TY - JOUR
T1 - Insights into the diet and feeding behavior of immature polar cod (Boreogadus saida) from the under-ice habitat of the central Arctic Ocean
AU - the MOSAiC team ECO
AU - Schaafsma, Fokje L.
AU - Flores, Hauke
AU - David, Carmen L.
AU - Castellani, Giulia
AU - Sakinan, Serdar
AU - Meijboom, André
AU - Niehoff, Barbara
AU - Cornils, Astrid
AU - Hildebrandt, Nicole
AU - Schmidt, Katrin
AU - Snoeijs-Leijonmalm, Pauline
AU - Ehrlich, Julia
AU - Ashjian, Carin J.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Author(s). Journal of Fish Biology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Fisheries Society of the British Isles.
PY - 2024/9/16
Y1 - 2024/9/16
N2 - Polar cod (Boreogadus saida) is an endemic key species of the Arctic Ocean ecosystem. The ecology of this forage fish is well studied in Arctic shelf habitats where a large part of its population lives. However, knowledge about its ecology in the central Arctic Ocean (CAO), including its use of the sea-ice habitat, is hitherto very limited. To increase this knowledge, samples were collected at the under-ice surface during several expeditions to the CAO between 2012 and 2020, including the Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition. The diet of immature B. saida and the taxonomic composition of their potential prey were analysed, showing that both sympagic and pelagic species were important prey items. Stomach contents included expected prey such as copepods and amphipods. Surprisingly, more rarely observed prey such as appendicularians, chaetognaths, and euphausiids were also found to be important. Comparisons of the fish stomach contents with prey distribution data suggests opportunistic feeding. However, relative prey density and catchability are important factors that determine which type of prey is ingested. Prey that ensures limited energy expenditure on hunting and feeding is often found in the stomach contents even though it is not the dominant species present in the environment. To investigate the importance of prey quality and quantity for the growth of B. saida in this area, we measured energy content of dominant prey species and used a bioenergetic model to quantify the effect of variations in diet on growth rate potential. The modeling results suggest that diet variability was largely explained by stomach fullness and, to a lesser degree, the energetic content of the prey. Our results suggest that under climate change, immature B. saida may be at least equally sensitive to a loss in the number of efficiently hunted prey than to a reduction in the prey's energy content. Consequences for the growth and survival of B. saida will not depend on prey presence alone, but also on prey catchability, digestibility, and energy content.
AB - Polar cod (Boreogadus saida) is an endemic key species of the Arctic Ocean ecosystem. The ecology of this forage fish is well studied in Arctic shelf habitats where a large part of its population lives. However, knowledge about its ecology in the central Arctic Ocean (CAO), including its use of the sea-ice habitat, is hitherto very limited. To increase this knowledge, samples were collected at the under-ice surface during several expeditions to the CAO between 2012 and 2020, including the Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition. The diet of immature B. saida and the taxonomic composition of their potential prey were analysed, showing that both sympagic and pelagic species were important prey items. Stomach contents included expected prey such as copepods and amphipods. Surprisingly, more rarely observed prey such as appendicularians, chaetognaths, and euphausiids were also found to be important. Comparisons of the fish stomach contents with prey distribution data suggests opportunistic feeding. However, relative prey density and catchability are important factors that determine which type of prey is ingested. Prey that ensures limited energy expenditure on hunting and feeding is often found in the stomach contents even though it is not the dominant species present in the environment. To investigate the importance of prey quality and quantity for the growth of B. saida in this area, we measured energy content of dominant prey species and used a bioenergetic model to quantify the effect of variations in diet on growth rate potential. The modeling results suggest that diet variability was largely explained by stomach fullness and, to a lesser degree, the energetic content of the prey. Our results suggest that under climate change, immature B. saida may be at least equally sensitive to a loss in the number of efficiently hunted prey than to a reduction in the prey's energy content. Consequences for the growth and survival of B. saida will not depend on prey presence alone, but also on prey catchability, digestibility, and energy content.
KW - Arctic cod
KW - bioenergetics
KW - central Arctic Ocean
KW - sea-ice habitat
KW - stomach content
KW - zooplankton
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85196742573&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://pearl.plymouth.ac.uk/context/gees-research/article/2418/viewcontent/Journal_of_Fish_Biology___2024___Schaafsma___Insights_into_the_diet_and_feeding_behavior_of_immature_polar_cod_Boreogadus.pdf
U2 - 10.1111/jfb.15836
DO - 10.1111/jfb.15836
M3 - Article
C2 - 38922867
AN - SCOPUS:85196742573
SN - 0022-1112
VL - 105
SP - 907
EP - 930
JO - Journal of Fish Biology
JF - Journal of Fish Biology
IS - 3
ER -