Estuarine retention of larvae: Contrasting effects of behavioral responses to turbulence and waves

The intensity of small-scale fluid motions varies among coastal seascapes, which could drive species-specific behavioral adaptations in planktonic larvae. For example, inlets and estuaries typically have stronger turbulence and weaker surface gravity waves than the continental shelf. In the Mid-Atlantic Bight, eastern mudsnails (Ilyanassa obsoleta) inhabit inlets and estuaries, whereas threeline mudsnails (Ilyanassa trivittata) inhabit the continental shelf. The two species' larvae respond differently to hydrodynamic signals: both hover in calm conditions and sink in response to vorticity, a signal of turbulence, while only shelf snail larvae also sink and swim up in response to accelerations, which can be large under waves. We investigated how these observed larval behaviors and more idealized ones affect retention and settlement in estuaries using numerical experiments. Virtual larvae were released and tracked in a regional model of Delaware Bay and the adjacent shelf. Behaviors that involved downward motions, including vorticity-induced behaviors, helped concentrate larvae near the bottom and enhanced retention in the bay. In contrast, behaviors that involved upward motions, including acceleration-induced behaviors, promoted export onto the shelf. Compared to neutral buoyancy, the vorticity-induced behaviors also conferred longer residence times in the bay, higher settlement probabilities, and shorter pelagic larval durations, all of which would be advantageous to estuarine species. This integration of larval observations with simulations provides evidence that behavioral responses to coastal physics can reduce larval mortality by enhancing retention and settlement in native seascapes.

Automated summary

This study found that the intensity of small-scale fluid motions in different coastal seascapes affects the behavioral adaptations of planktonic larvae. Larvae of different species have different responses to hydrodynamic signals, which in turn affect larval retention and settlement. Numerical experiments showed that downward motions promote retention and settlement in estuaries, while upward motions facilitate larvae export onto the continental shelf. Vorticity-induced behaviors, compared to neutral buoyancy, also provide advantages such as longer residence times in the bay, higher settlement probabilities, and shorter pelagic larval durations.