Elevated temperatures increase growth and enhance foraging performances of a marine gastropod

The oceans continue to warm due to rising atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations. Most climate-change studies of aquaculture species use temperature changes based on coarse-resolution climate models and without considering thermal ranges of an animal. Coarse-resolution climate models are generated by global-scale data, which is insufficient to capture the conditions of coastal areas where most aquaculture activity occurs. Therefore, ocean warming research on coastal organisms requires a more comprehensive design to include broad temperature gradients. By using the ecologically and commercially important coastal whelk Rapana venosa, we combined long-term and short-term experiments and selected 4 temperature treatments (19, 23, 27, and 30 degrees C) to simulate different scenarios to test ocean warming effects on growth rates and foraging performances of whelks. We found that elevated temperature within the whelk's thermal range (23 and 27 degrees C) significantly increased growth rates and enhanced foraging performances of marine whelks when compared to the current temperature (19 degrees C). Conversely, the whelk's performance collapsed at 30 degrees C in terms of both growth and foraging behavior. Our research clearly shows that local conditions and the tolerance range of a species must be considered to develop meaningful information for testing the effects of a changing climate. Our study suggests that rapa whelks may increase their feeding and reach larger sizes during warmer periods. Moreover, our study may provide a foundation for future climate research on aquaculture species.

Automated summary

This study examined the effects of ocean warming on the growth rates and foraging performances of the coastal whelk Rapana venosa at different temperature treatments. It was found that elevated temperatures within the whelk's thermal range significantly increased growth rates and foraging performances, but performance collapsed at higher temperatures. This research highlights the importance of considering local conditions and species' tolerance ranges in climate change studies for aquaculture species.