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A first report on the shrimp Pontonia sp. and other potential symbionts in the mantle cavity of the penshell Pinna carnea in the Dominican Republic

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Abstract

Examination of the mantle cavity of 310 penshells Pinna carnea, collected from seagrass beds in southwestern Dominican Republic, revealed the presence of four species from three phyla as potential symbionts. The shrimp Pontonia sp. was found in 178 penshells, the cardinalfish Astrapogon stellatus in 18, an anemone (order Actiniaria) in two, and a pea crab (family Pinnotheridae) in one. The penshell likely provides these organisms with a refuge from predators. It also provides nutrition for shrimp as they consumed food trapped in the mucus secreted by the penshell host. All of the cardinalfish, and 91% of the shrimp, were found in penshells measuring >150 mm in hinge length. At approximately 150 mm, the shells of P. carnea thicken and so flatten less when the valves are closed. As a result, larger penshells provide more mantle-cavity space for accommodating organisms. Shrimp and cardinalfish size increased with the size of the host penshell. The positive relationship between shrimp size and penshell size, a prevalence of male-female pairs of shrimp and other field observations, suggest that a long-term association exists between shrimp and penshells, and that the mating system of the shrimp involves social monogamy.

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Acknowledgements

Cementos Andinos Inc., Grupo Jaragua, Proyecto Carey, the Acuario Nacional and the Secretaría de Estado del Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (República Dominicana) provided invaluable logistical support. Y. Arias, Y. León, A. Tewfik, J. ‘Chapo’ Ledesma, Å. Kestrup, C. Dumont generously facilitated field work. G. Winkler, C. Balzac, N. Alvarez-Berríos and especially R. Heard and B. Thoma are thanked for their indispensable counsel. Two anonymous reviewers also gave significant advice. This study was funded by an NSERC Discovery grant to J.H.H. and Québec-Océan provided financial support to S.A.

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  1. Département de biologie and Québec-Océan, Université Laval, 1045 Avenue de la Médecine, Local 2078, Quebec City, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada

    Serge Aucoin & John H. Himmelman

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  1. Serge Aucoin
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  2. John H. Himmelman
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Correspondence to Serge Aucoin.

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Aucoin, S., Himmelman, J.H. A first report on the shrimp Pontonia sp. and other potential symbionts in the mantle cavity of the penshell Pinna carnea in the Dominican Republic. Symbiosis 50, 135–141 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13199-010-0050-x

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