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Tool Use by a Predatory Worm Brian Taylor Under the supervision of Dr. Rittschof, Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University May, 2016 _______________________________ Research Supervisor _______________________________ Faculty Reader _______________________________ Director of Undergraduate Studies Honors thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for graduation with Distinction in Biology in Trinity College of Duke University 1 Abstract Tool use in non-human organisms represents one of the most fiercely contested topics in animal behavior research. Tool use by an animal has been claimed to represent an evolutionarily significant jump in rational thought and ability. Here, I test the hypothesis that Diopatra cuprea are stay-at-home predators who use algae, shells, and sticks as a tool to decorate their tubes in order to serve as an advertisement for attracting prey. Diopatra are a sedentary, tube-dwelling annelid found in great abundance along the intertidal zone. These worms construct and live in long tubes, with the majority of the tube below the sediment surface and a small portion exposed above ground. They then decorate the exposed portion with three different materials: algae, shells, and sticks. To test this hypothesis, I determined what microorganisms took up residence on Diopatra tubes, analyzed the rate at which the worms rebuilt their tubes, and observed the feeding behavior of Diopatra. I found that the same group of microorganisms lived on all three decoration types, but in differing quantities. I also found that if a worm had the exposed portion of its tube destroyed by a disturbance event, it would rebuild the tube almost immediately. I was able to observe Diopatra eating off of their tubes in the laboratory setting and then experimentally determine what their likely food sources are, leading me to the conclusion that the decoration on their tubes serves as a tool for the worms and plays a vital role in their feeding behavior. 2 Introduction Diopatra cuprea is an easily overlooked organism, small in size and largely ignored in discussions of the coastal ecosystem. As a result, comparatively little is known about them. Known often as the decorator worm, it is a tube-building worm found in the intertidal zone along the eastern coast of the United States, from Massachusetts to Brazil (Berke, 2012). About 5 cm long at maturity, Diopatra live in a self-engineered tube that it decorates with debris from the sediment surface (Myers, 1972; Berke, 2012). Much of the research on Diopatra has focused on the unique nature of their tubes and the role they play in providing both a habitat and defense from predation for the organism (Brenchley, 1976; Berke & Woodin, 2008). Given the enormous amount of energy that the worm invests not only in constructing its tube but also in decorating the tube, I suspected that the tube must serve an additional function for the worm. Previous researchers had offered a number of hypotheses for why Diopatra decorate the outside of their tube, ranging from attracting prey (Myers, 1972) to providing additional defense (Brenchley, 1976; Endler, 1981) to serving as camouflage to disguise the tube (Klingel, 1951). Dr. Daniel Rittschof and I hypothesized that the decoration of the exterior made the tube a tool for the worm, allowing it to imitate a micro reef and attract microorganisms to live on it. A reef is defined as a rock collection containing the remains of colonial organisms that attracts diverse organisms and fauna to live on it (Wilson 1950). The exterior of a Diopatra’s tube resembles a micro reef in that the worm attaches algae, shells, or sticks to it, which we hypothesize is an attempt to attract other organisms to live on the tube. As Reisser et al demonstrated in their 2014 paper, small millimeter-sized objects floating in the ocean attracted a variety of microorganisms to successfully live on their surface. This indicates that it is feasible 1 for a Diopatra worm to assemble a collection of small objects and use them to decorate the exterior of its tube with the intention of cultivating a collection of microorganisms. In this discussion, decorating refers to an action in which the worm extends out of its tube, picks up or pushes a piece of shell, rock, sand, or other object to the tube, and adheres it to the tube with a glue the worm secretes from glands in its body (Myers, 1972). Diopatra tubes have decorated and undecorated sections. The decorated region is the part of the tube above the sediment surface (Myers, 1972). The undecorated section comprises the majority of the tube and is mainly found below the sediment surface (Myers, 1972). This portion serves as a home during low tide and a shelter from predators when the tide is higher (Myers, 1972; Brenchley, 1976; Berke & Woodin, 2008). These sessile, predatory worms are mostly active in the decorated portion of their tube during high tide when they extend themselves out into the water column. They then retreat back into the undecorated tubes as the water recedes and the decorated region is exposed to air (Klingel, 1951). Diopatra select a decorating material for its tube based on the abundance of surrounding material (Brenchley, 1976). The worms do not appear to show any predisposition to a particular decoration type or decorate selectively, other than with respect to the size and proximity of available resources (Berke, 2012). For Diopatra, there are three main natural categories of decoration materials, which are referred to as stick, shell, and algae. The stick group is comprised of small fibers such as roots, the shell group is made up of any small