Feeding of a tunicate Dolioletta gegenbauri on cultured red-tide raphidophycean flagellate Chattonella antiqua

Ingestion and clearance rate of Dolioletta gegenbauri gonozooid were determined while animals were fed on the cultured red-tide flagellate Chattonella antiqua at concentrations of 30-500 cells ml super(-1). Ingestion rates increased linearly with increasing cell concentration up to 500 cells ml super(-1). Clearance rates ranged from 0.8 to 11.9 ml animal super(-1)h super(-1). Assuming a constant feeding rate over 24 h, the population clearance rate of gonozooid in a mesocosm was estimated to be over 100% of their resident volume per day at these highest abundance of 1 x 10 super(4) gonozooids m super(-3).