Document of bibliographic reference 405833

BibliographicReference record

Type

Bibliographic resource

Type of document

Journal article

BibLvlCode

AS

Title

Epibiosis by Florida Crown Conch (Melongena corona) on green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) in a northern Florida estuary

Abstract

We report the first observations of Melongena corona (Florida Crown Conch) as an epibiont attached to the carapace of juvenile Chelonia mydas (Green Sea Turtle). The Florida Crown Conch is a carnivorous marine gastropod found in benthic intertidal communities along the coast of Florida, southeastern Alabama, and parts of the Caribbean. Florida Crown Conchs have also been associated with declines in the oyster reefs in the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve (GTMNERR), where both our observations were reported. Northeast Florida's Crown Conch population is described as expanding northward in the estuary since 2010. As such, we propose that Green Turtles may be facilitating the northern expansion of the Florida Crown Conch, which would be an important dynamic to account for when designing and implementing conservation, restoration, and aquaculture programs for shellfish areas north of the GTMNERR.

Bibliographic citation

Hobbs, H.L.; Eastman, C.B.; Eastman, S.F.; McGinley, E.; Kimbro, D.L. (2024). Epibiosis by Florida Crown Conch (Melongena corona) on green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) in a northern Florida estuary. Southeast. Nat. 23(4): N58-N62. https://dx.doi.org/10.1656/058.023.0403

Is peer reviewed

true