Arenicola marina (lugworms) are intertidal marine polychaete worms. Ecologically lugworms are responsible for increasing the permeability of the sand, sediment oxygenation and speeding up carbon cycling via the breakdown of buried organic matter. The worms themselves contain polyunsaturated fatty acids that are commercially important in the aquaculture of fin and shellfish. There is, however, some debate over the principal carbon source for the worms themselves. The aim was to investigate the bacterial dynamics in a polychaete worm growth mesocosm and determine the potential contribution of polyunsaturated fatty acid biosynthesis by bacteria to the nutrition of Arenicola marina.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:500948 |
| Date | January 2009 |
| Creators | Ashforth, Elizabeth Jane |
| Publisher | University of Newcastle Upon Tyne |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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