Effects of intra-population variation in dogwhelk drilling on the abundance and size of Mytilus californianus mussels

Few eco-evolutionary studies have analyzed the impacts that evolutionary processes have on community dynamics in a natural field setting. We studied the effects of intra-population variation in predation in a marine dogwhelk (Nucella canaliculata) on mussel bed succession. We outplanted dogwhelks that were reared on four early-life diet treatments and showed evidence of differential mortality and variation in drilling capacity in the lab to experimental field cages and followed the trajectory of succession over the course of a year. At the end of the experiment, the organisms within the cages were collected and the mussels (Mytilus californianus) were measured. Mussels represent the end stage of succession, thus we studied whether variation in drilling traits would impact the size and structure of the mussel bed.