Oxygen consumption of the earthworm species .i.Dendrobaena mrazeki./i

0331984 - BC 2010 RIV FR eng J - Journal Article
Šustr, Vladimír - Pižl, Václav
Oxygen consumption of the earthworm species Dendrobaena mrazeki
European Journal of Soil Biology. Roč. 45, 5-6 (2009), s. 478-482. ISSN 1164-5563. E-ISSN 1778-3615
R&D Projects: GA ČR GA206/03/0056
Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z60660521
Keywords : earthworms * Dendrobaena mrazeki * respiration rate
Subject RIV: EH - Ecology, Behaviour
Impact factor: 1.247, year: 2009

Dendrobaena mrazeki is an endemic earthworm species inhabiting dry habitats such as pine and thermophilous oak forests in Central Europe. Metabolically, D. mrazeki showed some features typical for endogeic species and some of epigeic ones. In comparison with the related Dendrobaena octaedra, D. mrazeki was a larger earthworm with fresh body mass of adult and subadult individuals of W = 0.59±0.05 g. Its body mass-specific oxygen consumption (M/W = 48±5 µl O₂g^-1h^-1, at 15 °C) was the lowest of all earthworms studied(Aporrectodea caliginosa, A. rosea, D. octaedra, Lumbricus castaneus, L. rubellus, Octolasion lacteum), being strongly dependent on W (b from the equation M/W = aW^b about -0.8). D. mrazeki had low relative water content (77.4% of fresh body mass) and small relative amount of dry weight of the intestinal content(20.1% of dry body mass), which is similar to the epigeic D. octaedra.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0177352