Description
The status of Limnoria tuberculata Sowinsky 1884, described from the Black Sea as a separate species has been disputed. Menzies (1972) identified an apparently reproductively isolated population from Chatham MA as this species. Kensley (Kensley and Schotte 1987; Kensley and Schotte 1989) has treated this name as the senior synonym of L. tripunctata, but used "L. tripunctata" in Kensley et al. (1995). Cookson (1990) examined specimens from the Black Sea, and treated L.tuberculata as a separate species, occurring in the Black Sea and "possibly Massachusetts, southern England (Menzies, 1972), and the Aegean Sea (Gekdiay and Kocatas, 1972)".
Taxonomy
| Kingdom | Phylum | Class | Order | Family | Genus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Animalia | Crustacea | Malacostraca | Isopoda | Limnoriidae | Limnoria |
Synonyms
Invasion History
Chesapeake Bay Status
| First Record | Population | Range | Introduction | Residency | Source Region | Native Region | Vectors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Established | Unknown | Cryptogenic | Regular Resident | Western Atlantic | Unknown-Marine | Shipping(Fouling Community) |
History of Spread
Limnoria tripunctata (a gribble) is now a cosmopolitan wood-boring isopod, found through most of the warmer waters of the world. This species was lumped with L. lignorum, a cold-water, high-latitude species, until these species were separated by Menzies (1957). The native region of L. tripunctata is not clear- it may have an Indo-Pacific origin (Kensley, personal communication; Schotte, personal communication), and is widely distributed there. It is also widespread on both sides of the Atlantic, from Cape Cod to Argentina, and from Portugal to Ghana (Kensley and Schotte 1987). The history of this species in the Atlantic is uncertain, since it was only recognized in 1952. However, Menzies (1957) identifies records and descriptions of "L. lignorum" from the southeastern US, from as early as 1899, as L. tripunctata. Limnoria tripunctata may have been present in the Atlantic for centuries before its description.
Limnoria tripunctata appears to be definitely introduced on the West Coast of North America, where it was first reported in Los Angeles Harbor in 1871 (Carlton 1979). It now ranges from the Panama Canal to Vancouver Island, though it appears to be spottily distributed, in particular estuaries, but not others (Menzies 1957; Wallour 1960; Carlton 1979; Quayle 1992). In England, L. tripunctata appears to be a recent colonist, becoming established in thermal effluents, and colonizing adjacent waters (Coughlan 1977).
In the Northwest Atlantic, L. tripunctata was long confused with the cold-water species L. lignorum. A description of "L. lignorum" by Richardson (1905), based on specimens from North Carolina, actually applies to L. tripunctata (Menzies 1957). In describing L. tripunctata, Menizies lists specimens from Newport RI, to Venezuela, collected between 1948 and 1950 (Menzies 1957). In a later note, the range was extended northward to Cape Cod (Menzies and Beckman 1958). Based on this isopod's history and distribution in the region, we regard it as cryptogenic in the northwest Atlantic.
In surveys of marine woodborers in the Chesapeake Bay region, Limnoria damage was noted as light and rare, and the species identified as "L. lignorum" (Brown 1953, Wallour 1960). In March 1967, Menzies collected L. tripunctata at Norfolk VA and cultured them for hybridization experiments, together with animals of this species from 10 other locations, from Cape Cod to Atlantic Panama, and San Francisco to Pacific Panama. Isopods from all locations except Chaham MA, on the south side of Cape Cod were interfertile with St. Theresa FL and Beaufort NC animals for two generations, but the Chatham specimens, identified by Menxies as L. tuberculata, failed to produce F2 offspring after crossing with the southern animals (Menzies 1972). We have not found any other reports of L. tripunctata in the Chesapeake Bay region. We assume that this species is still established in the region.
History references- Brown 1953; Carlton 1979; Coughlan 1977; Kensley and Schotte 1987;Menzies 1957; Menzies 1972; Menzies and Beckman 1958; Quayle 1992; Richardson 1905; Wallour 1960;
Invasion Comments
None
Ecology
Environmental Tolerances
| For Survival | For Reproduction | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum | Maximum | Minimum | Maximum | |
| Temperature (ºC) | 2.0 | 35.0 | 30.0 | 15.0 |
| Salinity (‰) | 19.0 | 50.0 | 20.0 | 40.0 |
| Oxygen | hypoxic | |||
| pH | 6.0000000000 | 9.0000000000 | ||
| Salinity Range | poly-eu |
Age and Growth
| Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Adult Size (mm) | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Typical Adult Size (mm) | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| Maximum Adult Size (mm) | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| Maximum Longevity (yrs) | ||
| Typical Longevity (yrs |
Reproduction
| Start | Peak | End | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reproductive Season | |||
| Typical Number of Young Per Reproductive Event |
|||
| Sexuality Mode(s) | |||
| Mode(s) of Asexual Reproduction |
|||
| Fertilization Type(s) | |||
| More than One Reproduction Event per Year |
|||
| Reproductive Startegy | |||
| Egg/Seed Form |
Impacts
Economic Impacts in Chesapeake Bay
The gribble Limnoria tripunctata, a wood-boring isopod, is apparently rare in the Chesapeake Bay region (Brown 1953, Wallour 1960), and apparently causes little damage to pilings. Brown (1953) reported only minimal damage due to Limnoria sp. in wooden fouling panels.
