Variation in prey selection and foraging success associated with early‐life ontogeny and habitat use of American paddlefish (Polyodon spathula)

Many fishes are planktivorous during early life and switch to piscivory or consume larger food items as ontogeny progresses. In contrast, paddlefish start as particulate feeders and later become filter feeders. Few studies have identified food items essential for paddlefish growth, survival and recruitment surrounding this ontogenetic diet shift. The objectives of this study were to investigate (i) prey types consumed by paddlefish, (ii) variability in prey selection surrounding an ontogenetic diet shift and (iii) whether habitat affected paddlefish prey selection or foraging success. We analysed gut contents of 189 wild age‐0 paddlefish from the middle Mississippi River (MMR) and also conducted a laboratory experiment to address these objectives. We found that paddlefish primarily foraged on benthic macroinvertebrates in the MMR, which differed from previous studies in lentic systems, suggesting young paddlefish prey selection may be labile depending on habitat (i.e., lotic versus lentic). Dominant prey of wild‐caught and experimental age‐0 paddlefish were caddisfly larvae (Trichoptera), followed by hemipterans and amphipods. We found little evidence that habitat attributes affected foraging success, but the most common prey items consumed were associated with wing dike habitat and the upstream and downstream tips of alluvial islands. Our experimental study revealed that if provided a mixture of organisms, age‐0 paddlefish will primarily consume macroinvertebrates while age‐1 paddlefish will mainly filter zooplankton. Overall results suggest young paddlefish prey selection can be highly variable, but also heavily reliant on a narrow group of prey resources.     

洋山港海域海水压载后浮游动物群落的演变

通过压载模拟实验,研究分析压载0、1、5、10、15和30 d压载水体中浮游动物的数量和种类的动态变化特征,探讨其生态适应机制。结果显示,连续压载30 d后,浮游动物种类数由11种减少至5种,种类数显著下降。压载期间,浮游动物出现的频率和持续的时间不尽相同,不同类群对于压载环境的适应性有所不同,各物种之间对于各压载阶段的适应能力存在较大差异。实验舱内浮游动物丰度经过30 d模拟压载呈现明显的下降趋势。5 d时由于轮虫和浮游幼虫数量的大幅度增加,浮游动物整体丰度显著上升,随后迅速下降,压载至30 d时仍有浮游动物存活。MDS分析结果显示,压载条件下各水龄阶段之间的浮游动物群落结构变化明显。CCA分析表明:在本次模拟压载实验中,总氮、总磷、悬浮物、浊度以及温度等环境因子对浮游动物群落结构变化产生影响。     

Putting the pieces together: Recent growth,nutritional condition,and mortality of Engraulis anchoita larvae in the Southwest Atlantic

Dynamics of clupeiform fish populations such as anchovy are frequently impacted by environmental variations which can affect the success of the species recruitment. Herein, we have analyzed recent otolith growth rate, RNA/DNA nutritional condition index (sRD), and mortality rate of argentine anchovy larvae Engraulis anchoita from three different nursery areas in the Southwest Atlantic. We have evaluated the relationship between the environmental variables (abundance of copepod nauplii, temperature, chlorophyll‐a concentration, and abundance of E. anchoita larvae) and larval endogenous variables (size, weight, age, and otolith radius) to sRD and recent growth rate. Fast larval growth rates were observed toward the northern sector of the studied area, characterized by higher temperature. High values of sRD were associated with higher nauplii abundance in the proximity of coastal fronts. The larvae with the lowest growths and lowest minimum values of nutritional condition coincided with the area where there was less abundance of nauplii and higher larval mortality. Larval size and nauplii abundance were positive explanatory factors for both recent growth rate and sRD index. Temperature had a positive effect on recent growth rate and a negative effect on sRD index. This condition index was poorly explained in terms of model fit in comparison with the growth model. The results herein provided could be significant to better understand the recruitment of the species, as to determining favorable areas for the growth and survival of anchovy larvae.     

RNA/DNA ratio is an early responding,accurate performance parameter in growth experiments of noble crayfish Astacus astacus (L.)

