Temporal and spatial variability of 13C/12C and 15N/14N in pelagic biota of Prince William Sound, Alaska

Stable isotope ratios of carbon and nitrogen were used to identify seasonal and spatial patterns in carbon and nitrogen and to determine source of energy (Prince William Sound (PWS) versus the Gulf of Alaska (GOA)) for juvenile fishes in PWS. PWS-wide samples of bulk net zooplankton (all noncalcareous zooplankton collected in 335-µm-mesh nets), individual late copepodid stage of the large herbivore Neocalanus cristatus, juvenile Pacific herring (Clupea pallasi), and juvenile walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma) were collected in spring, summer, and fall in 1994 and 1995. For bulk zooplankton and N. cristatus, there was a strong 13C/12C gradient but weak 15N/14N gradient within PWS and GOA. Zooplankton 15N/14N was positively correlated with 13C/12C during the phytoplankton bloom but was not correlated during the zooplankton bloom, suggesting a decoupling of nitrogen and carbon cycles. Plankton isotopic signatures suggested a diagnostic 13C/12C for GOA carbon. For juvenile fishes and diapausing copepods in PWS, 13C/12C varied between years, suggesting that the origin of carbon differed between years (GOA more so in 1995 than in 1994). Use of a natural stable isotope tracer provided evidence for biophysical coupling via inferred fluctuations in oceanographic processes.

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Stable Isotope Analysis and Persistent Organic Pollutants in Crustacean Zooplankton: The Role of Size and Seasonality

Water ◽

10.3390/w11071490 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (7) ◽

pp. 1490 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Roberta Piscia ◽

Michela Mazzoni ◽

Roberta Bettinetti ◽

Rossana Caroni ◽

Davide Cicala ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Stable Isotope ◽

Stable Isotope Analysis ◽

Isotope Analysis ◽

Standing Stock ◽

Fish Predation ◽

Crustacean Zooplankton ◽

Isotopic Signatures ◽

Carbon And Nitrogen ◽

Pollutant Concentrations ◽

Stock Biomass

Zooplankton is crucial for the transfer of matter, energy, and pollutants through aquatic food webs. Primary and secondary consumers contribute to the abundance and standing stock biomass, which both vary seasonally. By means of taxa- and size-specific carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis, the path of pollutants through zooplankton is traced and seasonal changes are addressed, in an effort to understand pollutant dynamics in the pelagic food web. We analyzed zooplankton plurennial changes in concentration of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane and its relatives (DDTs) and in taxa-specific δ15N signatures in two size fractions, ≥450 µm and ≥850 µm, representative of the major part of zooplankton standing stock biomass and of the fraction to which fish predation is mainly directed, respectively. Our work is aimed at verifying: (1) A link between nitrogen isotopic signatures and pollutant concentrations; (2) the predominance of size versus seasonality for concentration of pollutants; and (3) the contribution of secondary versus primary consumers to carbon and nitrogen isotopic signatures. We found a prevalence of seasonality versus size in pollutant concentrations and isotopic signatures. The taxa-specific δ15N results correlated to pollutant concentrations, by means of taxa contribution to standing stock biomass and δ15N isotopic signatures. This is a step forward to understanding the taxa-specific role in pollutant transfer to planktivores and of zooplankton enrichment in PCBs and DDTs.

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Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.) early marine feeding patterns based on 15N/14N and 13C/12C in Prince William Sound, Alaska

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f02-126 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 59 (10) ◽

pp. 1626-1638 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Thomas C Kline, Jr. ◽

T Mark Willette

Keyword(s):

Stable Isotope ◽

Pacific Salmon ◽

Isotope Composition ◽

Gulf Of Alaska ◽

Whole Body ◽

Prince William Sound ◽

Stable Isotope Composition ◽

Release Date ◽

Feeding Patterns ◽

Protein Pool

Nitrogen and carbon mass and stable isotope composition among cohorts of Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.) released from Prince William Sound, Alaska, hatcheries in 1994 varied widely, suggesting a range in early marine feeding patterns. Analyses consisted of whole-body stable carbon and nitrogen mass and stable isotope composition of selected release-date cohorts that had been identified by implanted coded wire tags (CWT). Nitrogen isotopic and mass shifts suggested that the initial protein pool within individual fish was replaced at different rates among cohorts. There was a notable difference in carbon source dependency among hatcheries. Salmon from the hatchery closest to the Gulf of Alaska had a 13C-depleted carbon signature consistent with Gulf carbon, whereas salmon from the other hatcheries had Sound signatures. Differences in early marine feeding histories among 1994 hatchery-release-date cohorts reconstructed from the stable isotope composition of fry bore no relationship to marine survival pattern. Varied survival rates of 1994 Prince William Sound hatchery salmon were more likely related to the fry size at time of release, the observed differences in growth rate among release cohorts, and predation refuge effects of pen-rearing.

