Who eats whom? Assessing food web structure of infralittoral benthic

Who eats whom? Assessing food web structure of infralittoral benthic

IX Simposio de Estudios Polares del Comité Español del Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR), 5-7 September 2018, Madrid, España.-- 1 page

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Main Authors: Cardona, Luis, De Castro-Fernández, Paula, Lloret Lloret, Elena, Àvila, Conxita
Format: comunicación de congreso biblioteca
Published: Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research 2018-09-05
Subjects:Intrinsic markers, Trophic interactions, Benthic communities, Food web structure,
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/193274
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spelling dig-icm-es-10261-1932742022-09-20T11:05:24Z Who eats whom? Assessing food web structure of infralittoral benthic Cardona, Luis De Castro-Fernández, Paula Lloret Lloret, Elena Àvila, Conxita Intrinsic markers Trophic interactions Benthic communities Food web structure IX Simposio de Estudios Polares del Comité Español del Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR), 5-7 September 2018, Madrid, España.-- 1 page Understanding the structure of food webs is essential to determine ecosystems functioning. Primary production is highly seasonal in Antarctic ecosystems and organic matter reaches the benthos primarily as pulses during the summer months. The variability observed in food chain length and food web topology across natural ecosystems in shallow marine benthic Antarctic ecosystems could be explained by the latitudinal variation in day length throughout the year, and also by the latitudinal variation of the sea ice cover during winter period. This study aims to test the hypothesis that shorter and more redundant food webs prevail at higher latitudes as a result of a shorter summer season. Samples of phytoplankton and 14 other species from shallow rocky bottoms were collected at five locations along a latitudinal gradient including the South Shetland Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula. Stable isotopes of C and N and heavy metals were used as intrinsic markers in order to reconstruct the food web structure at each site and Layman metrics were used to describe and compare food web topology. Results revealed no latitudinal differences in food web topology along the South Shetland archipelago and the western Antarctic Peninsula. Nevertheless, local differences existed, because the C range was narrower in Esperanza and Rothera than in the other three sites. According to C and N stable isotope ratios, phytoplankton, encrusting red algae and detritus from macroalgae were the main sources of organic carbon for all the food webs considered. Everywhere, holothurians relied primarily on phytoplankton, sea urchins on a diversity of fleshy macroalgae and detritus, and limpets on encrusting red algae. On the other hand, sponges were the most depleted consumers in 13C and hence useda C source clearly different from that of herbivores, likely detritus from Desmarestia spp and/or bacterioplankton. In all sampled sites, the predator starfishes Odontaster validus and Diplasterias brucei were at approximately trophic level 3 and consumedvariable proportions of herbivores. Hg levels supported the above reported topology of the food web suggested by stable isotope ratios. In conclusion, the benthic food web of infralittoral rocky bottoms from the South Shetland Islands and western Antarctic Peninsula is short and redundant, but is supported by a diversity of carbon sources. There were no latitudinal differences in food web structure among sites, even though there were local differences. Hence, intrinsic markers suggest that shallow benthic communities are more influenced by local processes than by those operating at broader geographic scales Peer Reviewed 2019-10-23T12:01:43Z 2019-10-23T12:01:43Z 2018-09-05 2019-10-23T12:01:43Z comunicación de congreso http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_5794 isbn: 978-84-8344-670-6 IX Simposio de Estudios Polares : Libro de Résumenes : Abstract volume: 21 (2018) http://hdl.handle.net/10261/193274 Sí none Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research
institution ICM ES
collection DSpace
country España
countrycode ES
component Bibliográfico
access En linea
databasecode dig-icm-es
tag biblioteca
region Europa del Sur
libraryname Biblioteca del ICM España
topic Intrinsic markers
Trophic interactions
Benthic communities
Food web structure
Intrinsic markers
Trophic interactions
Benthic communities
Food web structure
spellingShingle Intrinsic markers
Trophic interactions
Benthic communities
Food web structure
Intrinsic markers
Trophic interactions
Benthic communities
Food web structure
Cardona, Luis
De Castro-Fernández, Paula
Lloret Lloret, Elena
Àvila, Conxita
Who eats whom? Assessing food web structure of infralittoral benthic
description IX Simposio de Estudios Polares del Comité Español del Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR), 5-7 September 2018, Madrid, España.-- 1 page
format comunicación de congreso
topic_facet Intrinsic markers
Trophic interactions
Benthic communities
Food web structure
author Cardona, Luis
De Castro-Fernández, Paula
Lloret Lloret, Elena
Àvila, Conxita
author_facet Cardona, Luis
De Castro-Fernández, Paula
Lloret Lloret, Elena
Àvila, Conxita
author_sort Cardona, Luis
title Who eats whom? Assessing food web structure of infralittoral benthic
title_short Who eats whom? Assessing food web structure of infralittoral benthic
title_full Who eats whom? Assessing food web structure of infralittoral benthic
title_fullStr Who eats whom? Assessing food web structure of infralittoral benthic
title_full_unstemmed Who eats whom? Assessing food web structure of infralittoral benthic
title_sort who eats whom? assessing food web structure of infralittoral benthic
publisher Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research
publishDate 2018-09-05
url http://hdl.handle.net/10261/193274
work_keys_str_mv AT cardonaluis whoeatswhomassessingfoodwebstructureofinfralittoralbenthic
AT decastrofernandezpaula whoeatswhomassessingfoodwebstructureofinfralittoralbenthic
AT lloretlloretelena whoeatswhomassessingfoodwebstructureofinfralittoralbenthic
AT avilaconxita whoeatswhomassessingfoodwebstructureofinfralittoralbenthic
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