Ecological and Environmental Sciences

Preference of Helice tientsinensis and Sesarma plicata for typical salt marsh plants in the north of Hangzhou Bay

  • LUO Bei-jing ,
  • LI Xiang ,
  • LUO Ding-hui ,
  • XU Ping ,
  • CHEN Xue-chu ,
  • YOU Wen-hui
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  • 1. School of Ecological and Environmental Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China;
    2. Shanghai Key Lab for Urban Ecological Processes and Eco-Restoration, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China

Received date: 2018-11-02

  Online published: 2019-11-26

Abstract

Based on an investigation of Fengxian tidal flats, this study analyzed the feeding preference and influencing factors of two dominant crabs-Helice tientsinensis and Sesarma plicata-on typical salt marsh plants Spartina alterniflora and Phragmites australis via an indoor feeding experiment. The study provides a reference to further understanding of the control mechanisms for competition between Spartina and Phragmites. The results showed that the preference of the two crabs for different plant organs was:Leaves > Roots > Stalk. However, the preference varies across different plants; namely, Helice tientsinensis prefers Phragmites leaves, while Sesarma plicata prefers Spartina leaves. The consumption of stalk and roots of Spartina is higher than Phragmites. In addition to crab weight and species, the feeding preference is also positively correlated with the content of crude protein in plants.

Cite this article

LUO Bei-jing , LI Xiang , LUO Ding-hui , XU Ping , CHEN Xue-chu , YOU Wen-hui . Preference of Helice tientsinensis and Sesarma plicata for typical salt marsh plants in the north of Hangzhou Bay[J]. Journal of East China Normal University(Natural Science), 2019 , 2019(6) : 123 -131 . DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1000-5641.2019.06.012

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