Estimating stable isotope turnover rates of epidermal mucus and dorsal muscle for an omnivorous fish using a diet-switch experiment

AbstractEpidermal mucus (‘mucus’) is increasingly applied to fish ecological studies based on stable isotope analysis (SIA) due to its non-invasive collection. However, knowledge on mucus SI turnover rates of individual fish remains limited, including uncertainty over how they are influenced by fish body sizes. Here, a diet switch experiment predicted mucus SI turnover rates (δ13C and δ15N) as a function of time using samples taken over 200 days from 10 individually tagged common carp Cyprinus carpio covering two size groups. Non-linear mixed effects models revealed rapid turnover of both δ13C and δ15N (T50: 2–5 days; T95: 9–22 days); δ15N turnover rates were slower for the larger cohort, while δ13C turnover rates were independent of body size. Within size groups, turnover rates were not expected to vary between individuals. These experimental results suggest that due to these fast turnover rates, epidermal mucus can provide insights into the diets of fish over very short timeframes, although for δ15N the body size of the fish needs consideration.

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The Effect of Parasite Infection on Stable Isotope Turnover Rates of δ15N, δ13C and δ34S in Multiple Tissues of Eurasian Perch Perca fluviatilis

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0169058 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

pp. e0169058 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Elizabeth Yohannes ◽

Claudia Grimm ◽

Karl-Otto Rothhaupt ◽

Jasminca Behrmann-Godel

Keyword(s):

Stable Isotope ◽

Perca Fluviatilis ◽

Parasite Infection ◽

Turnover Rates ◽

Eurasian Perch ◽

Isotope Turnover ◽

Perch Perca Fluviatilis

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Turnover rates of nitrogen stable isotopes in the salt marsh mummichog, Fundulus heteroclitus, following a laboratory diet switch

Oecologia ◽

10.1007/s00442-005-0277-z ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 147 (3) ◽

pp. 391-395 ◽

Cited By ~ 91

Author(s):

John Logan ◽

Heather Haas ◽

Linda Deegan ◽

Emily Gaines

Keyword(s):

Stable Isotopes ◽

Salt Marsh ◽

Fundulus Heteroclitus ◽

Turnover Rates ◽

Nitrogen Stable Isotopes ◽

Diet Switch

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Long-term variation in isotopic baselines and implications for estimating consumer trophic niches

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f08-125 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 65 (10) ◽

pp. 2191-2200 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Christopher T. Solomon ◽

Stephen R. Carpenter ◽

James A. Rusak ◽

M. Jake Vander Zanden

Keyword(s):

Stable Isotope ◽

Food Web ◽

Isotope Ratios ◽

Trophic Niche ◽

Accurate Estimation ◽

Stable Isotope Ratios ◽

Turnover Rates ◽

C And N ◽

Trophic Niches

Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios are increasingly used to study long-term food web change. Temporal variation at the base of the food web may impact the accuracy of trophic niche estimates, but data describing interannual baseline variation are limited. We quantified baseline variation over a 23-year period in a north-temperate lake and used a simulation model to examine how this variation might affect consumer trophic niche estimates. Interannual variation in C and N stable isotope ratios was significant for both benthic and pelagic primary consumer baselines. Long-term linear trends and shorter-term autoregressive patterns were apparent in the data. There were no correlations among benthic and pelagic C and N baselines. Simulations demonstrated that error in estimated fish trophic niches, but not bias, increased substantially when sampling of baselines was incomplete. Accurate trophic niche estimates depended more on accurate estimation of baseline time series than on accurate estimation of growth and turnover rates. These results highlight the importance of previous and continued efforts to constrain bias and error in long-term stable isotope food web studies.

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Tissue-specific isotope trophic discrimination factors and turnover rates in a marine elasmobranch: empirical and modeling results

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f2011-172 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 69 (3) ◽

pp. 551-564 ◽

Cited By ~ 51

Author(s):

Luis Malpica-Cruz ◽

Sharon Z. Herzka ◽

Oscar Sosa-Nishizaki ◽

Juan Pablo Lazo

Keyword(s):

Natural Populations ◽

Nitrogen Isotope ◽

Cartilage Tissue ◽

Turnover Rates ◽

Isotopic Equilibrium ◽

Isotope Turnover ◽

Discrimination Factors ◽

Triakis Semifasciata ◽

Leopard Sharks ◽

Trophic Discrimination

There are very few studies reporting isotopic trophic discrimination factors and turnover rates for marine elasmobranchs. A controlled laboratory experiment was conducted to estimate carbon and nitrogen isotope trophic discrimination factors and isotope turnover rates for blood, liver, muscle, cartilage tissue, and fin samples of neonate to young-of-the-year leopard sharks ( Triakis semifasciata ). Trophic discrimination factors varied (0.13‰–1.98‰ for δ13C and 1.08‰–1.76‰ for δ15N). Tissues reached or were close to isotopic equilibrium to the new diet after about a threefold biomass gain and 192 days. Liver and blood exhibited faster isotope turnover than muscle, cartilage tissue, and fin samples, and carbon isotopes turned over faster than those of nitrogen. Metabolic turnover contributed substantially to isotopic turnover, which differs from most reports for young marine teleosts. We modeled the relationship between muscle turnover rates and shark size by coupling laboratory results with growth rate estimates for natural populations. Model predictions for small, medium, and large wild leopard sharks indicate the time to isotopic equilibrium is from one to several years.

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