Trophic habits of the invasive crab Libinia dubia H. Milne Edwards, 1834 from the Gulf of Gabès (Tunisia)

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Published: Jul 1, 2020
DOI: https://doi.org/10.12681/mms.22001
Keywords:
Βiological invasions establishment introduction patterns non-indigenous species potential impact stomach contents.
AMANI CHAFFAI
Laboratoire de Biodiversité, Biotechnologie et Changements Climatiques-LR11ES09, Faculté des Sciences de Tunis, 2092 Tunis, Université Tunis El Manar, Tunisia
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8590-4719
WAFA RJIBA-BAHRI
Laboratoire de Biodiversité, Biotechnologie et Changements Climatiques-LR11ES09, Faculté des Sciences de Tunis, 2092 Tunis, Université Tunis El Manar, Tunisia
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8416-8342
ASMA ABIDI
Laboratoire de Biodiversité, Biotechnologie et Changements Climatiques-LR11ES09, Faculté des Sciences de Tunis, 2092 Tunis, Université Tunis El Manar, Tunisia
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6126-0357
FRANҪOISE DENIS
Le Mans Université-UMR 7208 CNRS-MNHN-IRD-UPMC, Biologie des Organismes et des Ecosystèmes Aquatiques (BOREA), Concarneau, France
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0006-8238
JAMILA BEN SOUISSI
Laboratoire de Biodiversité, Biotechnologie et Changements Climatiques-LR11ES09, Faculté des Sciences de Tunis, 2092 Tunis, Université Tunis El Manar, Tunisia & Institut National Agronomique de Tunisie, 43, Avenue Charles Nicolle, Cité Mahrajène, 1082 Tunis, Université de Carthage, Tunisia
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1761-4204
Abstract

Feeding habits of the invasive spider crab Libinia dubia from the Mediterranean Sea were studied in the Gulf of Gabès (Tunisia) using the frequency of occurrence and points methods. The population was sampled at least monthly between November 2015 and October 2016. Stomach contents of 384 specimens were analysed. Results indicate that L. dubia is an herbivorous species exhibiting clear preferences for algae (ALG) and Magnoliophyta (MAG) (62.03%, 7.13 points and 59.36%, 5.3 points respectively) although Echinodermata (ECH), Porifera (POR), Cnidaria (CNI), Mollusca (MOL), Polychaeta (POL), Crustacea (CRU) and fish (FIS) were accidentally consumed along with Bryozoa (BRY), sediment (SED), and unidentifiable materials (UNM). The diversity of ALG ingested was studied in detail: Chlorophyceae were found in 87.93% of stomachs containing ALG and contributed most of points to the stomach contents (4.18 points) followed respectively by Phaeophyceae (81.03%, 2.27 points) and Rhodophyceae (40.95%, 0.68 points).Very low Vacuity Index was recorded (VI = 2.6%). Ingested items varied significantly with regard to the season (Chi-square test, χ2calculated = 87.86 > χ2theoretical = 7.81, df = 3, p < 0.05) and crab size (χ2calculated = 14.25 > χ2theoretical = 5.99, df = 2, p = 0.026). Insignificant differences were registered by studying Carapace Width-Stomach Weight (CW-SW) relationships (T-test, tcalculated < ttheoretical, p > 0.05). Kruskal-Wallis test was applied so that the composition of crab diet among groups could be compared (H = 1.1, df = 3, p = 0.77). 

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