Ecology of Deposit-Feeding Animals in Marine Sediments

Deposit-feeding animals acquire food by swallowing large volumes of sediment. Possible food sources include organic debris and sediment-associated microbes. The relative importance of these classes of food is currelty an area of active research. The idea that microbes attached to sediment and detritus particles constitute the major food source for deposit feeders is being replaced by more complex models that incorporate interactions between animals and the food sources in the sedimentary matrix. Many deposit feeders appear to require both microbial and detrital foods. Deposit feeders display many adaptations appear to be cosistent with the energy maximization principle of optimal foraging theory, but rigorous testing of foraging models has proven to be difficult. Elucidation of deposit-feeding strategies may develop as optimal foraging theory is integrated with physiological energetics.