Trophic Ecology of Meso- and Bathypelagic Predatory Fishes in the Gulf of Mexico

Authors

Travis M. Richards, Texas A&M University
Emily E. Gipson, University of Central Florida
April Cook, Nova Southeastern UniversityFollow
Tracey Sutton, Nova Southeastern UniversityFollow
R. J. David Wells, Texas A&M University

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2019

Publication Title

ICES Journal of Marine Science

Keywords

Bathypelagic, Epipelagic, Feeding ecology, Mesopelagic, Mixing models, Stable isotopes

ISSN

1095-9289

Volume

76

Issue/No.

3

First Page

662

Last Page

672

Abstract

The trophic ecology of eight circumglobal meso- and bathypelagic fishes (Anoplogaster cornuta, Chauliodus sloani, Coccorella atlantica, Gigantura chuni, G. indica, Omosudis lowii, Photostomias guernei, and Stomias affinis) with contrasting vertical migration habits (vertical migrators vs. non-migrators) were examined using stable isotope analysis (SIA). Mean δ¹³C values of these predators were similar among species, ranging from –18.17 to –18.99 ‰, suggesting that all species are supported by a similar carbon source. This finding was supported by mixing-model analysis; all of these deep-living predators received the majority (>73%) of their carbon from epipelagic food resources. Mean δ¹⁵N values of the predators ranged from 9.18 to 11.13 ‰, resulting in trophic position estimates between the third and fourth trophic level, although significant shifts in δ¹⁵N with increasing body size suggest that some of these species undergo ontogenetic shifts in trophic position. Bayesian standard ellipses, used to estimate isotopic niche areas, differed in size among species, with those occupying the highest relative trophic positions possessing the largest isotopic niches. These results, which provide the first trophic descriptions using dietary tracers for several of these species, offer insight into the trophic structure of deep-sea ecosystems and will help inform the construction of ecosystem-based models.

Comments

©International Council for the Exploration of the Sea 2018. All rights reserved

NSUWorks Citation

Travis M. Richards, Emily E. Gipson, April Cook, Tracey Sutton, and R. J. David Wells. 2019. Trophic Ecology of Meso- and Bathypelagic Predatory Fishes in the Gulf of Mexico .ICES Journal of Marine Science , (3) : 662 -672. https://nsuworks.nova.edu/occ_facarticles/1060.

ORCID ID

0000-0002-5280-7071

DOI

10.1093/icesjms/fsy074