Field Chronobiology of a Molluscan Bivalve: How the Moon and Sun Cycles Interact to Drive Oyster Activity Rhythms

May 5, 2011Chronobiology international

How Moon and Sun Cycles Work Together to Influence Oyster Activity Patterns

AI simplified

Circadian Biology on OpenScience ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Abstract

Continuous monitoring of valve movements in 16 oysters over 1 year reveals strong ties between their behavior and environmental cycles.

Valve behavior in C. gigas is primarily driven by the tidal cycle.
The strength of tidal influence is affected by neap-spring tides, which are related to the moon's distance from Earth.
Light exposure influences the oysters' biological rhythm, but its impact is secondary to tidal forces.
Biological rhythms of bivalves may vary globally based on the importance of solar and lunar cycles in their specific environments.
The study indicates a high adaptability of these oysters to environmental changes.

AI simplified

The present study reports new insights into the complexity of environmental drivers in aquatic animals. The focus of this study was to determine the main forces that drive mollusc bivalve behavior in situ. To answer this question, the authors continuously studied the valve movements of permanently immersed oysters, Crassostrea gigas, during a 1-year-long in situ study. Valve behavior was monitored with a specially build valvometer, which allows continuously recording of up to 16 bivalves at high frequency (10 Hz). The results highlight a strong relationship between the rhythms of valve behavior and the complex association of the sun-earth-moon orbital positions. Permanently immersed C. gigas follows a robust and strong behavior primarily driven by the tidal cycle. The intensity of this tidal driving force is modulated by the neap-spring tides (i.e., synodic moon cycle), which themselves depend of the earth-moon distance (i.e., anomalistic moon cycle). Light is a significant driver of the oysters' biological rhythm, although its power is limited by the tides, which remain the predominant driver. More globally, depending where in the world the bivalves reside, the results suggest their biological rhythms should vary according to the relative importance of the solar cycle and different lunar cycles associated with tide generation. These results highlight the high plasticity of these oysters to adapt to their changing environment.

Full Text

Full text is available at the source.

View full text ↗

Field Chronobiology of a Molluscan Bivalve: How the Moon and Sun Cycles Interact to Drive Oyster Activity Rhythms

Abstract

Full Text

You found one interesting study. We’ll send the next 7.

what lands in your inbox each week:

Recent issues from the circadian biology brief

Abstract

Full Text

Related papers

You found one interesting study. We’ll send the next 7.

what lands in your inbox each week:

Recent issues from the circadian biology brief