Preliminary Investigation of the Exploitation of Some Potential Nutritional Resources by Three Sympatric Tubificid Oligochaetes

Abstract

Eight heterotrophic aerobic bacteria were identified in samples from Toronto Harbour. The three tubificid species present seem to ingest most if not all of these, but different species survive passage through the gut. One of the three worm species absorbs amino acid from solution in the absence of bacteria in the gut. It is suggested that the results indicate differences in the utilization of the potential nutritional resources by the worms, which may be reflected in the ability of three unspecialized sediment feeders to coexist in the same microhabitat.