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AB 16:149-162 (2012)  -  DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/ab00438

Effect of temperature on Temora longicornis swimming behaviour: illustration of seasonal effects in a temperate ecosystem

Maud Moison1,2,3,4,*, François G. Schmitt2,3,4, Sami Souissi2,3,4

1Leibniz Institut of Marine Sciences, IFM-GEOMAR, 24105 Kiel, Germany
2Université Lille Nord de France, 59000 Lille, France
3Université des Sciences et Technologies de Lille (USTL), Laboratoire d'Océanologie et de Géosciences (LOG),
62930 Wimereux, France
4Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Unité Mixte de Recherche (UMR) 8187, 62930 Wimereux, France

ABSTRACT: The present study investigated the effect of temperature on male and female swimming activity of the calanoid copepod Temora longicornis, sampled during winter (February) and summer (August) in the English Channel coastal ecosystem. Video recordings were conducted at 3 temperatures representative of those to which these organisms are normally exposed (13, 16 and 20°C) and one extreme-event temperature (24°C). Examinations of instantaneous velocity and symbolic analysis (i.e. dynamics of swimming states discretized from time series of instantaneous velocity) showed that T. longicornis changed its behaviour when confronted with environmental temperature variations. Swimming speed increased as temperature increased. In warmer water, this copepod displayed higher swimming activity, break periods were less frequent, and the frequency of jumps increased. This phenomenon was amplified when the environmental temperature was increased to 24°C. These observations revealed a considerable tolerance to high temperatures and an ability to adjust to environmental temperature changes. The ‘summer population’ was less active in the low temperature range, but the swimming speed reached a higher value at higher temperatures than that shown by the ‘winter population’. The results of the present study highlighted changes in the individual behaviour of this copepod in response to changing seasonal conditions in the form of swimming activity, and thus its ability to maintain biological processes throughout the year, even in a restrictive environment.


KEY WORDS: Copepod · Swimming behaviour · Temperature effect · Seasonal variation · Temora longicornis · Symbolic dynamics


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Cite this article as: Moison M, Schmitt FG, Souissi S (2012) Effect of temperature on Temora longicornis swimming behaviour: illustration of seasonal effects in a temperate ecosystem. Aquat Biol 16:149-162. https://doi.org/10.3354/ab00438

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