Recent intensification efforts of astacid culture considerably depend on the appropriate assessment of the animal's physiological condition both for research and application. We conducted a 4 weeks feeding experiment to assess temporal resolution and accuracy of different response parameters (RNA/DNA ratio, RNA per wet weight, carapace length, wet weight, specific growth rate). Juvenile noble crayfish were exposed to five feeding regimes that differed in feeding frequency and food availability. Continuous growth was detected in all feeding regimes with individual increase up to 90% (wet weight) and 17% (carapace length), respectively. Morphometric parameters allowed separation of three weight‐groups or two length‐groups. During the experimental period RNA/DNA ratios showed both decrease (?17%) and increase (+35%), with superior accuracy than morphometric parameters, separating four groups. Based on RNA/DNA ratios, different feeding regimes were detected earlier, with two groups separated already after 3 weeks. RNA/DNA ratio was clearly superior to RNA per unit wet weight, as the latter failed to detect any differences between groups. In conclusion, RNA/DNA ratio is a valuable tool in nutritional studies with freshwater crayfish if overall growth is the key variable of interest.     

二氧化氯对池塘水质和浮游生物群落结构的短期影响

监测了公安县崇湖渔场3口草鱼主养池塘施用浓度为0.375 g/m3的二氧化氯后池塘水质理化指标及浮游生物群落结构短期变化,以分析二氧化氯对池塘水环境质量的影响。结果显示,用药后水体溶解氧显著下降,亚硝态氮、活性磷和总磷降低。然而p H值显著升高,硝态氮、铵态氮和总氮也有所升高。施用二氧化氯前浮游植物共检出6门44属79种,浮游动物36属43种;用药后共检出浮游植物7门52属109种,浮游动物44属69种,用药后浮游植物消失4属12种,新增加12属42种,用药前未见金藻门种类,用药后出现分歧锥囊藻(Dinobryon divergens)。用药后原生动物消失6属7种,新出现16属24种;轮虫消失3种,增加8种;枝角类种类无变化;桡足类新增4种成体,但用药前后优势种无变化。结果表明,施用二氧化氯短期内增加了水体氨氮毒性,并导致浮游动物的种类、密度和生物量显著增加,进而导致浮游植物生物量显著下降、小型化藻类增多、优势种显著变化。建议在养殖期间慎用二氧化氯。     

长兴岛沿岸春季和夏季的浮游动物群落结构

2005年8月(夏季)的大、小潮期间和2006年3月(春季)的大、小潮期间对长兴岛沿岸进行了4个航次的浮游生物调查,共检出浮游动物47种,其中春季32种,夏季44种。浮游动物的优势类群为桡足类和浮游幼虫。小拟哲水蚤、双毛纺锤水蚤、拟长腹剑水蚤、无节幼虫为春季优势种。小拟哲水蚤、双毛纺锤水蚤、近缘大眼剑水蚤、桡足类幼体、太平洋纺锤水蚤为夏季优势种。春季浮游动物的丰度、生物量及种类数均低于夏季。小潮期间浮游动物的丰度、生物量高于大潮期间。浮游动物的丰度、生物量及优势种受潮周期的影响。北部沿岸和南部沿岸浮游动物丰度、生物量较高。小型桡足类在长兴岛沿岸浮游动物群落结构中扮演重要角色,长兴岛沿岸浮游动物群落结构较为成熟稳定。     

锦江河特有鱼类国家级水产种质资源保护区浮游动物群落结构

为研究锦江河特有鱼类国家级水产种质资源保护区浮游动物群落结构特征,于2015年1月、4月、7月和10月按季度在锦江河保护区进行采样分析。结果显示,在保护区共采集到浮游动物4门51属82种,轮虫类、原生动物、桡足类和枝角类物种数占浮游动物物种总数的比例分别为46.34%、29.27%、15.85%和8.54%。优势种类为4门6属16种,其中轮虫类6种,原生动物4种,枝角类4种,桡足类2种。保护区浮游动物密度变幅为297.76~1 430.10 ind/L,平均为855.13 ind/L;生物量变幅为5.73~26.36 mg/L,平均为14.37 mg/L;群落丰富度指数(D_m)变幅为3.18~4.90,平均为3.96;香农指数(H')变幅为2.11~3.12,平均为2.81;均匀度指数(J')变幅为0.81~0.89,平均为0.86。研究表明,在被摄食压力下降及饵料生物资源下降的共同影响下,保护区外界环境对个体较小的原生动物和轮虫有利,群落生态优势度也集中于上述浮游动物类群。受到水文特征的影响,锦江河核心区的浮游动物物种数、密度和生物量以及多样性指数总体高于实验区。     