shells commonly found on the ocean floor, and the algae mainly consist of pieces of macroalgae. Depending on the habitat, the frequencies of these decorating materials vary. In addition, any small structure like a piece of ribbon or plastic discarded on the beach can also be used for decoration by the worm. 2 Tool Use by an Organism Tool use in non-human organisms represents one of the most fiercely contested topics in animal behavior research (Shumaker, 2011). Tool use by an animal has been claimed to represent an evolutionarily significant jump in rational thought (Andrews, 2014), and while it was previously claimed that only humans possessed the skill to use tools (Beck, 1980), more recent ideas have allowed the possibility that some other animals are also capable of using tools (Bentley-Condit & Smith, 2010). One of the underlying questions in determining if an animal is in fact a tool-using organism is whether it is manipulating an object to act as a tool or simply using the object as a resource (Goodall, 1970). In other words, is the object in question a replacement for a natural behavior in order to make a task more achievable? For example, the Galapagos woodpecker finch is considered a tool-using organism because it holds a cactus spine or twig in its beak and uses it to poke inside holes of tree bark and force insects out for the bird to eat (Bock, 1963). On the other hand, a bird using sticks to create a nest is not considered toolusing because the sticks are merely being used for assistance; the claws and beak of the bird are the actual tools that make the nest and the sticks are merely a resource. I put forth the hypothesis that Diopatra are not just using the shells, sticks, or algae as objects to assist their tubes but rather are manipulating them to function as a tool. These objects are repurposed by the worm to imitate the appearance of a naturally occurring micro reef in order to attract prey to live on them. As a result, they improve the fitness of the worm by allowing it to become a stay-at-home predator. Examining Tool Use in Diopatra Cuprea We were curious about the lifestyle of Diopatra and how a largely sessile predatory worm was able to obtain its prey without leaving the safety of its tube. We decided to test the 3 hypothesis that Diopatra is a tool-using organism. Specifically, I tested the hypothesis that the decorated exterior portion of their tube is a tool used by the worm to imitate a micro-reef from which they harvest prey. In order to test this, I first examined tubes in the lab in order to identify potential fitness differences between the three materials the Diopatra used to decorate the exterior of their tubes. I also measured the length of the tubes to determine if the size of the exposed portion played a role in the number of organisms present. Additionally, I determined the presence of microorganisms on the exterior of the tube that could serve as potential sources of prey. Then, I studied tube rebuilding through tube removal experiments in the field in order to determine the rate and relative importance of reconstructing a damaged tube. Finally, in laboratory experiments I observed and quantified predation of the four most common occupants of the micro-reefs by the worm. Methods Tube Collection Diopatra tubes were collected from intertidal regions around Pivers Island, North Carolina at low tide. Only the portion of the tube above the sediment surface was collected. Each tube portion was cut off at the sediment surface and placed into its own 50 mL centrifuge tube to prevent cross contamination. Tubes were stored in the lab at room temperature. The length of each tube portion was measured and recorded. Ten tubes of each decoration type (algae, shell, and stick) were collected in two groups of thirty, for a total of sixty samples. Additional tubes were collected separately using the same technique in order to gather prey as explained in the “Prey Introduction” section. 4 Decoration Type The type of worm tube – algae, shell, or stick – was determined through taking photographs of the decoration of thirty tube caps. The surface area of each decoration type was measured utilizing ImageJ. Tubes were first classified by primary decoration type in order to provide a baseline category for future experiments. The makeup of a generic tube was then determined by calculating the average quantity of each decoration type in three different environments: high energy, medium energy, and low energy. The energy of an environment was determined based on the surrounding water flow. Tube Rebuilding Thirty exposed portions of tubes (ten of each decoration type) were measured and cut at the sediment surface during low tide. Tube locations were marked and the length of the new decorated section of the tube above the sediment surface was measured at each subsequent low tide until the tube had returned to a length similar to the original. This measurement aided in calculating the rate of reconstruction. The decoration materials of the new tubes were identified and compared to the original cut tubes. Prey Identification The tubes were individually treated with 95% Ethanol, filtered through a four by four micron sieve, and stained with rose-bengal to facilitate the identification of organisms living on the tube. Stained invertebrates were counted and imaged under a microscope at 52x magnification. Prey Introduction The prey identification experiments yielded four potential food sources for the worm: copepods, nematodes, gastropod larvae, and amphipods. Large quantities of each species were 5 collected from Diopatra tubes to test if Diopatra would eat them. The prey was collected from the exterior of tubes using the