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  • Reconciling the role of organic matter pathways in aquatic food webs by measuring multiple tracers in individuals

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    JardinePUB1940.pdf (458.0Kb)
    Author(s)
    Jardine, Timothy D
    Woods, Ryan
    Marshall, Jonathan
    Fawcett, James
    Lobegeiger, Jaye
    Valdez, Dominic
    Kainz, Martin J
    Griffith University Author(s)
    Marshall, Jonathan C.
    Valdez, Dominic
    Jardine, Timothy
    Year published
    2015
    Metadata
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    Abstract
    Few studies measure multiple ecological tracers in individual organisms, thus limiting our ability to differentiate among organic matter source pathways and understand consequences of dietary variation and the use of external subsidies in complex food webs. We combined two tracers, stable isotope (SI) ratios and fatty acids (FA), to investigate linkages among ecological compartments (water column, benthos, riparian zone) in food webs in waterholes of a dryland river network, the Border Rivers in southwestern Queensland, Australia. Comprehensive analyses of sources (plankton, periphyton, leaf litter, riparian grasses) and ...
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    Few studies measure multiple ecological tracers in individual organisms, thus limiting our ability to differentiate among organic matter source pathways and understand consequences of dietary variation and the use of external subsidies in complex food webs. We combined two tracers, stable isotope (SI) ratios and fatty acids (FA), to investigate linkages among ecological compartments (water column, benthos, riparian zone) in food webs in waterholes of a dryland river network, the Border Rivers in southwestern Queensland, Australia. Comprehensive analyses of sources (plankton, periphyton, leaf litter, riparian grasses) and animals (benthic insects, mollusks, large crustaceans, fishes) for SI and FA showed that all three zones contribute to animal biomass, depending on species and life stage. Large fishes derived a subsidy from the riparian/floodplain zone, likely through the consumption of terrestrial and semi-aquatic insects and prawns that fed on detritivorous insects. Importantly, post-larval bony bream (Nematalosa erebi) and golden perch (Macquaria ambigua) were tightly connected to the water column, as evidenced by 13C-depleted, 15N-enriched isotope ratios and a high content of plankton-derived polyunsaturated fatty acids (eicosapentaenoic acid [EPA; 20:5ω3] and docosahexaenoic acid [DHA; 22:6ω3]). These observations were consistent with expectations from nutritional requirements of fish early life stages and habitat changes associated with maturity. These results highlight the importance of high-quality foods during early development of fishes, and show that attempting to attribute food-web production to a single source pathway overlooks important but often subtle subsidies that maintain viable populations. A complete understanding of food-web dynamics must consider both quantity and quality of different available organic matter sources. This understanding can be achieved with a combined SI and FA approach, but more controlled dietary studies are needed to estimate how FA profiles are modified by animals when consuming a diverse range of diets of variable quality.
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    Journal Title
    Ecology
    Volume
    96
    Issue
    12
    DOI
    https://doi.org/10.1890/14-2153.1
    Copyright Statement
    © 2015 Ecological Society of America. The attached file is reproduced here in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. Please refer to the journal's website for access to the definitive, published version.
    Subject
    Ecology not elsewhere classified
    Ecological Applications
    Ecology
    Evolutionary Biology
    Publication URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/10072/141539
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    • Journal articles

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