Inter-Research > MEPS > v589 > p153-166  
MEPS
Marine Ecology Progress Series

via Mailchimp

MEPS 589:153-166 (2018)  -  DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/meps12487

Do tropical specialist sea urchins have higher thermal tolerances and optimal temperatures than their more widely distributed relatives?

Rachel Collin1,*, Francesco Rendina1,2, Valerie Goodwin1,3, Samantha McCabe

1Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado Postal 0843-03092, Balboa Ancon, Panama
2Dipartimento di Scienza e Tecnologie (DiST), Università di Napoli ‘Parthenope’, Centro Direzionale, Is. C4, 80143 Napoli, Italy
3California State University, Long Beach, CA 90840, USA
*Corresponding author:

ABSTRACT: Warming tolerance (WT), thermal safety margins (TSMs), and thermal performance curves have been documented empirically for few tropical marine invertebrates, although calculations of realized niches from biogeographic data suggest that WT is lower for tropical organisms than for temperate organisms. To determine these characteristics for 8 species of Caribbean sea urchins, we documented the effects of acute heat stress and cold stress on righting time (a measure of performance) and survival. The upper lethal limit occurred between 35.1 and 37.1°C for all of the species, and the upper limit for righting occurred very close to this, between 34.0 and 36.9°C. The lower lethal limit occurred between 4.8 and 7.6°C for all species except for Tripneustes ventricosus, for which it was 14.6°C. The lower limit for righting was significantly warmer than the lower lethal limit and occurred between 13.4 and 14.6°C for all species except for T. ventricosus (19.1°C). Within these critical limits, the thermal performance curves are broad, and optimal performance windows range from 26 to 32°C. Environmental data show that in Bocas del Toro, Panama, urchins have warming tolerances of 6 to 8°C for 2 h exposures but that TSMs range from -4 to 2°C, highlighting that these species are vulnerable to moderate environmental warming. Species with exclusively tropical ranges did not show higher optimal temperatures than species with ranges that extend into the subtropics or temperate regions.


KEY WORDS: Echinometra · Lytechinus · Thermal tolerance · Coral reefs · Bocas del Toro · Seagrass


Full text in pdf format
Cite this article as: Collin R, Rendina F, Goodwin V, McCabe S (2018) Do tropical specialist sea urchins have higher thermal tolerances and optimal temperatures than their more widely distributed relatives?. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 589:153-166. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps12487

Export citation
Share:    Facebook - - linkedIn

 Previous article Next article