Population characteristics and predation rates of the dominant soft-bodied and durophagous predators on temperate intertidal shores

Abstract

Substantial research exists on predation and its ecology. Most research has focused on durophagous fishes, brachyuran crabs, and lobsters. Data are lacking, however, on soft-bodied predators like anemones, and their contribution to overall levels of predation remains largely unevaluated. Here, we compared predation rates of the durophagous predator, the crab C. maenas and the soft-bodied predator, the anemone Actinia equina on 15 intertidal shores around Anglesey, north Wales, UK. We employed a novel approach to assess predation based on measuring faecal output from recently collected individuals and converting it to food consumed using absorption efficiencies (AEs) measured using potential prey species inhabiting the same shores. Anemone mean abundance was 8.21 (± 0.27, s.e.) individuals.m−2, whereas for C. maenas it was 0.23 (± 0.02, s.e.) individuals.m−2. AEs when fed mussel tissue, a polychaete worm, or a shrimp were 92.8–94.0% in C. maenas and 40.5–95.8% in A. equina. This difference in values reflected the different feeding modes of the two predators. Unexpectedly, A. equina consumed 3.5–7 times more prey than C. maenas. The consumption of larger amounts of prey by an anemone than the dominant durophagous predator has important consequences for calculating energy flows in food webs, understanding predation controls in assemblages, and potentially for wider predation trends.

Keywords

• predation
• predator/prey
• food web
• energy flow
• sessile
• benthic