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Decomposition of sea lamprey Petromyzon marinus carcasses: temperature effects, nutrient dynamics, and implications for stream food webs

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Abstract

Anadromous fishes serve as vectors of marine-derived nutrients into freshwaters that are incorporated into aquatic and terrestrial food webs. Pacific salmonines Oncorhynchus spp. exemplify the importance of migratory fish as links between marine and freshwater systems; however, little attention has been given to sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus Linnaeus, 1758) in Atlantic coastal systems. A first step to understanding the role of sea lamprey in freshwater food webs is to characterize the composition and rate of nutrient inputs. We conducted laboratory and field studies characterizing the elemental composition and the decay rates and subsequent water enriching effects of sea lamprey carcasses. Proximate tissue analysis demonstrated lamprey carcass nitrogen:phosphorus ratios of 20.2:1 (±1.18 SE). In the laboratory, carcass decay resulted in liberation of phosphorus within 1 week and nitrogen within 3 weeks. Nutrient liberation was accelerated at higher temperatures. In a natural stream, carcass decomposition resulted in an exponential decline in biomass, and after 24 days, the proportion of initial biomass remaining was 27% (±3.0% SE). We provide quantitative results as to the temporal dynamics of sea lamprey carcass decomposition and subsequent nutrient liberation. These nutrient subsidies may arrive at a critical time to maximize enrichment of stream food webs.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Lara Katz and Neil Greenberg from the University of Maine for the field and laboratory assistance and Bill Halteman for statistical guidance. Hamish Greig and two anonymous reviewers improved earlier versions of this manuscript. Oliver Cox and Richard Dill from the Maine Department of Marine Resources provided technical assistance in collecting fish. This work was supported in part by the U.S. Geological Survey, Maine Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the University of Maine Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Conservation Biology. This work is Maine Agriculture and Forest Experiment Station Publication Number 3408 and is based on research supported in part by Hatch Grant number ME0-H-6-00508-138367-0H from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. This research was performed under University of Maine approved Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee Protocol Number A2011-06-03. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

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  1. Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Conservation Biology, University of Maine, 5755 Nutting Hall, Orono, ME, 04469, USA

    Daniel M. Weaver & Stephen M. Coghlan Jr.

  2. U.S. Geological Survey, Maine Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit and Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Conservation Biology, University of Maine, 5755 Nutting Hall, Orono, ME, 04469, USA

    Joseph Zydlewski

  3. Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Umatilla Hatchery Monitoring and Evaluation, Umatilla, OR, 97838, USA

    Robert S. Hogg

  4. Hollings Scholar, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Maine Field Station, Orono, ME, 04473, USA

    Michael Canton

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  1. Daniel M. Weaver
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Weaver, D.M., Coghlan, S.M., Zydlewski, J. et al. Decomposition of sea lamprey Petromyzon marinus carcasses: temperature effects, nutrient dynamics, and implications for stream food webs. Hydrobiologia 760, 57–67 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-015-2302-5

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