Abstract
Tributaries greatly influence the supply of organic matter to large rivers. In this study, we used carbon (ẟ13C) and nitrogen (ẟ15N) stable isotopes to assess if organic matter from tributaries with different 15N compositions influenced the food webs of downstream fish assemblages. In addition, we aimed to evaluate if estimates of fish trophic position (TP) are influenced by 15N-depleted and 15N-enriched baselines. We compared the food web of a fish assemblage upstream from tributaries (control site), with food webs downstream from 15N-depleted (site 1) and 15N-enriched tributaries (site 2). Fishes and resources collected from sites 1 and 2 had significant differences in ẟ15N composition (15 N-depleted and 15N-enriched, respectively) relative to their conspecifics from the control site. At the control site, fish species’ TPs were more reliable and realistic based on their known feeding ecology, with TPs ranging between 2 and 3. In contrast, fish TPs at sites 1 and 2 ranged between 2 and 6, and no consistency was observed among trophic guilds. We conclude that tributaries exert a great influence on fish food webs at downstream sites, either by direct assimilation of organic matter by consumers, or by assimilation of the dissolved inorganic nitrogen by primary producers. In addition, fishes under influence of pollution may exhibit an inaccurate representation of their TP, drawing attention to possible source of bias for TP estimates, and consequently, in the food web structure of nitrogen-polluted areas.
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Acknowledgements
We thank the Agência Peixe Vivo and the Comitê de Bacia Hidrográfica do Rio das Velhas (CBH—Rio das Velhas) for the project financial support and the Projeto Manuelzão for the logistical support. Thanks to Aline Junqueira Grossi (Federal University of Lavras, UFLA) and Luiza Hoehne (Federal University of Minas Gerais, UFMG) for the support on processing of samples. Thanks also to the Benthos Ecology Laboratory (UFMG) and the Laboratory of Fish Ecology (UFLA) who assisted in the processing of samples and infrastructure, and to the Center for Nuclear Energy in Agriculture (CENA) for their support and partnership in the isotopic analysis.
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This work was supported by the Agência Peixe Vivo and Comitê de Bacia Hidrográfica do Rio das Velhas—CBH Rio das Velhas (grant/contract number 001/2015). Débora Reis de Carvalho has received research support from Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (Finance code 32004010017P3 and 88881.190508/2018–01). Paulo Santos Pompeu has received research support from Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (grant number 303548/2017–7) and Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (grant number PPM-00237/13).
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All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Carlos Bernardo Mascarenhas Alves was responsible for funding acquisition. Material preparation and data collection were performed by Débora Reis de Carvalho and Carlos Bernardo Mascarenhas Alves. Analysis was performed by Débora Reis de Carvalho and Paulo Santos Pompeu. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Débora Reis de Carvalho and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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de Carvalho, D.R., Alves, C.B.M. & Pompeu, P.S. Uncertainty in estimating fish trophic positions and food web structure in highly polluted river basins. Environ Biol Fish 105, 119–137 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-021-01199-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-021-01199-0