IMIS - Marine Research Groups | Compendium Coast and Sea

IMIS - Marine Research Groups

[ report an error in this record ]basket (0): add | show Print this page

Herring gulls learn to feed on a recent invader in the Dutch Wadden Sea, the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas
Cadée, G.C. (2001). Herring gulls learn to feed on a recent invader in the Dutch Wadden Sea, the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas. Basteria 65: 33-42
In: Basteria: Tijdschrift van de Nederlandse Malacologische Vereniging. Nederlandse Malacologische Vereniging: Leiden; Lisse. ISSN 0005-6219, more
Peer reviewed article  

Available in  Author 

Keywords
    Aquatic organisms > Heterotrophic organisms > Predators
    Aquatic organisms > Marine organisms > Aquatic birds > Marine birds
    Behaviour > Feeding behaviour
    Eukaryotes > Animals > Invertebrates > Mollusca > Bivalvia > Shellfish > Oysters
    Oysters
    Taxa > Species > Introduced species
    Magallana gigas (Thunberg, 1793) [WoRMS]
    ANE, Wadden Sea [Marine Regions]
    Marine/Coastal

Author  Top 
  • Cadée, G.C., more

Abstract
    Herring gulls (Larus argentatus) learned to exploit a new food source in the Wadden Sea near Texel, the introduced Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas. The first 'wild' specimens of this oyster were observed in 1983. Due to a series of warm summers in the 1990s, the invader success- fully reproduced and rapidly spread over the Dutch Wadden Sea. Herring gulls break large bivalves by shell-dropping; they lift oysters (and adhering attached objects) of up to 93 grams in weight. They were less successful in breaking the shells of oysters than of mussels Mytilus edulis; only about one third of the oysters were broken by shell-dropping, in mussels this was nearly 100%. Experiments indicated mussels to break easier during shell dropping. Future research will indicate whether herring gulls will leam to improve their breaking technique.

All data in the Integrated Marine Information System (IMIS) is subject to the VLIZ privacy policy Top | Author