Return to search

Ecology, Population Dynamics, and Sexual Characteristics of Commensal Leucothoid Amphipods with the Sponge Cliona varians in the Florida Keys (Crustacea: Amphipoda)

Recent observations have identified a new species of leucothoid amphipod, Leucothoe “sp. F,” associated with the sponge Cliona varians. This project examined the relationship between this amphipod and its sponge host at three sites in the Florida Keys with differing hydrodynamic regimes. Ninety-eight sponge samples with a total of 2,030 amphipods were collected between December 2011 and September 2012. Leucothoe “sp. F” is currently a common species in the Florida Keys strongly associated with C. varians; its distribution strongly coincides with open tidal currents from the Gulf of Mexico. Seasonality, depth, and tidal regimes not only influence population dynamics and sexual characteristics of Leucothoe “sp. F,” but also the abundance and volume of its host.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:nova.edu/oai:nsuworks.nova.edu:occ_stuetd-1316
Date01 January 2015
CreatorsAndringa, Stephanie Lynn
PublisherNSUWorks
Source SetsNova Southeastern University
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typetext
Formatapplication/pdf
SourceTheses and Dissertations

Page generated in 0.0015 seconds