<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

Based on an experiment carried out in the north-western Black Sea (Snake Island), the feeding behavior of the Rapa whelk (<italic>Rapana venosa</italic> Valenciennes, 1846) was analyzed in relation to its size (N = 58; shell height: 30–90 mm). Mediterranean mussels (<italic>Mytilus galloprovincialis</italic> Lamarck, 1819) were placed in experimental cages with <italic>R. venosa</italic> to be used as food. It was found that the size of the prey was determined by the size of the predator. The mussels with a shell length of 20–40 mm were most affected by <italic>R. venosa</italic>. It was determined that the predator's contribution to the deposition of mussel shells in the bottom sediments is also associated with its size. Feeding intensity varies from 41 mg to 99 mg of the total mass of mussels per 1 g of the total mass of <italic>R. venosa</italic> per day, depending on the size of the predator. The daily consumption of mussel soft tissue varied from 0.189 g ind.−1 per day−1 in small <italic>R. venosa</italic> specimens to 0.917 g ind.−1 per day−1 in large predators. Regression equations were obtained between the length and mass of the mussels consumed (total mass, soft tissue mass and shell mass) and the shell height of the predator.
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Based on an experiment carried out in the north-western Black Sea (Snake Island), the feeding behavior of the Rapa whelk (Rapana venosa Valenciennes, 1846) was analyzed in relation to its size (N = 58; shell height: 30–90 mm). Mediterranean mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis Lamarck, 1819) were placed in experimental cages with R. venosa to be used as food. It was found that the size of the prey was determined by the size of the predator. The mussels with a shell length of 20–40 mm were most affected by R. venosa. It was determined that the predator's contribution to the deposition of mussel shells in the bottom sediments is also associated with its size. Feeding intensity varies from 41 mg to 99 mg of the total mass of mussels per 1 g of the total mass of R. venosa per day, depending on the size of the predator. The daily consumption of mussel soft tissue varied from 0.189 g ind.−1 per day−1 in small R. venosa specimens to 0.917 g ind.−1 per day−1 in large predators. Regression equations were obtained between the length and mass of the mussels consumed (total mass, soft tissue mass and shell mass) and the shell height of the predator.

Feeding intensity and daily mussel consumption of Rapa whelk (<italic>Rapana venosa</italic>) in the north-western Black Sea

Departmeht of Ecological Integration of Biocycles

Oceanological and Hydrobiological Studies

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Feeding intensity and daily mussel consumption of Rapa whelk () in the north-western Black Sea

Based on an experiment carried out in the north-western Black Sea (Snake Island), the feeding behavior of the Rapa whelk (Rapana venosa Valenciennes, 1846) was...

Feeding intensity and daily mussel consumption of Rapa whelk (Rapana venosa) in the north-western Black Sea

Article Category: Original research paper

Published Online: Jan 18, 2023

Page range: 344 - 354

Received: Aug 23, 2022

Accepted: Nov 14, 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.26881/oahs-2022.4.04

Keywords
daily consumption, nutrition, invasive species, Black Sea

© 2022 Svitlana Stadnichenko et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Feeding intensity and daily mussel consumption of Rapa whelk (Rapana venosa) in the north-western Black Sea

Article Category: Original research paper

Published Online: Jan 18, 2023

Page range: 344 - 354

Received: Aug 23, 2022

Accepted: Nov 14, 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.26881/oahs-2022.4.04

Keywordsdaily consumption, nutrition, invasive species, Black Sea

© 2022 Svitlana Stadnichenko et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Keywords
daily consumption, nutrition, invasive species, Black Sea