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Abundance and dispersal potential of horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus) larvae in the Delaware estuary

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Abstract

The distribution, abundance, and dispersal patterns of horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus) trilobite larvae were determined from 671 plankton tows taken near a spawning beach in lower Delaware Bay, New Jersey, in 1998 and 1999. In both years, peaks in larval abundance occurred during periods of rough surf (>30 cm wave heights). Planktonic larvae were significantly more abundant nocturnally than during the day, but there was no evidence of a lunar component to larval abundance. Larvae were strongly concentrated inshore; trilobites were 10–100 times more abundant in the immediate vicinity of the shoreline than they were 100–200 m offshore. The strong tendency ofLimulus larvae to remain close to the beach suggests that their capability for long-range dispersal between estuaries is extremely limited. We suggest that limited larval dispersal potential may help explain previously observed patterns of genetic variation among the Mid-Atlantic horseshoe crab populations.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Natural Sciences, Fordham College at Lincoln Center, 113 West 60th Street, 10023, New York, New York

    Mark L. Botton

  2. Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Cook College, Rutgers-The State University, 08901, New Brunswick, New Jersey

    Mark L. Botton

  3. Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources, Cook College, Rutgers-The State University, 08901, New Brunswick, New Jersey

    Robert E. Loveland

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  1. Mark L. Botton
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  2. Robert E. Loveland
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Correspondence to Mark L. Botton.

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Botton, M.L., Loveland, R.E. Abundance and dispersal potential of horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus) larvae in the Delaware estuary. Estuaries 26, 1472–1479 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02803655

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