same method described in the previous sections. The obtained solutions were then examined under a microscope at 52x magnification and a micropipette was used to extract the tagged organisms from the solutions and separate them by species. Ten live Diopatra were collected in their tubes by using a shovel at low tide to dig up about 16 cm of undecorated tube containing the worm. Worms, in their individual tubes, were placed in 10 cm diameter finger bowls filled with seawater and left undisturbed for 24 hours before testing. Stained prey candidates were then introduced onto the tubes. Ten of each candidate was a large enough quantity as to be in excess of what would be found in nature. This was done to provide the worm with ample food in order to facilitate observations of Diopatra eating behavior. The stained prey was left on the tubes for a period of 24 hours, after which the tubes were collected and rinsed with EtOH. The tubes were then examined under a microscope at 52x magnification to determine what the worms had eaten and what they had left behind on the tube. The number of stained organisms that remained were then counted and compared to the amount originally added. Results Decoration Type Diopatra tubes were divided into three categories based on the area that they were gathered: high energy, medium energy, and low energy. As shown in Figure 1, the average high energy Diopatra tube was decorated with 52.9% shell, 22.2% stick, and 24.8% algae; the average medium energy tube was decorated with 58.7% shell, 24.6% stick, and 16.7% algae; the 6 average low energy tube was decorated with 47.1% shell, 35.7% stick, and 17.1% algae. Overall, the average tube was decorated primarily with shells and most sparingly with algae. Figure 1. Decoration of Average Tube High Energy Tube Decoration 70 % of Tube 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Shell Stick Algae Decoration Type Medium Energy Tube Decoration 80 % of Tube 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Shell Stick Decoration Type 7 Algae Low Energy Tube Decoration 60 % of Tube 50 40 30 20 10 0 Shell Stick Algae Decoration Type Figure 1. Shows the average surface area of tube tops covered by shell fragments, dead fibrous vegetation, and living algae. Table 1. Comparison of Average Tube Length and Average Number of Organisms Decoration Material Length (mm) Number of Organisms Algae 29.8 13.2 Stick 30.3 8.4 Shells 30.6 6 Table 1. Examines the relationship between tube length and average number of organisms between the three decoration types As shown in Table 1, tubes decorated with algae were found on average to contain the greatest amount of microorganisms, while tubes decorated with shells contained the least. However, as shown in Figure 1, algae was not the most commonly utilized decoration material. Despite this apparent advantage, no evidence was found to indicate that algae or any particular decoration material is preferred by the worm. This would suggest that there is no discernable fitness difference between the three materials and that decoration type appears to be determined 8 only by the quantity and nature of available resources, rather than by a worm’s decision to favor one material over another Tube Length Table 1 shows the average length of the decorated portion of Diopatra tubes in millimeters and the average number of organisms found on the tube. Stick-dominated tubes had the greatest length while shell-dominated tubes were the shortest in length. Tubes composed mainly of algae had the largest number of organisms followed by sticks. Shell decorated tubes had the least number of animals. Tube length does not appear to be a large factor in determining the number of organisms present on the exterior of a Diopatra’s tube, as there was no clear relationship between increased tube length and quantity of organisms. The number of organisms present appears to be related to the type of decoration material; tubes decorated with algae were the shortest on average but had the greatest number of organisms, while tubes decorated with shells were on average the longest but had the fewest organisms. Additionally, there is no evidence that Diopatra vary the length of their tubes in response to the relative success of their decoration material. Tube Rebuilding The following figures show the average length of the tubes above the sediment surface at each subsequent low tide as grouped by predominant decoration type. Of the original thirty tubes that were collected, twenty were rebuilt with the same type of decoration material, four were rebuilt with different types of decoration material, and six were not rebuilt at all. All tubes were reconstructed to a relatively similar size as the original. 9 Figure 2. Average Rate of Tube Rebuilding Separated by Decoration Type Average Rate of Tube Rebuiliding 40 Tube Length (mm) 35 30 25 Algae 20 Sticks 15 Shells 10 5 0 Original 0 1 2 3 4 5 Low Tides Since Tube Cut Figure 2. Shows the length of Diopatra tubes measured from the sediment surface to the end of the tube. Tubes were measured to obtain an original value and then cut and measured at each subsequent low tide to track average rebuilding rate. Each bar represents the average length of ten tubes of the same decoration type. Results are separated by the primary decoration type of the original tube. Prey Identification The following seven species were found on Diopatra tubes: copepods, nematodes, gastropod larvae, amphipods, polychaetes, barnacle larvae, and Geukensia. Organisms found on tubes were identified based upon physical appearance under a microscope at 52x magnification. Of the seven identified species, four of them always appeared to be present regardless of decoration type, water energy, or tube length: copepods, nematodes, gastropod larvae, and amphipods. These four organisms were hypothesized as potential prey sources and collected for further examination. 