Barentsia benedeni

Invasion History

First Non-native North American Tidal Record: 1929
First Non-native West Coast Tidal Record: 1929
First Non-native East/Gulf Coast Tidal Record: 1977

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General Invasion History:

The entoproct (or kamptozoan) Barentsia benedeni was first described from Ostende, Belgium in 1887, but its origin is unknown. It was found to be widespread in European waters, from the Baltic to the Mediterranean, Black and Caspian Seas, and later found on the coasts of Japan, Australia, and the East and West coasts of North America (Nielsen 1989; Wasson 1997). Because of this organism's small size, and the scarcity of people with taxonomic knowledge of this group, B. benedeni is likely to be overlooked at many sites, and may not have been recorded until long after its invasion.

North American Invasion History:

Invasion History on the West Coast:

On the U.S. Pacific coast, B. benedeni was first found in Lake Merritt, San Francisco Bay in 1929 (Cohen and Carlton 1995; Wasson 1997), and subsequently in Coos Bay, Oregon in 1988 (Carlton 1989); Elkhorn Slough, California in 1998 (Wasson et al. 2001); Puget Sound, Washington in 1998 (Cohen et al. 1998); and Humboldt Bay, California in 2000 (Boyd et al. 2002).

Invasion History on the East Coast:

Barentsia benedeni was collected in Vineyard Haven, Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts in 1977 (Jebram and Everitt 1982), and also reported from 'Cape Cod' (possibly referring to the Martha's Vineyard record) (Nielsen 1989). It was not collected in previous studies of entoprocts in the Chesapeake Bay (Osburn 1944) or other historical East Coast sampling sites (Woods Hole, MA; North Carolina; South Carolina) (Wasson et al. 2000). In the Chesapeake Bay, B. benedeni was first identified on settling plates in 1994, in sites in the upper and lower Bay. In 1994-1996, it was collected in Baltimore Harbor and the Severn River, in Mobjack Bay, and Norfolk Harbor (Wasson et al. 2000). More recently, it has been collected in Long Island Sound (Canning and Carlton 2000; MIT Sea Grant 2003); Peconic Bay, Long Island (MIT Sea Grant 2003); and Narragansett Bay (MIT Sea Grant 2003).

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Description

Barentsia benedeni, like other entoprocts (also called kamptozoans) are colonial animals consisting of many zooids connected by a stolon. A zooid consists of a stalk, which is topped by the body of the animal, in a cup-shaped structure, called the calyx. The upper edge of the calyx bears 10-20 tentacles, surrounding the mouth, which faces upward. The upper surface of the body, surrounded by tentacles, includes both the mouth and the anus, leading to the term 'entoproct' (Barnes 1983).

In B. benedeni, the stalks are composed of segments, which consist of nodes, which are conical at each end and cylindrical in the middle portion, and are linked by rods. Animals from San Francisco Bay and Coos Bay typically had 3-5 nodes, but some specimens have up to 20 nodes in the stalk. The segments tend to be compressed and squat near the base, and more elongate and urn-like toward the calyx. The stalk narrows at the base of the calyx. The calyx is small (250-500 µm long) and compressed laterally, while the stalk is about 2-8 mm tall. This kamptozoan produces small yellowish hibernacula at the ends of short branches of the stolons- these are modified zooids for survival under adverse conditions (Nielsen 1989; Wasson 1997).

The colonies consist of a thick fuzz or fur of zooids, spreading over substrates. Budding can occur from the upper nodes, resulting in stolons which grow down to the substrate. This kamptozoan is typical of estuaries and harbors, often in brackish waters. It grows on and among other fouling organisms, such as barnacles, bryozoans, tube-dwelling polychaetes, and tunicates (Wasson 1997; Wasson et al. 2000).

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Taxonomy

Ecology

General:

The entoproct (or kamptozoan) Barentsia benedeni forms large, fuzzy colonies, reproducing asexually by budding new zooids from stolons. The zooids are hermaphroditic, and reproduce sexually on a seasonal basis, in winter and spring (February-July), in San Francisco Bay (Wasson 1997), or spring-fall, in Japan (Nielsen 1989). The eggs are brooded externally in the vestibule (inside the ring of tentacles) and hatch into lecithotrophic larvae which spend a few hours in the plankton (Marsical 1965). Barentsia benedeni is typical of harbors and estuaries, often in brackish waters (Neilsen 1989; Wasson 1997; Wasson et al. 2000).

Food:

Phytoplankton

Trophic Status:

Suspension Feeder

SusFed

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Habitats

General Habitat	Coarse Woody Debris	None
General Habitat	Oyster Reef	None
General Habitat	Marinas & Docks	None
General Habitat	Rocky	None
General Habitat	Canals	None
Salinity Range	Mesohaline	5-18 PSU
Salinity Range	Polyhaline	18-30 PSU
Salinity Range	Euhaline	30-40 PSU
Tidal Range	Subtidal	None
Vertical Habitat	Epibenthic	None

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Tolerances and Life History Parameters

Minimum Temperature (ºC)	0	Field data, based on occurrence of ice in northern localities (Nielsen 1989; Wasson 1997a; Wasson et al. 2000; Ruiz et al. unpublished data;)
Maximum Temperature (ºC)	30	Field data, Ruiz et al. unpublished data.
Minimum Salinity (‰)	7	Nielsen 1989; Wasson 1997a; Ruiz et al. unpublished data;
Maximum Salinity (‰)	35	Field data, probably occurs at higher salinities
Minimum Duration	0.2	Larval Period - In the one case where settlement of lab-reared larvae was observed, it took place 5 hours after expulsion from the brood pouch (Mariscal 1965). For most barentsiids, the planktonic period of the larvae is less than a day (Nielsen 1989).
Maximum Duration	0.2	Larval Period - In the one case where settlement of lab-reared larvae was observed, it took place 5 hours after expulsion from the brood pouch (Mariscal 1965). For most barentsiids, the planktonic period of the larvae is less than a day (Nielsen 1989).
Maximum Height (mm)	8	(Nielsen 1989; Wasson 1997).
Broad Temperature Range	None	Cold temperate-Warm temperate
Broad Salinity Range	None	Mesohaline-Euhaline

General Impacts

Barentsia benedeni is an abundant, but easily overlooked fouling organism in its native and introduced ranges. No economic or ecological impacts have been reported.

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