Ecological and morphological traits predict depth-generalist fishes on coral reefs

Bridge, Tom C. L.; Luiz, Osmar J.; Coleman, Richard R.; Kane, Corinne; Kosaki, Randall K.

doi:10.1098/rspb.2015.2332

Cited by 50 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…Specialist dietary strategies incur greater risk due to decreased flexibility and limited resource distributions; therefore, species with broad depth distributions could be expected to exhibit generalist diets, while coral specialists should be limited to shallow waters (e.g. Bridge, Luiz, Coleman, Kane, & Kosaki, 2016). However, we demonstrate here that broad depth ranges in coral-specialist species can be supported via contrasting specialist and generalist dietary strategies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 60%

Alternative functional strategies and altered carbon pathways facilitate broad depth ranges in coral‐obligate reef fishes

et al. 2019

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Spatial refuges in peripheral habitats will become increasingly important for species persistence as climate change and other disturbances progressively impact habitat quality and assemblage compositions. However, the capacity for persistence will be determined in part by species‐specific abilities to absorb costs related to altered or decreased quantities and quality of resources at range peripheries. We compared variations in dietary strategies and energy acquisition trade‐offs along depth gradients in two obligate corallivores that differ in level of diet specialization. We also assessed depth‐related changes in energy pathways and energy content of their mixotrophic prey. We found no changes in feeding effort or total resource availability (total coral cover) towards deep range margins, but availability of the preferred resource (Acropora coral) decreased. While both species selectively targeted Acropora, the more specialized species (Chaetodon baronessa) exhibited limited feeding plasticity along the depth gradient. The degree of selectivity towards the preferred coral increased rather than decreased with depth, being 40 times greater than expected, given availability, at their range periphery. In contrast, the generalist's diet (Chaetodon octofasciatus) varied greatly in response to changes in resource availability with depth. Unexpectedly, the energy content of Acropora did not decline with depth, likely due to increased coral heterotrophy in deeper water, indicated by shifts in their molecular isotope geochemistry. This shift was accompanied by a 20% increase in plankton‐sourced carbon in the muscle tissue of deep‐resident fish, despite no observations of direct feeding on plankton food sources. Our results indicate that deep ranges in coral‐obligate reef fishes are supported by multiple mechanisms of trophic versatility in both the fish and corals. This nutritional plasticity likely serves a compensatory role in the resilience and eventual adaptation of organisms at their range peripheries. For species vulnerable to increasing anthropogenic impacts at range cores, variable and multi‐trophic functional responses can act to buffer against costs and increase the refuge potential of range peripheries. Specialist consumers may also be supported indirectly at range margins via trophic plasticity within their preferred prey. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 60%

Alternative functional strategies and altered carbon pathways facilitate broad depth ranges in coral‐obligate reef fishes

et al. 2019

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“…Understanding the nature and causes of spatial patterns of biodiversity has been a fundamental goal of ecological research for centuries (Mittelbach et al, 2007). Changes in the taxonomic and functional composition and endemism of ecological communities along environmental gradients associated with latitude, altitude and depth result in distinct biogeographical patterns across geographically isolated and phylogenetically distinct ecosystems (Bridge, Luiz, Coleman, Kane, & Kosaki, 2016;Goreau & Goreau, 1973;Mittelbach et al, 2007;Spalding et al, 2017;Willig, Kaufman, & Stevens, 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Global community breaks at 60 m on mesophotic coral reefs

Lesser

Slattery

Laverick

et al. 2019

Global Ecol Biogeogr

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Aim Mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs) are unique communities that support a high proportion of depth‐endemic species distinct from shallow‐water coral reefs. However, there is currently little consensus on the boundaries between shallow and mesophotic coral reefs and between upper versus lower MCEs because studies of these communities are often site specific. Here, we examine the ecological evidence for community breaks, defined here as species loss, in fish and benthic taxa between shallow reefs and MCEs globally. Location Global MCEs. Time period 1973–2017. Major taxa studied Macrophytes, Porifera, Scleractinia, Hydrozoa, Octocorallia, Antipatharia and teleost fishes. Methods We used random‐effects models and breakpoint analyses on presence/absence data to identify regions of higher than expected species loss along a depth gradient of 1–69 m, based on a meta‐analysis of 26 studies spanning diverse photoautotrophic and heterotrophic taxa. We then investigated the extent to which points of high faunal turnover can be explained by environmental factors, including light, temperature and nutrient availability. Results We found evidence for a community break, indicated by a significant loss of shallow‐water taxa, at ~ 60 m across several taxonomically and functionally diverse benthic groups and geographical regions. The breakpoint in benthic composition is best explained by decreasing light, which is correlated with the optical depths between 10 and 1% of surface irradiance. A concurrent shift in the availability of nutrients, both dissolved and particulate organic matter, and a shift from photoautotroph to heterotroph‐dominated assemblages also occurs at ~ 60 m depth. Main conclusions We found evidence for global community breaks across multiple benthic taxa at ~ 60 m depth, indicative of distinct community transitions between shallow and mesophotic coral ecosystems. Changes in the underwater light environment and the availability of trophic resources along the depth gradient are the most parsimonious explanations for the observed patterns.

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“…For example, a recent study revealed correlations between body centre of mass and locomotor mode in extant squamates (Clemente, 2014). Similar methods indicate feeding ecology in coral reef fishes (Bridge et al, 2016), and linear body metrics have been used to predict locomotor mode in fossil archosaurs (Kubo & Kubo, 2012). Facultative bipedality has been associated with a long tail and a low intermembral index ([Humerus + Radius] Ä [Femur + Tibia]) in the fossil record of Archosauria (Galton, 1973;Padian, 2008;Persons & Currie, 2017), Lepidosauria (Simões et al, 2017) and in extant squamates (Snyder, 1962;Irschick & Jayne, 1999a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 72%

The relationship between body shape, body size and locomotor mode in extant lepidosaurs

Grinham

Norman

2020

Journal of Zoology

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Despite historic work, the mechanisms and evolutionary drivers associated with the adoption of a facultatively bipedal locomotor mode in extant lepidosaurs are unclear. Recent work has provided insights into the biomechanical triggers of bipedal locomotion, but the associated anatomies are yet to be fully understood, particularly with regard to body size across Lepidosauria. Using a dataset derived from museum specimens, representing a range of lepidosaur body shapes, we highlight the differences between obligate quadrupeds and facultative bipeds within this group and demonstrate the value of non-caudal skeletal material in identifying facultative bipeds using osteology alone. We use multiple statistical approaches to identify trends across locomotor modes relative to body size. Body size has a significant effect upon body proportions across the two locomotor modes, especially in the hindlimbs. Forelimb lengths do not differ significantly across locomotor modes for animals of similar body size, but distal hindlimbs are significantly longer in facultative bipeds. Interestingly, femoral length does not differ across locomotor modes of a similar body size. Our findings contrast with historical tropes and are significant for future work attempting to identify the factors driving the evolution of a facultatively bipedal locomotor mode in Lepidosauria.

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Ecological and morphological traits predict depth-generalist fishes on coral reefs

Cited by 50 publications

References 47 publications

Alternative functional strategies and altered carbon pathways facilitate broad depth ranges in coral‐obligate reef fishes

Alternative functional strategies and altered carbon pathways facilitate broad depth ranges in coral‐obligate reef fishes

Global community breaks at 60 m on mesophotic coral reefs

The relationship between body shape, body size and locomotor mode in extant lepidosaurs

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