Otolith strontium traces environmental history of subyearling American shad Alosa sapidissima

Abstract

Sagittal otoliths of young-of-year American shad Alosa sapidjssirna from the Hudson River estuary, New York, USA, were transected with an X-ray-dispersive microprobe to examine temporal patterns of strontium, a micro-constituent found in otolith aragonite. Otoliths were assayed from fish reared on known diets (freshwater zooplankton, followed by artificial diet containing marine fishmeal) in fresh water. The switch from freshwater plankton to artificial diet resulted in a significant rise in Sr:Ca ratio in the otolith (mean increase 3.2-fold, p < 0.001) both for fish reared at 12S°C and those reared at 22"C, although there was no significant difference in Sr:Ca increases between the 2 temperature treatments. In a field study, Sr:Ca values of otoliths from wild fish caught in the freshwater reaches of the Hudson were low (mean 0.79 X 1 0 -~ Sr:Ca * 0.32 SD, range 0.00 to 1.46 X 1 0 -~) .Six fish captured in a single t.raw1 in the lower estuary on 25 September 1990 had low Sr:Ca values on the inner parts of their otoliths (corresponding to younger age: mean Sr.Ca = 0.98 X 1 0 '~ * 0.38 SU), but the strontium content increased 3-to 5-fold (mean Sr:Ca = 3.62 X 10-3 2 0.71 SD) on the outer parts, corresponding to dates when the fish were older. The change in strontium content is consistent with the movement of fish from freshwater to seawater, as seawater has a higher Sr concentration and ratio of Sr:Ca. The same change was seen in the otolith of a female adult shad and has been documented in other diadromous fishes. Three of these juveniles had such anomalous early growth patterns as to suggest their origin in a natal river other than the Hudson. The estimated seawater entry dates of these fish were as early as late June. This is the first demonstration of such early outmigration, and possibly vagrancy, in young-of-year of this species, and contributes to our understanding of American shad life history.

Do vertebral chemical signatures distinguish juvenile blacktip shark (Carcharhinus limbatus) nursery regions in the northern Gulf of Mexico?

“…The usefulness of natural biogeochemical tags derived from calcified structures stems from the relationship between water chemistry, other environmental factors and element : Ca ratios in the structures themselves. Under estuarine conditions, bony fish otolith Sr : Ca generally shows a positive correlation with salinity, whereas Ba : Ca typically shows a negative relationship with salinity (Limburg 1995;Elsdon and Gillanders 2005;Macdonald and Crook 2010). Because a large portion of otolith Sr and Ba is derived from the surrounding water (Walther and Thorrold 2006;Webb et al 2012;Izzo et al 2015), fluctuations in Sr : Ca and Ba : Ca can be used to infer the relative salinity of environments experienced by a fish during its lifetime (e.g.…”

“…Because a large portion of otolith Sr and Ba is derived from the surrounding water (Walther and Thorrold 2006;Webb et al 2012;Izzo et al 2015), fluctuations in Sr : Ca and Ba : Ca can be used to infer the relative salinity of environments experienced by a fish during its lifetime (e.g. Limburg 1995). Similarly, Scharer et al (2012) reported that the Sr : Ca in vertebral sections of the smalltooth sawfish (Pristis pectinata) had a positive correlation with salinity, and Smith et al (2013) reported that the Ba : Ca in the vertebrae of round stingray (Urobatis halleri) was correlated with Ba in seawater.…”

Dietary effects on multi-element composition of European eel (Anguilla anguilla) otoliths

“…Element composition of biogenic aragonites is thought to depend mainly on physicochemical properties of the surrounding water (Campana 1999). Nevertheless, it has been repeatedly reported that endogenous factors such as diet might have an eVect on the element compositions of Wsh otoliths (Limburg 1995;Farrell and Campana 1996;Gallahar and Kingsford 1996;Buckel et al 2004) as well as cephalopod statoliths (Zumholz et al 2006), since cations entering the inner ear endolymph via the blood circuit can originate either from branchial or intestinal uptake (Campana 1999). Previous investigations on the importance of food on element incorporation into otoliths were highly ambiguous.…”

“…Walther and Thorrold (2006) concluded that Sr and Ba contents in marine Wsh otoliths clearly reXect ambient Sr and Ba concentrations, while Kennedy et al (2000) reported 70% of the Sr isotopic signature in freshwater Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) otoliths to originate from food. SigniWcant dietary eVects on strontium incorporation have been demonstrated for American shad (Alosa sapidissima) (Limburg 1995) and Black bream (Girella elevata) (Gallahar and Kingsford 1996) and for strontium and barium incorporation in blueWsh (Pomatomus saltatrix) (Buckel et al 2004). No eVects were detected for the uptake of magnesium, potassium, strontium, sodium, and calcium in Red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus) (HoV and Fuiman 1995), for strontium, copper and lead in barramundi (Milton and Chenery 2001), for sodium, magnesium, potassium, calcium and manganese in blueWsh (P. saltatrix) (Buckel et al 2004) and for strontium in Japanese eel (Anguilla japonica) (Lin et al 2007).…”

Influence of temperature and salinity on the trace element incorporation into statoliths of the common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis)

“…Arai et al 2004;Limburg 1995Limburg , 1996Limburg , 1998Campana et al 2000; for a comprehensive review see : Campana 1999). Compared to fish otoliths, there have been only few studies examining the chemical composition of cephalopod statoliths (e.g.…”