Autochthonous production contributes to the diet of wood-boring invertebrates in temperate shallow water

Abstract

Marine wood-boring invertebrates rapidly fragment coarse woody debris in the sea. These wood borers have the ability to digest wood cellulose, but other potential food sources have been less investigated. To assess the contribution of each potential food source to the diet of wood borers, we traced seasonal and environmental changes in δ¹³C of shipworms cultured under the same experimental conditions and related these changes to variations in δ¹³C of potential food sources, i.e., wood log and particulate organic matter (POM) by using multiple linear regression models rather than the Bayesian mixing model. Based on the standardized partial regression coefficients in the model, it became clear that wood-derived organic carbon was the main carbon source for the teredinids, and POM also accounted for 37.9% of the teredinids' carbon source. Furthermore, we clarified variations in supplemental nitrogen sources for the teredinids: one species depended on both POM and wood log, whereas the other three species depended on either POM or wood log for their nitrogen source. δ¹³C values of another wood-boring bivalve of Martesia (Pholadidae) increase as it grows, which suggests that the bivalve switches its feeding strategy from xylophagous to filter feeding as it grows. Wood borers are known to accelerate the transfer of organic materials derived from wood logs to marine ecosystems. However, this study suggests that autochthonous production strongly contribute to the diet of marine wood borers, helping them to decompose wood logs in temperate shallow water.

Keywords: Model selection; Shipworm; Stable isotope; Wood decomposition; Wood fall.