10 Figure 3. Organismal Diversity on Diopatra Tube Number of Organisms/Tube Organismal Diversity on Diopatra Tube 7 6 5 Algae 4 Stick 3 Shell 2 1 0 Species Figure 3. Shows the average number of organisms by species on Diopatra tubes, differentiated by decoration type. A tube was classified as primarily decorated by a particular decoration type if upon visual inspection that decoration was clearly dominant. Copepods, nematodes, gastropod larvae, and amphipods were present on nearly all sampled tubes. Food Introduction Tubes Stained prey of the four candidate species were collected and introduced onto the exterior of Diopatra tubes in the lab setting in order to observe which organisms were consumed by the worm. Figure 4 shows the remaining stained prey that were found on the Diopatra inhabited tubes after a period of 24 hours. The species were identified through examination under 52x magnification. Copepods and nematodes were found to be consistently consumed by the worm, while gastropod larvae and amphipods were present in roughly their original quantities. The 11 slight decrease in the presence of gastropod larvae is hypothesized to be experimental error in sample collection rather than a significant result. Figure 4. Number of Species Remaining After Predation Number of Organisms Comparison of Potential Food Sources 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Starting Quantity Remaining Quantity Copepod Nematode Gastropod Larva Amphipod Candidate Prey Species Figure 4 Shows the average number of each of the four candidate prey species remaining twenty-four hours after being introduced onto the exterior of a Diopatra tube in the lab setting as compared to the original introduced quantity. Discussion Tube Decoration Diopatra tubes are more than just a home, they are a tool for the worm to collect prey. Diopatra decorate their tubes primarily with three distinct materials: shells, sticks, and algae. While tube length was relatively similar across all three decoration types, the number of organisms found residing on the outside of the tube was different. Tubes decorated with shells, which were the most commonly found tubes on the beach, had significantly fewer organisms 12 present (average of 6 organisms per tube) than those decorated with algae (average of 13.2 organisms per tube), which were the least commonly found. Therefore, it appears that the relative abundance of shell decoration is due primarily to the availability of decoration material in the surrounding environment (Brenchley, 1976), as shells do not appear to convey any fitness advantage to the Diopatra, despite being the most commonly found decoration type on the beach where the samples were gathered. The different types of tube decoration influence the quantity of microorganisms present on the exterior of the tube, however they do not appear to convey a direct fitness advantage. This shows that the worm has little to no ability to select for its decoration type because although algae was the most successful decoration, it was also the least common, while the least successful decoration of shells was the most common. This may also suggest that the increased number of organisms on the tubes decorated with algae does not benefit the Diopatra in any way, and that the number of organisms present on the tubes decorated with shells is sufficient food for the worm. Furthermore, the consistency of tube height across all decoration types indicates that increasing the size of the tube is not a viable strategy for the worm to increase the success of a tube decorated with shells or sticks, implying that there is likely some upper bound or optimal size for the exposed portion of the tube. Previously, most researchers had hypothesized that tube decoration was for camouflage (Endler, 1981, Stowe, 1988, Berke & Woodin, 2008, Brenchley, 1976). Brenchley hypothesized that the worm decorated with materials according to relative abundance in order to blend in with the natural environment (Brenchley, 1976). Berke & Woodin tested the hypothesis that decoration provided camouflage and found that undecorated tubes were not attacked more frequently than decorated tubes (Berke & Woodin, 2008). Furthermore, undecorated tubes were 13 actually at less risk of attack than tubes classified as predominantly algae or shell (Berke & Woodin, 2008). All of these findings would seem to indicate that Diopatra do not decorate their tubes as a means of camouflage, as at best it has no effect on predation and at worst it places them at greater risk of attack. Tube Regeneration If the Diopatra’s tube does in fact serve as both a habitat and prey catcher for the worm, its existence is critical to the worm’s survival. As a result, it is expected that if the exposed portion of the tube were to be removed, the worm would immediately replace it. Failure to do so would likely result in starvation. To test this theory, I measured and marked thirty different Diopatra tubes (ten of each decoration type) and then removed the exposed portion of the tube at low tide in order to simulate a naturally occurring disturbance event. The tubes were then observed at each subsequent low tide to track their reconstruction process. It was found that twenty-four of the thirty tested tubes were already in the process of being reconstructed and six had no activity, likely indicating that there was no worm present. On average the worm was able to rebuild approximately 6-8 mm worth of exposed decorated portion of their tube in one low tide cycle. This rate of reconstruction remained relatively consistent over the next four low tides and by the fifth low tide all the inhabited tubes had returned to a functional level that was relatively similar to their initial length with no measurable length difference on the sixth low tide. Additionally, it was found that twenty of the newly exposed portions were decorated with the same material as the original exposed segment, while only four tubes had changed decoration material. This further supports the theory that tube decoration is determined by the proximity of resources rather than any preferences of the Diopatra. 