Bloom or bust: synchrony in jellyfish abundance,fish consumption,benthic scavenger abundance,and environmental drivers across a continental shelf

Increases in gelatinous zooplankton (GZ) populations, their dominance of some ecosystems, their impacts to other taxa, and their questionable trophic value remain global concerns, but they are difficult to quantify. We compared trends in GZ abundance from direct sampling for the northeast U.S. continental shelf and tested their association with GZ consumption by spiny dogfish (Squalus acanthias); the abundance of two benthic scavengers: Atlantic hagfish (Myxine glutinosa) and grenadiers (Family: Macrouridae); and four environmental indices: Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation, North Atlantic Oscillation, and sea surface and bottom temperatures. Defined as scyphozoans, siphonophores, ctenophores, and salps, the abundance of GZ on the shelf has oscillated with blooms approximately every 10–15 yr. Conservative estimates of annual removal of GZ by spiny dogfish ranged from approximately 0.3–298 g individual^?1 with spiny dogfish being the primary GZ feeder sampled on the shelf. The examination of three abundance series for GZ identified one shelf‐wide trend and strong relationships with 2‐yr lagged consumption and scavenger abundance (namely hagfish), and sea surface temperature. With multimodel inference, these covariates led to an optimal model of GZ abundance. Blooms of GZ abundance on this shelf were influenced by environmental change, provide surges of food for spiny dogfish, and may offer ‘food falls’ for scavenging fishes. The bioenergetic tradeoffs of consuming greater amounts of GZ compared to other major prey (e.g., fishes) remain unknown; however, these surges of food in the northwest Atlantic appear to be important for fishes, including support for benthic scavenger productivity.     

Lipid and fatty acid composition of likely zooplankton prey of spiny lobster (Jasus edwardsii) phyllosomas

Several of the world's major spiny lobster fisheries, including Jasus edwardsii in Australasia, have gone into dramatic decline due to decreasing recruitment of their lecithotrophic postlarvae. There is evidence that the decline is related to poor nutritional condition of the postlarvae, especially lipid that is accumulated in large quantities during the preceding pelagic larval stage. Therefore, characterizing the lipid composition of the likely potential zooplankton prey of the larvae (phyllosomas) of spiny lobsters will provide new insights into their nutritional requirements. The lipid class and fatty acid composition of more than 30 species of likely zooplankton prey of the larvae of the spiny lobster, J. edwardsii, were determined. These results showed that most zooplankton prey had a high proportion of their lipid content as polar lipid (PL) (range of 9.4–94.8%, mean of 76.1 ± 2.6%). Zooplankton prey provide phyllosomas with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) for growth and development, as well as a range of other important fatty acids that are accumulated as PL and used for fuelling the migration of the subsequent lecithotrophic postlarvae across the continental shelf. Overall, these results indicate that phyllosomas consume prey with wide ranging lipid content, but dominated by PL, and high in docosahexaenoic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid and the key fatty acids used for energy storage.     

浮游动物在生物操纵法除藻中的作用研究

采用室外现场实验和室内受控生态系统实验相结合的方法,研究了富营养化水体中浮游动物对藻类生长的控制作用。对浮游动物与藻类的计数与测量数据,利用SPSS统计软件进行了方差分析（LSD多重比较法）和相关性分析。实验结果显示,总磷含量比总氮含量对浮游动物生长的影响更大。浮游动物与藻类之间呈现显著或极显著相关关系,说明浮游动物群体,尤其甲壳类群体,在适当条件下对藻类群体以及其中的蓝藻有一定的控制作用。适当的鱼类密度下,浮游动物能够起有效的控藻作用,但鱼类密度过高会抑制该作用。底泥在生态系统中起重要作用,能够影响浮游动物对藻类的摄食力。