, Geography and Physics - Biosciences{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Science and Engineering{{{_:::_}}}School of Biosciences, Geography and Physics - Biosciences
document_store_str 1
active_str 0
description Climate change is driving distribution shifts globally, and these shifting species can be considered indicators for the environment. The northward range expansion of Montagu’s crab Xantho hydrophilus, a shift recently observed along the southeast coast of the UK, has earned this Lusitanian xanthid the climate change indicator tag. X. hydrophilus densely populates rocky, boulder-rich shores, in which it likely competes with other intertidal animals. Of those, other crabs occupying an overlapping niche are likely to be X. hydrophilus’ most significant competitors, including the commercially important edible crab C. pagurus. In this study, laboratory experiments testing interference competition for refuge and prey between adult X. hydrophilus and juvenile C. pagurus were conducted through multiple trial treatments, which incorporated various species, size and density combinations. By running these trials, I sought to test my hypotheses that the more robust X. hydrophilus would outcompete, overpower and displace C. pagurus. Interspecific concurrence interfered with foraging for both species, however X. hydrophilus dominated size-matched C. pagurus in agonistic interactions, and were only matched by considerably size-advantaged C. pagurus. X. hydrophilus were also overwhelmingly dominant at refuge retention and displacement versus C. pagurus, yet more tolerant of cohabitation, particularly with conspecifics. In contrast, C. pagurus were hyperaggressive versus conspecifics yet more passive and subordinate to X. hydrophilus, which was evident in both foraging and refuge trials. This study suggests that X. hydrophilus is not only a superior competitor to juvenile C. pagurus, but could potentially saturate rocky shore refuge due to high degrees of refuge dependency and conspecific tolerance. This could result in the exclusion of C. pagurus from its nursery habitat, culminating in population bottlenecks. However, the poorly understood X. hydrophilus requires further research in order to substantiate the conclusions of this study and impel consideration for active population monitoring.
published_date 2022-10-21T04:20:37Z
_version_ 1763754363951513600
score 11.036553

Similar Items