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Distribution and trophic links of gelatinous zooplankton on Dogger Bank, North Sea

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Abstract

The ecology of small, gelatinous zooplankton is not integrated into management of Dogger Bank (54° 00′ N, 3° 25′ E to 55° 35′ N, 2° 20′ E). In pursuit of this goal, gelatinous zooplankton and their potential prey were sampled along a transect across the bank on June 10–16, 2007. Eleven species of small medusae and ctenophores were collected, with six abundant taxa occurring in greater numbers below the thermocline and in the shallower, southeastern portion of the bank. There were no statistically significant diel changes in distribution. In contrast, potential prey were distributed more evenly across the bank and throughout the water column. Isotopic analyses revealed that gelatinous zooplankton fed on both smaller (100–300 μm) and larger (>300 μm) mesozooplankton, but also potentially on each other. These ecological insights suggest that small medusae and ctenophores should be integrated into sustainable management of Dogger Bank.

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Acknowledgments

Special thanks go to the captain and crew of FS Alkor, chief scientist Jens Floeter, and technical assistant Silke Janβen. We thank students Karolin Berg, Franziska Bils, Marco Brunotte, Kerstin Oetting, and Torben Riehl for their invaluable assistance in the field and anonymous reviewers and the Associate Editor for their valuable comments. This paper is a contribution to EUR-OCEANS Network of Excellence funded by the European Commission (WP4-SYSMS-1101). J. R. Frost was supported by a EUR-OCEANS fellowship.

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  1. Morten Holtegaard Nielsen

    Present address: Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Kgs., Lyngby, Denmark

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Hydrobiology and Fisheries Science, University of Hamburg, Grosse Elbstrasse 133, 22767, Hamburg, Germany

    Jessica R. Frost, Anneke Denda, Rolf Koppelmann & Morten Holtegaard Nielsen

  2. Scottish Association for Marine Science, Oban, Argyll, PA37 1QA, UK

    Clive J. Fox

  3. Soil and Water Science Department, University of Florida, 7922 NW 71st Street, Gainesville, FL, 32653, USA

    Charles A. Jacoby

  4. Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, Florida Atlantic University, 5600 U.S. Highway 1 North, Fort Pierce, FL, 34946, USA

    Marsh J. Youngbluth

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  1. Jessica R. Frost
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Correspondence to Jessica R. Frost.

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Communicated by J. Purcell.

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Frost, J.R., Denda, A., Fox, C.J. et al. Distribution and trophic links of gelatinous zooplankton on Dogger Bank, North Sea. Mar Biol 159, 239–253 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-011-1803-7

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