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Larval supply is a limited determinant of settlement at mesoscales across an anthropogenic seascape

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Abstract

The relationship between larval supply and settlement is an integral part of the demographic processes of benthic marine organisms that determine their distribution at subsequent life stages. In ascidians, a strong positive relationship between larval supply and settlement has been previously documented, but only at small spatial scales (one location) and short time scales (less than one day). We investigated how this relationship might scale up by sampling larval abundance and settlement of a colonial ascidian (Botryllus schlosseri) across mesoscales (100 s of m) of the anthropogenic seascape of a 1.5-ha marina. Settlement varied vertically with a linear decrease in settlement with increasing depth. This pattern corresponded to the vertical distribution of larvae in the morning, when they were most abundant. However, larval abundance explained only 26% of the variation in settlement at the meso-spatial scale (i.e. the combined effect of the horizontal and vertical dimensions). This weakening of the relationship between larval supply and settlement suggests that the two processes may become decoupled at larger spatial and temporal scales. Our study underscores how changing the scales of sampling may affect our understanding of larval dispersal and settlement processes.

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Data availability

The data generated during the present study are available from the corresponding author upon request.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Leonardo Miranda and Caroline Potvin for their invaluable assistance in the field and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Québec-Océan, and Université Laval for financial and logistical support for the Canadian Aquatic Invasive Species Network II (CAISN II) within which this study was done. The management and users of the Ben Eoin Marina are gratefully acknowledged for granting us access to their floating docks and facilities. We are also thankful to Andrea Weise, Heather Hawk, Kathleen MacGregor, Filippo Ferrario, and Nathan Haag for logistical support and editorial feedback. We are grateful to the anonymous reviewers who have greatly improved this manuscript with their suggestions and comments.

Funding

This study was funded with the financial and in-kind support from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Canadian Aquatic Invasive Species Network II (CAISN II), Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Québec-Océan, and Université Laval.

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  1. Québec-Océan, Département de biologie, Université Laval, Québec, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada

    Kevin C. K. Ma & Ladd E. Johnson

  2. Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, 6139, Eastern Cape, South Africa

    Kevin C. K. Ma

  3. Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Institut Maurice-Lamontagne, Mont-Joli, QC, G5H 3Z4, Canada

    Christopher W. McKindsey

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Ma, K.C.K., McKindsey, C.W. & Johnson, L.E. Larval supply is a limited determinant of settlement at mesoscales across an anthropogenic seascape. Hydrobiologia 847, 4015–4029 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-020-04391-y

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