Trophic niche partitioning of littoral fish species from the rocky intertidal of Helgoland, Germany

Abstract

During a 3-year field study, interspecific and interannual differences in the trophic ecology of littoral fish species were investigated in the rocky intertidal of Helgoland island (North Sea). We investigated trophic niche partitioning of common coexisting littoral fish species based on a multi-tracer approach using stable isotope and fatty acids in order to show differences and similarities in resource use and feeding modes. The results of the dualtracer approach showed clear trophic niche partitioning of the five target fish species, the goldsinny wrasse Ctenolabrus rupestris, the sand goby Pomatoschistus minutus, the painted goby Pomatoschistus pictus, the short-spined sea scorpion Myoxocephalus scorpius and the long-spined sea scorpion Taurulus bubalis. Both stable isotopes and fatty acids showed distinct differences in the trophic ecology of the studied fish species. However, the combined use of the two techniques added an additional resolution on the interannual scale. The sand goby P. minutus showed the largest trophic plasticity with a pronounced variability between years. The present data analysis provides valuable information on trophic niche partitioning of fish species in the littoral zones of Helgoland and on complex benthic food webs in general.

Comparison of Fatty Acid Contents in Major Lipid Classes of Seven Salmonid Species from Siberian Arctic Lakes

“…In ecological studies, analysis of FA trophic markers of various consumers is often performed for TAG assuming that they generally deposit fatty acid molecules coming from food assimilation [18,25,26]. Meanwhile, many studies used FA composition of total lipids to elucidate trophic relations of various fish species, e.g., [27][28][29][30][31]. In overall, both approaches base on a premise that biochemical composition of food sources is reflected by FA profiles of TAG or total lipids.…”

Trophic relationships in tidepool fish assemblages of the tropical Southwestern Atlantic

“…However, ontogenetic changes in diet, such as in omnivorous species shifting to herbivory in adulthood, also lead to changes in trophic guilds throughout life (Muñoz & Ojeda, , ) and induce temporal variations at both guild and community structure levels (Wilson & Sheaves, ). In this respect, stable isotope and fatty acid analyses are promising approaches to characterize complex trophic interactions and define trophic niches (Hielscher et al, ) through the integration of spatial and temporal information of the trophic relationships within communities (Nagata et al, ).…”

“…Moreover, studies on diet and trophic ecology of tropical inter‐tidal fishes (Castellanos‐Galindo & Giraldo, ; Kotrschal & Thomson, ; Zamprogno, ) are incipient when compared to tropical subtidal fishes (Dubiaski‐Silva & Masunari, ; Ferreira & Gonçalves, ; Ferreira, Floeter, Gasparini, Ferreira, & Joyeux, ; Ferreira, Gonçalves, Coutinho, & Peret, ; Randall, ) or temperate inter‐tidal fishes (Grossman, ; Hielscher, Malzahn, Diekmann, & Aberle, ; Muñoz & Ojeda, , , ; Velasco et al, ). The inter‐tidal reef of Castelhanos beach, in the tropical Southwestern Atlantic, has a carbonate substrate and undergoes complete submersion at high tide (Macieira & Joyeux, ).…”

Is resource partitioning the key? The role of intra‐interspecific variation in coexistence among five small endemic fish species (Characidae) in subtropical rivers

“…In this scenario of the background of fundamentally opposing premises, there is a growing body of empirical and theoretical literature that relates traits variation within and among populations, community and ecosystem processes (Correa & Winemiller, ; Leibold & McPeeK, ; Silva et al ., ). This eco‐evolutionary synthesis has garnered substantial attention in recent years, based in large part on increasing evidence that the individual variation of many populations is essential for species coexistence and community diversity, corroborating the premises of the niche theory (Barros et al ., ; Bolnick et al ., ; Chase & Leibold, ; Hielscher et al ., ; Silva et al ., ). According to Ross (), species segregate into three main dimensions of the niche: space, time and food.…”