Grazing-filtration as feeding mechanisms in motile specimens of Crepidula fecunda (Gastropoda: Calyptraeidae)

Quantification of ingestion by grazing and by filtration in Crepidula fecunda showed that during the motile phase of the life cycle (<28 mm, in shell length), the species depends on both feeding strategies to supply it's energetic requirements. This species improves the energetic quality of the material ingested by exercising preferential selection for organic material from all the materials that are available on the substrate, with an average organic enrichment of 13%. The ontogenetic change in the relative importance of grazing and filter feeding appear to be species-specific within the genus; some species have motile forms in earlier life stages which need to move about the substrate to obtain food and locate aggregations of conspecifics. After growing to about 28 mm in length, C. fecunda become sessile females and depend solely on filter feeding to meet their nutritional requirements. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.