References- Brown 1953, Wallour 1960
Economic Impacts Outside of Chesapeake Bay
Limnoria tripunctata, a gribble (wood-boring isopod) is a major wood-boring organism, damaging wooden pilings and ship hulls in warm-temperate to tropical marine waters, around the world. It is rare or absent in ports where salinity drops much below 20 ppt (Becker 1971; Lum 1971).
References- Becker 1971; Brown 1953, Lum 1971; Wallour 1960
Ecological Impacts on Chesapeake Native Species
The gribble Limnoria tripunctata, a wood-boring isopod, is apparently rare in the Chesapeake Bay region (Brown 1953, Wallour 1960), and apparently has little impact on coarse woody debris, marinas and docks, or their native biotas.
References- Brown 1953, Wallour 1960
Ecological Impacts on Other Chesapeake Non-Native Species
The gribble Limnoria tripunctata, a wood-boring isopod, is apparently rare in the Chesapeake Bay region (Brown 1953, Wallour 1960), and apparently has little impact on other introduced wood-borers (primarily Teredo navalis or non-native external fouling organisms.
References- Brown 1953, Wallour 1960
References
Becker, Gunther (1971) On the biology, physiology, and ecology of marine wood-boring crustaceans., In: Gareth Jones, E. B.//Eltringham, S. K.(Eds.) Marine borers, fungi, and fouling organisms of wood.. , Brussels. Pp. 303-326Beckman, Carolyn; Menzies, Robert (1960) The relationship of reproductive temperature and the geographical range of the marine woodborer Limnoria tripunctata., Biological Bulletin 118: 9-16
Brown, Dorothy J. (1953) Sixth Progress Report on marine borer activity in test boards operated during 1952, Report No. 8511 , Duxbury, Massachusetts. Pp.
Carlton, James T. (1979) History, biogeography, and ecology of the introduced marine and estuarine invertebrates of the Pacific Coast of North America, , Davis. Pp. 1-904
Cookson, Laura J. (1990) Australasian Species of Limnoriidae (Crustacea: Isopoda), Memoirs of the Museum of Victoria 52: 137-262
Coughlan, J. (1977) Marine borers in Southampton Water, Proceedings of the Hampshire Field Club and Archaeological Society 33: 5-15
Kensley, Brian, Schotte, Marilyn (1987) New records of isopod crustacea from the Caribbean, the Florida Keys, and the Bahamas, Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 100: 216-247
Kensley, Brian; Schotte, Marilyn (1989) Guide to the marine isopod crustaceans of the Caribbean., , Washington, D.C.. Pp.
Lum, Joyce Ann Smith (1981) The distribution of the wood boring isopod Limnoria in Texas estuaries and bays in relation to environmental factors., Dissertation Abstracts International B. Science and Engineering 42: 874
Menzies, R. J. (1972) Experimental interbreeding between geographically separated populations of the marine wood-boring isopod Limnoria tripunctata with preliminary indications of hybrid vigor., Marine Biology 17: 149-157
Menzies, Robert James (1957) The marine borer family Limnoriidae (Crustacea, Isopoda). Part I: Northern and Central America: Systematics, distribution, and ecology, Bulletin of Marine Science of the Gulf and Caribbean 7: 101-200
Quayle, D. B. (1992) Marine wood borers in British Columbia, Canadian Special Publication of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 115: 1-55
Richardson, Harriet (1905) A monograph on the isopods of North America, United States National Museum Bulletin 54: 1-727
Schubel, J. R., Pritchard, D. W. (1987) A brief physical description of the Chesapeake Bay., , Easton PA. Pp. 1-32
Wallour, Dorothy Brown (1960) Thirteenth progress report on marine borer activity in test boards operated during 1959, , Duxbury, Massachusetts. Pp. 1-41