COPROPHAGY IN MARINE ANIMALS1

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Abstract
Rates of coprophagy were determined in 38 feeding studies. The animals consumed from 0 to 83% of their body weight in fecal pellets during 48 hr. The fecal pellets used included those of the polychaete Onuphis microcephala, a prosobranch gastropod (family Ilydrobiidae), the pelecypod Crassostrea virginica, the crustaceans Callianassa major and Penaeus setiferus, and the telcost Mugil cephalus. The animals offered these pellets included three polychaetes, four gastropods, three pelecypods, seven crustaceans, and three telcosts.Coprophagy rates are compared with calculated maintenance food requirements of the test animals. Fecal ingestion rates were positively correlated with carbon and nitrogen contents of the pellets. The potential effects of coprophagy in marine ecosystems arc discussed emphasizing the effect of coprophagy on the overall energy transfer efficiency of marine food chains.