Identifying mechanisms of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) tolerance is an important step in understanding the direct and indirect effects of UVR exposure on aquatic organisms. We used laboratory exposure experiments and a solar exposure experiment to evaluate mechanisms of UVR tolerance in the freshwater snail, Physa acuta. Survival following short-wavelength UVB exposure was higher in the presence of simultaneous exposure to longer-wavelength UVA and visible light than with UVB alone, indicating that P. acuta possessed photoenzymatic repair. Survival also increased as a function of body size and shell thickness, suggesting that the shell provides photoprotection. Last, snails actively selected locations further below the water surface in the presence than in the absence of solar UVR, suggesting behavioral avoidance as another mechanism of UVR tolerance. These defense mechanisms can be influenced by environmental conditions, so effects of UVR exposure may vary widely among populations and will be strongest in systems with a combination of low temperature, high transparency, and low Ca concentrations.
How to translate text using browser tools
24 October 2013
Mechanisms of Ultraviolet Radiation Tolerance in the Freshwater Snail Physa acuta
Mark H. Olson ,
Nicholas E. Barbieri
ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE
It is not available for individual sale.
This article is only available to subscribers.
It is not available for individual sale.
It is not available for individual sale.
Freshwater Science
Vol. 33 • No. 1
March 2014
Vol. 33 • No. 1
March 2014
behavioral ultraviolet radiation avoidance
photoenzymatic repair
photoprotection
shell thickness