II. HABITAT AND DISTRIBUTION
The lunar dovesnail is found along the western Atlantic coast from Nova Scotia to Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, in the Caribbean and as far south as Brazil at depths from 0 to 52 m.
In the Indian River Lagoon, the lunar dovesnail mainly occurs in high densities in seagrass beds (Howard 1987).
III. LIFE HISTORY AND POPULATION BIOLOGY
Age, Size, Lifespan:
The maximum reported size for Astyris lunata is 5.8 mm.
The lunar dovesnail usually occurs at high densities when they are present.
Strombus gigas moves by a unique shell-thrusting motion called "leaping"
(Hesse 1980). The queen conch uses its claw-like operculum to dig into the
sand and then "pole" forward by extending the foot (Rupert and Barnes 1994).
This is a very different mode of transportation from other gastropods.
Astyris lunata have separate sexes and males have a penis (Brusca and Brusca 1990). Reproduction occurs by copulation. Members of the family Columbellidae lay egg capsules with multiple eggs per capsule.
There are no specific studies addressing the embryology of the lunar dovesnail. For many species in the family Columbellidae, embryos develop in the egg case and crawling juveniles emerge from the egg capsule.
IV. PHYSICAL TOLERANCES
Astyris (Mitrella) lunata oxygen rate decreases steadily as seawater
temperatures decrease to from 25°C to 5°C and when temperatures are
increased above 30°C. Mortality occurs quickly at sea water temperatures
above 35°C (McMahon and Russell-Hunter 1977).
There are no specific studies addressing the salinity tolerance of the lunar dovesnail.
V. COMMUNITY ECOLOGY
The lunar dovesnail preys upon encrusting ascidians and byrozoans (Osman et al. 1992, Osman and Whitlatch 1995, Stachowitz and Whitlatch 2005). A study of a population of Astyris (Mitrella) lunata from Long Island Sound suggests that high densities of the lunar dovesnail can influence recruitment and success of larval ascidians (Osman and Whitlatch 1995).
Astyris lunata is commonly found associated with Anachis lafresnayi on the red alga Chondrus crispus in southern New England (Stachowitz and Whitlatch 2005). These two gastropods appear to keep the surface of C. crispus free from overgrowth by fouling organisms. The lunar dovesnail is also found as an epibiont on loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) in mats of the green algae Bryopsis plumose occurring on the posterior margins of the turtle carapace (Frick et al. 2000).
Academy of Natural Sciences Malacolog Version 4.1.0 A Database of Western
Atlantic Marine Mollusca. Available online.
Brusca RC and GJ Brusca. 1990. Invertebrates. Sinauer Associates, Inc.,
Sunderland, MA pg. 704.
Frick MG, Williams KL, Veljacic D, Pierrard L, Jackson JA, and SE Knight.
2000. Newly documented epibiont species from nesting loggerhead sea
turtles (Caretta caretta) in Georgia, USA. Marine Turtle Newsletter
Howard RK 1987. Diel variation in the abundance of epifauna associated
with seagrasses of the Indian River, Florida, USA. Marine Biology
ITIS. International Taxonomy Inventory System. Available online.
McMahon RF and WD Russell-Hunter. 1977. Temperature relations of aerial
and aquatic respiration in six littoral snails in relation to their
vertical zonation. Biological Bulletin 152:182-198.
Osman RW and RB Whitlach. 1995. Predation on early ontogenetic life
stages and its effect on recruitment into a marine epifaunal community.
Marine Ecology Progress Series 117:111-126.
Osman RW, RB Whitlach, and RJ Malatesta. 1992. Potential role of
micro-predators in determining recruitment into a marine community. Marine
Ecology Progress Series 83:35-43.
Stachowitz JJ and RB Whitlach. 2005. Multiple mutualists provide
complementary benefits to their seaweed host. Ecology 89:2418-2427.
Melany P. Puglisi, Smithsonian Marine Station
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Page last updated: October 1, 2008