Sea urchin reproductive performance in a changing ocean: poor males improve while good males worsen in response to ocean acidification.

ABSTRACT: Ocean acidification (OA) is predicted to be a major driver of ocean biodiversity change. At projected rates of change, sensitive marine taxa may not have time to adapt. Their persistence may depend on pre-existing inter-individual variability. We investigated individual male reproductive performance under present-day and OA conditions using two representative broadcast spawners, the sea urchins Lytechinus pictus and Heliocidaris erythrogramma. Under the non-competitive individual ejaculate scenario, we examined sperm functional parameters (e.g. swimming speed, motility) and their relationship with fertilization success under current and near-future OA conditions. Significant inter-individual differences in almost every parameter measured were identified. Importantly, we observed strong inv

SUBMITTER: Smith KE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6661356 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature