Trophic interactions of White mullet Mugil curema in a subtropical tidal flat of the southwestern Atlantic: a stable isotope mixing model approach
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1
Universidade de São Paulo/Instituto Oceanográfico, Brazil
Stable isotope analysis is an useful tool for investigating trophic relationships in food webs, providing information on sources and pathways of organic matter between consumers. In the present work, we used carbon and nitrogen isotopes to investigate the trophic interactions of White mullet Mugil curema (Valenciennes, 1836) in a subtropical tidal flat located on the southeastern coast of Brazil (23°48’47”S, 45°24’22”W). Araçá Bay is a small tidal flat (750 m wide and 750 m long) located on the continental side of São Sebastião Channel and adjacent to the port and the oil terminal in the city of São Sebastião (São Paulo, Brazil). M. curema and its co-generic species Mugil liza are important commercial targets in the area. We analysed 44 samples of muscle tissue excised from individuals, and its potential preys (groups of producers and invertebrates), collected during March 2013 (austral summer) and July 2013 (austral winter). Total average values of –12.1±1.20 ‰ for δ13C and 10.0±0.65 ‰ for δ15N were obtained for M. curema. Based on previous feeding data and on a trophic enrichment value of 1.3 (± 0.30) for carbon and 2.9 (± 0.32) for nitrogen (McCutchan et al., 2003), a stable isotope mixing model (Stable Isotope Analysis in R - SIAR) (Parnell et al., 2010) was applied. As potential preys, we included macroalgae from mangroves (δ13C= –16.6±1.03 ‰ and δ15N= 7.5±1.06 ‰) and rocky shores (δ13C= –14.9±0.38 ‰ and δ15N = 9.2±0.43 ‰), turf (δ13C= –15.8±1.41 ‰ and δ15N = 7.5±0.34 ‰), terrestrial C4 plants (δ13C= –13.2±0.58 ‰ and δ15N = 4.9±2.35 ‰), Tanaidacea (δ13C= –15.8±1.26 ‰ and δ15N= 6.6±1.09 ‰), Bivalvia (δ13C= –16.0±1.17 ‰ and δ15N= 8.0±0.48 ‰) and Gastropoda (δ13C= –12.2±2.45 ‰ and δ15N= 10.2±1.90 ‰). The major contribution for the diet of this mullet came from terrestrial C4 plants (31% - 37%), followed by Gastropoda (22% - 29%) and Tanaidacea (up to 13%). The other groups showed minor importance, with contributions lower than 10%. Although preliminary, our results are in agreement with those previous for the diet composition and habits of M. curema: an omnivore and detritivore species that feeds on the bottom of water column.
Acknowledgements
Funded by FAPESP (Fundação de Apoio a Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo) through Ph.D. scholarship (FAPESP 2012/09937-2) and the project "Biodiversity and Functioning of a Subtropical Coastal Ecosystem: a contribution to integrated management" (FAPESP 2011/50317-5).
References
McCutchan Jr., J.H.; Lewis Jr., W.M.; Kendall, C. & Mcgrath, C.C. (2003). Variation in trophic shift for stable isotope ratios of carbon,nitrogen, and sulfur. Oikos 102: 378-390.
Parnell, A.C.; Inger, R., Bearhop, S. & Jackson, A.L. (2010). Source partitioning using stable isotopes: coping with too much variation. PLoS ONE 5(3): 1-5.
Keywords:
Coastal ecosystems,
food webs,
Stable isotopes,
Carbon and nitrogen isotopes,
Fishes
Conference:
XIX Iberian Symposium on Marine Biology Studies, Porto, Portugal, 5 Sep - 9 Sep, 2016.
Presentation Type:
Poster Presentation
Topic:
3. OCEANOGRAPHY, MODELLING AND ECOSYSTEM DYNAMICS
Citation:
Pucci
MC and
Soares
LS
(2016). Trophic interactions of White mullet Mugil curema in a subtropical tidal flat of the southwestern Atlantic: a stable isotope mixing model approach.
Front. Mar. Sci.
Conference Abstract:
XIX Iberian Symposium on Marine Biology Studies.
doi: 10.3389/conf.FMARS.2016.05.00162
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Received:
12 May 2016;
Published Online:
03 Sep 2016.
*
Correspondence:
Ms. Marinella C Pucci, Universidade de São Paulo/Instituto Oceanográfico, São Paulo, Brazil, mpucci@usp.br