title: Endoliths in Lithophaga lithophaga shells--Variation in intensity of infestation and species occurrence.
abstract: Pronounced differences with respect to the extent of infestation and the degree of Lithophaga lithophaga shell damage inflicted by euendolithic taxa at two sites in the Adriatic Sea representing different productivity conditions, are described. Shells collected from the eastern part of Kaštela Bay, which is characterized by higher primary productivity, have significantly more shell damage then the shell collected from a site on the outer coast of the island of Čiovo exposed to the oligotrophic Adriatic Sea. The presence of endoliths and their perforations were detected in different layers of the shell, including solidly mineralized parts of the skeleton and within the organic lamellae incorporated into the shell. Phototrophic endoliths were not observed in the specimens. The most serious damage to L. lithophaga shells was the boring clionaid sponge Pione vastifica, which was more common in shells collected from Kaštela.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries, Šetalište Ivama Meštrovića 63, 21000 Split, Croatia. Electronic address: melita@izor.hr.
authors.forename: Melita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Peharda
authors.affiliation: Polytechnic University of Marche, Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131 Ancona, Italy.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Calcinai
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Science, University of Split, Teslina 12, Split, Croatia.
authors.forename: Sanja
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Puljas
authors.affiliation: Boston University, Biological Science Center, 5 Cummington Street, Boston, MA 02215-2406, USA.
authors.forename: Stjepko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Golubić
authors.affiliation: Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries, Šetalište Ivama Meštrovića 63, 21000 Split, Croatia.
authors.forename: Jasna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Arapov
authors.affiliation: Université de Brest, Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer, Laboratoire des Sciences de l'Environnement Marin (LEMAR UMR6539 UBO/CNRS/IRD), rue Dumont d'Urville, 29280 Plouzané, France.
authors.forename: Julien
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Thébault
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D044822:Biodiversity; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D019083:Mediterranean Region; D049879:Mytilidae / Q000469:parasitology*; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D011156:Population Density; D011161:Porifera / Q000502:physiology
keywords: Adriatic Sea; Coastal zone; Eutrophication; Marine ecology; Mediterranean; Sclerochronology