In the present study, we evaluated the trophic role of Octopus insularis Leite and Haimovici, 2008 in the food web of Rocas Atoll, a preserved insular territory in the southwest Atlantic. Using stable isotope analysis of C and N, we showed that the local trophic web comprises at least four trophic levels, where the octopus presents d13C values from -12.1 to -6.1‰, d15N values from 6.4 to 11.0‰ and occupies a trophic position (TP) between the second and third trophic levels (mean ± SD TPadditive = 3.08 ± 0.36; TPBayesian = 3.12 ± 0.17). Among other benthic/reef-associated consumers, this cephalopod stood out for its much wider isotopic niche (SEAB = 4.7890), pointing to a diet diversified in carbon sources, but focused on prey in lower TPs. Time-minimizing feeding strategy seemed almost permanent throughout the life cycle, given the great niche overlap between small and large octopuses (large: SEAB = 4.59, small: SEAB = 4.03) and their very similar trophic positions (TPadditive/TPBayesian: large = 3.27/3.26; small = 2.89/2.99). Also, as a prey, O. insularis composed 16%-24% of the diet of some benthic/demersal predators. Overall, exerting great predatory pressure on bottom-associated organisms and serving as a relevant food source for top and mesopredators, O. insularis represented a top consumer of the benthic portion of the food web and an important link between its benthic and demersal strata with potential for keystone species.
Can heat waves change the trophic role of the world’s most invasive crayfish? Diet shifts in Procambarus clarkii