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Spatial and temporal variability in the diet of juvenile Pacific herring (Clupea pallasi) in Prince William Sound, Alaska

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/z99-030 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 77 (5) ◽

pp. 697-706 ◽

Cited By ~ 25

Author(s):

Robert J Foy ◽

Brenda L Norcross

Keyword(s):

Energy Density ◽

Phytoplankton Bloom ◽

Stomach Contents ◽

Spatial And Temporal Variability ◽

Pacific Herring ◽

Prince William Sound ◽

Spring Phytoplankton Bloom ◽

Clupea Pallasi ◽

Nutritional Conditions ◽

Relative Differences

The diet of juvenile Pacific herring, Clupea pallasi, from four bays in Prince William Sound, Alaska, varied spatially and seasonally. In Zaikof Bay, which was sampled in each season, stomach fullness of this herring was highest in May and declined significantly through the winter. Diversity of prey taxa in the diet was highest in June, after the spring phytoplankton bloom. In October, Oikopleura species were dominant in the fish diets of all bays. In March, fish eggs, Cirripedia nauplii, small Calanoida, and large Calanoida were the dominant prey in Eaglek, Simpson, Whale, and Zaikof bays, respectively. Energy density of stomach contents was highest in May, highlighting the importance of high lipid copepod taxa in Zaikof Bay. Estimated assimilation rates suggest that the diets of smaller age-0 herring provide close to maintenance levels of energy prior to winter. Therefore, variability in diet composition and diet energy density could account for relative differences in nutritional conditions of age-0 herring in Prince William Sound.

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Effects of light intensity, water velocity, and species composition on carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios in periphyton

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f98-075 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 55 (8) ◽

pp. 1919-1925 ◽

Cited By ~ 62

Author(s):

Neil A MacLeod ◽

David R Barton

Keyword(s):

Stable Isotope ◽

Light Intensity ◽

Isotopic Fractionation ◽

Water Velocity ◽

Benthic Boundary Layer ◽

Low Light ◽

Small Stream ◽

Isotopic Signatures ◽

Carbon And Nitrogen ◽

Stable Isotope Fractionation

Periphyton was allowed to grow on glass plates suspended in the water column of a small stream under two conditions of light and water velocity, over two seasons, to assess the influence of the thickness of benthic boundary layers on stable isotope fractionation. Isotopic signatures for both carbon and nitrogen in samples of periphyton varied with light intensity and season, but not with current velocity. In summer, periphyton grown under low-light conditions had depleted 13C and 15N values relative to periphyton grown under high light. In autumn, isotopic signatures were generally more depleted than in summer, but did not vary systematically with light intensity or water velocity. These results suggest that isotopic fractionation in periphyton was more strongly influenced by the intensity of metabolic activity than by variations in the thickness of the benthic boundary layer.

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Characterization of carbon and nitrogen stable isotope gradients in the northern Gulf of Alaska using terminal feed stage copepodite-V Neocalanus cristatus

Deep Sea Research Part II Topical Studies in Oceanography ◽

10.1016/j.dsr2.2009.03.004 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 56 (24) ◽

pp. 2537-2552 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

Thomas C. Kline

Keyword(s):

Stable Isotope ◽

Gulf Of Alaska ◽

Nitrogen Stable Isotope ◽

Carbon And Nitrogen

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TRANSFER EFFICIENCY FROM PRIMARY PRODUCERS TO RUDITAPES PHILIPPINARUM ON AN INTERTIDAL FLAT IN HIROSHIMA BAY, JAPAN

Proceedings of International Conference "Managinag risks to coastal regions and communities in a changinag world" (EMECS'11 - SeaCoasts XXVI) ◽

