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Elysia subornata (Mollusca) a potential control agent of the alga Caulerpa taxifolia (Chlorophyta) in the Mediterranean Sea

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 August 2001

Thierry Thibaut
Affiliation:
Laboratoire Environnement Marin Littoral, Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Parc Valrose, Faculté des Sciences, 06108 Nice cedex 2, France
Alexandre Meinesz
Affiliation:
Laboratoire Environnement Marin Littoral, Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Parc Valrose, Faculté des Sciences, 06108 Nice cedex 2, France
Philippe Amade
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Physiologie et de Toxicologie Environnementale, Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Parc Valrose, Faculté des Sciences, 06108 Nice cedex 2, France
Stéphane Charrier
Affiliation:
Laboratoire Environnement Marin Littoral, Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Parc Valrose, Faculté des Sciences, 06108 Nice cedex 2, France
Kate De Angelis
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Physiologie et de Toxicologie Environnementale, Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Parc Valrose, Faculté des Sciences, 06108 Nice cedex 2, France
Santina Ierardi
Affiliation:
Laboratoire Environnement Marin Littoral, Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Parc Valrose, Faculté des Sciences, 06108 Nice cedex 2, France
Luisa Mangialajo
Affiliation:
Laboratoire Environnement Marin Littoral, Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Parc Valrose, Faculté des Sciences, 06108 Nice cedex 2, France
Jennifer Melnick
Affiliation:
Laboratoire Environnement Marin Littoral, Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Parc Valrose, Faculté des Sciences, 06108 Nice cedex 2, France
Valérie Vidal
Affiliation:
Laboratoire Environnement Marin Littoral, Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Parc Valrose, Faculté des Sciences, 06108 Nice cedex 2, France

Abstract

The biological characteristics of Elysia subornata (Mollusca: Opisthobranchia) were studied in an aquarium to assess its risks and chance of success as a potential biological control agent against the invasive alga Caulerpa taxifolia (Chlorophyta) in the Mediterranean Sea. This species feeds only on Caulerpa and has benthic larval development. Dietary switching is possible on some Mediterranean Caulerpales but feeding on other algae and sea grass is unlikely. The main limiting factor for the success of studied Caribbean strain of E. subornata are the Mediterranean winter temperatures which are lethal for that species. For the five months of the year which are favourable for feeding, growth and reproduction, the tested strain of E. subornata cannot reach a population density capable of controlling C. taxifolia.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
2001 Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom

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