The influence of nutrients from carcasses of sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) on larval growth and spawner abundance

Weaver, Daniel M.; Coghlan, Stephen M.; Zydlewski, Joseph D.

doi:10.7755/fb.116.2.3

Cited by 9 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 13 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The variability associated with the duration of the larval period (2–12 years) may be explained by the productivity of the inhabited waters (Dawson, Quintella, Almeida, Treble, & Jolley, ; Potter, ; Purvis, ). Weaver, Coghlan, and Zydlewski () explored the hypothesis that larval sea lamprey growth and metamorphosis are manipulated by changes in productivity invoked by subsidies of adult carcass nutrients. Thus, the exchange of nutrients and material by sea lamprey may alter the reciprocation of the subsidy between marine and freshwater ecosystems through population level changes among larvae.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Subsidies from anadromous sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) carcasses function as a reciprocal nutrient exchange between marine and freshwaters

Weaver

Coghlan

Greig

et al. 2018

River Research & Apps

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Nutrient and energy flows across ecosystem boundaries subsidize recipient communities and influence bottom-up processes in food webs. Migratory fish such as anadromous sea lamprey provide a pulse of marine-derived nutrients and energy to Atlantic coastal streams in spring when organisms would otherwise be subject to limiting resources. We conducted sea lamprey carcass addition experiments to characterize the role of subsidies on producer and consumer trophic pathways by manipulating subsidy quantity and light exposure. We demonstrated that producer and decomposer productivity is constrained by nutrients during spring; however, these limitations were reduced in producers as light limitations intensified through riparian shading. We observed no significant effects of increasing carcass subsidies on producer and decomposer biomass. Our results suggest that high densities of carcass subsidies may stimulate primary productivity; however, these effects are mediated by the degree of riparian shading, which demonstrated a onefold to fourfold difference in biomass accrual. In addition, sea lamprey carcass nutrients were captured by larval conspecifics. Stable isotopes analysis demonstrated that adult sea lamprey carcass tissue was relatively enriched in 15 N and 13 C isotopes compared with larvae. We observed significant enrichment in the 13 C isotope among larvae sampled after 2 and 4 weeks of exposure to adult carcass nutrients. Our work suggests that a portion of sea lamprey subsidies serve as a reciprocal exchange between freshwaters and the ocean. We highlight that this cross-ecosystem linkage is likely influenced by subsidy quantity from donor systems and is mediated by environmental characteristics affecting the recipient system.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Subsidies from anadromous sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) carcasses function as a reciprocal nutrient exchange between marine and freshwaters

Weaver

Coghlan

Greig

et al. 2018

River Research & Apps

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Pulsed subsidies of MDN from anadromous fish increase the primary productivity of freshwater ecosystems through the bottomup pathway of nutrient incorporation. In temperate regions, where freshwater ecosystems are less productive than marine ecosystems, MDN from anadromous species transfers nutrients to freshwater ecosystems increasing their primary productivity (Wipfli et al, 2010;Weaver et al, 2016;Weaver et al, 2018a). In the Penobscot River basin, both bottom-up and top-down pathways of MDN incorporation in freshwater ecosystems have been studied experimentally through carcass addition and theoretically through modeling (Guyette et al, 2013;Guyette et al, 2014;Weaver et al, 2015;Weaver et al, 2016;Weaver et al, 2018b;Weaver et al, 2018c;Zydlewski et al, 2021).…”

Section: Seventh: Loss Of Ecosystem Servicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seven dam challenges for migratory fish: insights from the Penobscot River

Zydlewski,

Coghlan,

Dillingham

et al. 2023

Front. Ecol. Evol.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

More than a century of impoundments in the Penobscot River, Maine, USA, has contributed to population declines in migratory fish in the system. A decade of change, research, and monitoring has revealed direct and indirect ways that dams have influenced the river habitat, connectivity for migratory fish, and the food web. The removal of two main-stem dams (in 2012 and 2013) and bolstering of fish passage have been part of coordinated restoration efforts in the watershed. Integral to this undertaking was support for short- and long-term monitoring and research that included physical habitat, fish passage, and broad scale ecological assessments. Herein we discuss the seven interconnected and complex ways that dams have affected the Penobscot River ecosystem, particularly for migratory fish. These include familiar influences ascribed to dams: i) impaired access to habitat, ii) injury and mortality, and iii) delays of migration. Other ecological influences are less studied and more subtle: iv) facilitation of predation, v) community shifts, and vi) demographic shifts. Lastly, dams result in vii) a loss of ecosystem services that would otherwise be intact in an unimpounded system. We draw on both direct examples from the Penobscot River and broader information to characterize how impoundments have transformed this ecosystem for more than a century. Recent dam removals and mitigation efforts have reestablished some of these ecological functions.

show abstract

“…Northwestern Atlantic freshwater ecosystems are generally nutrient-poor, and there is relatively little information describing MDN dynamics for these systems. However, recent field studies have demonstrated that when rivers are enriched with MDN from diadromous fishes, the impacts include: changes in biofilm standing stock and productivity (Walters et al, 2009;Weaver et al, 2017), increased macroinvertebrates composition and abundance Samways et al, 2017;Weaver et al, 2018a), and increased juvenile fish growth (Guyette et al, 2013;Weaver et al, 2016Weaver et al, , 2018bSamways et al, 2017). MDN have also been shown to directly (consumption of diadromous fishes) and indirectly (consumption of prey that consumed diadromous fishes) benefit various avian species (Dalton et al, 2009;Call, 2015).…”

Section: Nutrient Cyclingmentioning

confidence: 99%

The diadromous watersheds-ocean continuum: Managing diadromous fish as a community for ecosystem resilience

Ouellet

Collins²,

Kocik

et al. 2022

Front. Ecol. Evol.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Diadromous fishes play important ecological roles by delivering ecosystem services and making crucial connections along the watersheds-ocean continuum. However, it is difficult to fully understand the community-level impacts and cumulative benefits of diadromous fish migrations, as these species are most often considered individually or in small groups. Their interactions at a community level (e.g., interdependencies such as predation, co-migration, and habitat conditioning) and the connections between their ecosystem roles and functions (e.g., cumulative marine-derived nutrient contributions, impacts on stream geomorphology) are yet to be fully understood. Similarly, freshwater, estuarine, and marine ecosystems are often considered as independent parts, limiting understanding of the importance of connections across systems. We argue that not considering the ecosystem interdependence and importance of diadromous fish as a community currently hinders the implementation of the large-scale management required to increase ecosystem resilience and fish productivity across the full range of these species. We developed a conceptual model, the Diadromous Watersheds-Ocean Continuum (DWOC), that uses ecosystem services to promote a more holistic approach to the management of the diadromous community and encourages an integrated understanding of the ecosystem connections made by these species. DWOC provides a framework for discussions that can help identify research and management needs, discuss the trade-offs of different management options, and analyze what pressing questions impede the implementation of large-scale management solutions toward a more ecosystem-based management approach.

show abstract

The influence of nutrients from carcasses of sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) on larval growth and spawner abundance

Cited by 9 publications

References 13 publications

Subsidies from anadromous sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) carcasses function as a reciprocal nutrient exchange between marine and freshwaters

Subsidies from anadromous sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) carcasses function as a reciprocal nutrient exchange between marine and freshwaters

Seven dam challenges for migratory fish: insights from the Penobscot River

The diadromous watersheds-ocean continuum: Managing diadromous fish as a community for ecosystem resilience

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About