Ontogenetic and spatial variability in trophic biomarkers of juvenile saffron cod (Eleginus gracilis) from the Beaufort, Chukchi and Bering Seas

Ontogenetic and spatial variability in trophic biomarkers of juvenile saffron cod (Eleginus gracilis) from the Beaufort, Chukchi and Bering Seas

Climate models indicate the Arctic will undergo dramatic environmental change with forecasted increases in temperature and river runoff. Saffron cod ( Eleginus gracilis ) is abundant in nearshore waters and appears in the diet of many Arctic sea birds and marine mammals; however, little is known abo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Polar biology Vol. 39; no. 6; pp. 1109 - 1126
Main Authors: Copeman, Louise A., Laurel, Benjamin J., Boswell, Kevin M., Sremba, Angie L., Klinck, Karolin, Heintz, Ron A., Vollenweider, Johanna J., Helser, Thomas E., Spencer, Mara L.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01-06-2016
Springer
Springer Nature B.V
Subjects:
Analysis
Aquatic birds
Bacillariophyceae
Biological markers
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Climate models
Cod
Ecology
Eleginus gracilis
Energy storage
Environmental changes
Fatty acids
Fishes
Freshwater
Growth factors
Life Sciences
Lipids
Marine mammals
Microbiology
Nutrition
Ocean temperature
Oceanography
Original Paper
Plant Sciences
River flow
Runoff
Stable isotopes
Trawling
Trophic levels
Weather forecasting
Zoology
Arctic Ocean
Bering Sea
PNW, USA, Alaska, Prudhoe Bay
PN, Arctic
IN, Bering Sea
Lipids
Ontogeny
Nutrition
Arctic
Fatty acids
Saffron cod
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Summary:Climate models indicate the Arctic will undergo dramatic environmental change with forecasted increases in temperature and river runoff. Saffron cod ( Eleginus gracilis ) is abundant in nearshore waters and appears in the diet of many Arctic sea birds and marine mammals; however, little is known about its early ecology and consequently how they might be affected by environmental changes. We aimed to characterize the mechanisms of spatial and ontogenetic variation in trophic biomarkers (lipid classes, fatty acids and bulk C and N stable isotopes) of saffron cod from the Western Arctic, Chukchi and Bering Seas. Size-standardized analyses showed a significant difference in lipid condition metrics and trophic biomarkers as a function of survey location. Both ontogeny and sampling location played an important role in determining lipid stores with elevated levels in both small offshore juveniles (<55 mm) and larger inshore juveniles (>75 mm). Higher lipid storage in Arctic juveniles was associated with elevated levels of diatom fatty acid markers, but not with nearshore carbon input. Increased lipids were found in age-1 juveniles from Prudhoe Bay in the Western Beaufort that were feeding at a lower trophic level than similarly sized age-0 juveniles from surface trawls in the Bering Sea. The use of otolith annuli revealed two discrete patterns of growth that help explain the trade-offs between energy storage and rapid growth that diverge between the Arctic and Bering Sea. Laboratory temperature-growth experiments confirmed that saffron cod have a eurythermal growth response and are able to store excess lipids at temperatures as high as 20 °C.
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ISSN:0722-4060
1432-2056
DOI:10.1007/s00300-015-1792-y