title: Stage-Specific Changes in Physiological and Life-History Responses to Elevated Temperature and Pco2 during the Larval Development of the European Lobster Homarus gammarus (L.).
abstract: An organism's physiological processes form the link between its life-history traits and the prevailing environmental conditions, especially in species with complex life cycles. Understanding how these processes respond to changing environmental conditions, thereby affecting organismal development, is critical if we are to predict the biological implications of current and future global climate change. However, much of our knowledge is derived from adults or single developmental stages. Consequently, we investigated the metabolic rate, organic content, carapace mineralization, growth, and survival across each larval stage of the European lobster Homarus gammarus, reared under current and predicted future ocean warming and acidification scenarios. Larvae exhibited stage-specific changes in the temperature sensitivity of their metabolic rate. Elevated Pco2 increased C∶N ratios and interacted with elevated temperature to affect carapace mineralization. These changes were linked to concomitant changes in survivorship and growth, from which it was concluded that bottlenecks were evident during H. gammarus larval development in stages I and IV, the transition phases between the embryonic and pelagic larval stages and between the larval and megalopa stages, respectively. We therefore suggest that natural changes in optimum temperature during ontogeny will be key to larvae survival in a future warmer ocean. The interactions of these natural changes with elevated temperature and Pco2 significantly alter physiological condition and body size of the last larval stage before the transition from a planktonic to a benthic life style. Thus, living and growing in warm, hypercapnic waters could compromise larval lobster growth, development, and recruitment.
authors.affiliation: Biology Department, St. Francis Xavier University, 2320 Notre Dame Avenue, Antigonish, Nova Scotia B2G 2W5, Canada; 2Marine Biology and Ecology Research Centre, School of Marine Science and Engineering, Davy Building, Plymouth University, Drake Circus, Plymouth, Devon PL4 8AA, United Kingdom; 3National Lobster Hatchery, South Quay, Padstow, Cornwall PL28 8BL, United Kingdom; 4Plymouth Marine Laboratory, Prospect Place, West Hoe, Plymouth PL1 3DH, United Kingdom; 5Département de Biologie, Chimie et Géographie, Université du Québec à Rimouski, 300 Allée des Ursulines, Rimouski, Quebec G5L 3A1, Canada.
authors.forename: Daniel P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Small
authors.forename: Piero
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Calosi
authors.forename: Dominic
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Boothroyd
authors.forename: Steve
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Widdicombe
authors.forename: John I
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: Spicer
mesh_terms: D060105:Animal Shells / Q000254:growth & development; D000818:Animals; D001481:Basal Metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D049628:Body Size; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000009:adverse effects*; D057231:Climate Change; D007814:Larva / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology; D008018:Life Cycle Stages / Q000502:physiology; D008121:Nephropidae / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000502:physiology*; D012623:Seawater / Q000737:chemistry; D013696:Temperature
chemical_list: D002245:Carbon Dioxide