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Feeding ecology of the crab Munida subrugosa (Decapoda: Anomura: Galatheidae) in the Beagle Channel, Argentina

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 April 2004

M. Carolina Romero
Affiliation:
Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas, CADIC. CC 92, V9410BFD, Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina
Gustavo A. Lovrich
Affiliation:
Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas, CADIC. CC 92, V9410BFD, Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina
Federico Tapella
Affiliation:
Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas, CADIC. CC 92, V9410BFD, Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina
Sven Thatje
Affiliation:
Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), PO Box 120 161, D-27568 Bremerhaven, Germany
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Abstract

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Munida subrugosa is the most abundant galatheid crab species in the Beagle Channel (55°S 68°W) off Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. Samples of crabs and the epibenthic community were taken on a monthly basis at two different depth strata (<40 m and >70 m), by means of epibenthic trawling from 1998 to 1999. Stomach contents from 1582 crabs were analysed, out of which only 2% had empty stomachs. The quantity of food in the stomach contents was clearly seasonal and similar at both depths. The organic matter varied throughout the year and between both depths, being significantly higher in summer/spring than in autumn/winter. Munida subrugosa shows two different and simultaneous feeding habits: (1) as a predator M. subrugosa feeds on crustaceans, algae, and polychaetes; and (2) as a deposit feeder M. subrugosa consumes particulate organic matter and organisms associated with the superficial layer of the sediment. The composition of the diet of Munida subrugosa was similar for both years, and independent of depth, sex or season. Munida subrugosa selected crustaceans only in autumn and winter, whereas most food items were found according to their availability in the habitat.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
2004 Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom