The diet of Limacina helicina (Phipps) was examined from in situ collections of adult individuals made during 2 cruises in Arctic waters. Zooplankton, consisting mainly of small copepods and juvenile L helicina, made up almost half of the mass of material found in digestive tracts of the 28 individuals examined. In contrast, these prey made up a much smaller fraction of the total mass of material in water samples and were only occasionally found as fragments in fecal pellets. A high percentage of diatoms appeared to pass intact through the guts of these pteropods. It appears that motile prey, including tintinnids, copepods, and juvenile L. helicina, are major constituents of the diet of adult L. helicina in midsummer in Arctic waters. This provides additional evidence that thecosome pteropods trap large, fast-moving prey in addition to feeding on fine suspended material.
Member of
Contributors
Publisher
Inter-Research Science Center
Date Issued
1991
Note
Language
Type
Genre
Extent
11 p.
Subject (Topical)
Identifier
3350861
Additional Information
The diet of Limacina helicina (Phipps) was examined from in situ collections of adult individuals made during 2 cruises in Arctic waters. Zooplankton, consisting mainly of small copepods and juvenile L helicina, made up almost half of the mass of material found in digestive tracts of the 28 individuals examined. In contrast, these prey made up a much smaller fraction of the total mass of material in water samples and were only occasionally found as fragments in fecal pellets. A high percentage of diatoms appeared to pass intact through the guts of these pteropods. It appears that motile prey, including tintinnids, copepods, and juvenile L. helicina, are major constituents of the diet of adult L. helicina in midsummer in Arctic waters. This provides additional evidence that thecosome pteropods trap large, fast-moving prey in addition to feeding on fine suspended material.
This manuscript is available at http://www.int-res.com/ and may be cited as: Gilmer, R. W., & Harbison, G. R. (1991). Diet of Limacina helicina (Gastropoda: Thecosomata) in Artic waters in midsummer. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 77, 125-134.
Florida Atlantic University. Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute contribution #792.
Date Backup
1991
Date Text
1991
Date Issued (EDTF)
1991
Extension
FAU
FAU
admin_unit="FAU01", ingest_id="ing13318", creator="creator:BCHANG", creation_date="2012-07-23 08:37:51", modified_by="super:FAUDIG", modification_date="2014-02-14 11:46:13"
IID
FADT3350861
Issuance
single unit
Organizations
Attributed name: Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute
Person Preferred Name
Gilmer, R. W.
creator
Physical Description
11 p.
Title Plain
Diet of Limacina helicina (Gastropoda: Thecosomata) in Artic waters in midsummer
Origin Information
Inter-Research Science Center
1991
single unit
Title
Diet of Limacina helicina (Gastropoda: Thecosomata) in Artic waters in midsummer
Other Title Info
Diet of Limacina helicina (Gastropoda: Thecosomata) in Artic waters in midsummer