10.31519/conferencearticle_5b1b93b4af8c32.73166623 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Sosuke Otani ◽

Akira Umehara ◽

Haruka Miyagawa ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Stable Isotope ◽

Secondary Production ◽

Isotope Ratios ◽

Ruditapes Philippinarum ◽

Transfer Efficiency ◽

Food Sources ◽

Stable Isotope Ratios ◽

Primary Producers ◽

Nitrogen Stable Isotope ◽

Carbon And Nitrogen

Fish yields of Ruditapes philippinarum have been decreased and the resources have not yet recovered. It needs to clarify food sources of R. philippinarum, and relationship between primary and secondary production of it. The purpose on this study is to reveal transfer efficiency from primary producers to R. philippinarum and food sources of R. philippinarum. The field investigation was carried out to quantify biomass of R. philippinarum and primary producers on intertidal sand flat at Zigozen beach in Hiroshima Bay, Japan. In particular, photosynthetic rates of primary producers such as Zostera marina, Ulva sp. and microphytobenthos were determined in laboratory experiments. The carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios for R. philippinarum and 8 potential food sources (microphytobenthos, MPOM etc) growing in the tidal flat were also measured. In summer 2015, the primary productions of Z. marina, Ulva sp. and microphytobenthos were estimated to be 70.4 kgC/day, 43.4 kgC/day and 2.2 kgC/day, respectively. Secondary production of R. philippinarum was 0.4 kgC/day. Contribution of microphytobenthos to R. philippinarum as food source was 56-76% on the basis of those carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios. Transfer efficiency from microphytobenthos to R. philippinarum was estimated to be 10-14%. It was suggested that microphytobenthos might sustain the high secondary production of R. philippinarum, though the primary production of microphytobenthos was about 1/10 compared to other algae.

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Temperature affects carbon and nitrogen stable isotopic signatures of aquatic plants

Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1007/s00027-021-00794-8 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 83 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Peiyu Zhang ◽

Xianghong Kong ◽

Elisabeth S. Bakker ◽

Jun Xu ◽

Min Zhang

Keyword(s):

Aquatic Plants ◽

Isotopic Signatures ◽

Carbon And Nitrogen ◽

Stable Isotopic

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An empirical Bayesian approach to incorporate directional movement information from a forage fish into the Arnason-Schwarz mark-recapture model

Movement Ecology ◽

10.1186/s40462-021-00241-1 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Mary A. Bishop ◽

Jordan W. Bernard

Keyword(s):

Bayesian Approach ◽

Gulf Of Alaska ◽

Forage Fish ◽

Pacific Herring ◽

Prince William Sound ◽

Modeling Framework ◽

Empirical Bayesian ◽

Directional Information ◽

Directional Movement ◽

Empirical Bayesian Approach

Abstract Background Over the past two decades, various species of forage fish have been successfully implanted with miniaturized acoustic transmitters and subsequently monitored using stationary acoustic receivers. When acoustic receivers are configured in an array, information related to fish direction can potentially be determined, depending upon the number and relative orientation of the acoustic receivers. However, it can be difficult to incorporate directional information into frequentist mark-recapture methods. Here we show how an empirical Bayesian approach can be used to develop a model that incorporates directional movement information into the Arnason-Schwarz modeling framework to describe survival and migration patterns of a Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) population in coastal Alaska, USA. Methods We acoustic-tagged 326 adult Pacific herring during April 2017 and 2018 while on their spawning grounds in Prince William Sound Alaska, USA. To monitor their movements, stationary acoustic receivers were deployed at strategic locations throughout the Sound. Receivers located at the major entrances to the Gulf of Alaska were arranged in parallel arrays to determine the directional movements of the fish. Informative priors were used to incorporate the directional information recorded at the entrance arrays into the model. Results A seasonal migratory pattern was found at one of Prince William Sound’s major entrances to the Gulf of Alaska. At this entrance, fish tended to enter the Gulf of Alaska during spring and summer after spawning and return to Prince William Sound during the fall and winter. Fish mortality was higher during spring and summer than fall and winter in both Prince William Sound and the Gulf of Alaska. Conclusions An empirical Bayesian modeling approach can be used to extend the Arnason-Schwarz modeling framework to incorporate directional information from acoustic arrays to estimate survival and characterize the timing and direction of migratory movements of forage fish.

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