Energy flow and breeding in two species of Lacuna: comparative costs of egg production and maintenance

Abstract

Lacuna pallidula and L. vincta are small intertidal/subtidal prosobranch gastropods, feeding on macroalgae. Both are semelparous annuals, but while L. pallidula is an in situ breeder with low powers of dispersal, L. vincta has a planktotrophic larva. Data have been obtained on the growth, egg production and respiration of these snails under controlled conditions in the laboratory. These data allow the construction of partial energy budgets showing how energy is allocated to the three functions. Allocation and turnover estimates of reproductive effort are discussed in the context of the life cycles of the two species of snail.

Keywords:

• energetics
• life history strategies
• marine invertebrates
• respiration