14 Prey Identification An analysis of the organisms found on the outside of the tubes revealed that seven organisms were most commonly found: copepods, nematodes, gastropod larvae, amphipods, polychaetes, barnacle larvae, and Geukensia. Due to the relative frequency of copepods, nematodes, gastropod larvae, and amphipods as well as their consistent appearance across tubes and decoration types, they appear to be the most likely candidates for the Diopatra food source. As a result, these four species were further examined and used in the feeding trials to determine what Diopatra consume. By exposing Diopatra to a high concentration of their four most likely food sources, I hoped to observe and calculate what the worms eat. Ten individuals of each of the four candidate prey species were introduced onto the exterior of Diopatra tubes in the lab setting. The prey species were left on the tubes for twenty-four hours to allow ample time for normal feeding behavior. At the end of the twenty-four hour period the tubes were rinsed with ethanol to collect everything on the exterior of the tube. Upon analyzing the data, it was found that both copepods and nematodes were consumed at significantly higher rates than gastropod larvae and amphipods. On average, the worm ate 69% of the introduced copepods and 59% of the available nematodes, while nearly all of the gastropod larvae and amphipods were left behind. This would indicate that both copepods and nematodes serve as the primary food sources for the Diopatra, as they were both shown to be eaten by the worm and found in abundance on all three decoration types. Tubes as Farms It has been experimentally shown that a greater number of species accumulate near clumps of Diopatra tubes than elsewhere (Woodin, 1981). However, this seems counterintuitive 15 if the Diopatra feeds off these microorganisms. Two hypotheses have been proposed to explain this anomaly: the refuge hypothesis and the larval accumulation hypothesis, both of which may be true (Woodin, 1981). The refuge hypothesis draws largely on foraging theory, which puts forward the idea that the likelihood of an organism being preyed upon is related to the amount of time and energy a predator must expend in order to capture that particular organism relative to another (Woodin, 1981). Ultimately, to avoid predation an organism does not need to be able to avoid the predator, but rather to outrun other potential prey. Diopatra tubes provide greater habitat complexity than a sand water flat habitat, thus increasing epifauna predatory time and the energy level needed to reach prey (Woodin, 1981). Brenchley also spoke of this habitat complexity, explaining that Diopatra created a heterogeneous, complex “structural refuge” that differs from the homogeneous, local habitat (Brenchley, 1976). The larval accumulation hypothesis revolves around flow dynamics, stating that microfauna are not drawn to the decoration of the exterior of the tube, but rather end up on the tube by chance (Woodin 1981). The worm’s tubes disrupt the normal flow of water as it sticks out above the sediment surface, causing a higher number of species larvae to passively accumulate on the tubes (Woodin, 1981). I propose a modification to the refuge hypothesis presented by Woodin, which is that Diopatra are tool-using organisms that decorate their tubes in such a way as to appear to offer a refuge to microorganisms, but ultimately to act as farms in order to attract epifauna to live on them. The presence of a Diopatra tube creates a relative abundance of epifauna on and around the tube due to the protection the tube offers from predation (Woodin, 1981). This security comes at a cost, however, as the epifauna trade predation from other organisms for predation 16 from the Diopatra. It is therefore hypothesized that the relative rate of predation on epifauna by the Diopatra is less than the normal rate of epifaunal predation in a standard sand flat environment. Ultimately, the epifauna benefit from living on the tube rather than in the sand, and the Diopatra benefit by having a steady source of food available to them. Tool Use An organism can be considered a tool-using organism if it is manipulating an object to replace a natural behavior in order to make a task more achievable. A Diopatra is a tool-using organism because it utilizes the shells, sticks, and algae as a tool in the same way as the Galapagos woodpecker finch. Just as the finch holds a cactus spine or twig in its beak and uses it to poke inside holes of tree bark and force insects out for the bird to eat, the worm is manipulating the shells, sticks, and algae to decorate the exterior of its tube and attract prey. In both organisms, the utilization of the object replaces natural hunting behavior in order to make the task of acquiring prey more easily achievable. Without the decoration, the microorganisms would not take up residence on the exterior of the tube, just as without the twig the finch would not be able to force its prey out of hiding. 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