Affiliation:
1. Department of Biology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada.
2. Great Lakes Laboratory for Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Burlington, ON L7S 1A1, Canada.
3. Department of Communities, Land and Environment, Government of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, PE C1A 7N8, Canada.
Abstract
Niche specificity can predispose species to population declines during periods of resource limitation, yet trophic niche specificity is poorly known for many small-bodied freshwater fishes. Applying a two-tiered approach involving stomach content and stable isotope analyses, we examined the diet and trophic niche of the threatened eastern sand darter (Ammocrypta pellucida (Putnam, 1863)) and co-occurring fishes in the Thames River, Ontario, Canada. As with previous studies, stomach content analysis revealed that eastern sand darter consumed a variety of benthic organisms including Chironomidae, Cladocera, Ostracoda, Oligochaeta, and Ephemeroptera; however, proportional contributions of prey groups differed based on stable isotope analysis, highlighting the potential for seasonal variation in prey consumption. Despite evidence of a generalist strategy, stable isotope analysis indicated eastern sand darter exhibited a relatively narrow trophic niche relative to co-occurring fishes. Trophic niche overlap was relatively minor between eastern sand darter and drift-feeding fishes (spotfin shiner (Cyprinella spiloptera (Cope, 1867)), emerald shiner (Notropis atherinoides Rafinesque, 1818), and buffalo sp. (genus Ictiobus Rafinesque, 1820)), but was more evident between eastern sand darter and benthic and benthopelagic fishes (johnny darter (Etheostoma nigrum Rafinesque, 1820) and blackside darter (Percina maculata (Girard, 1859))), indicating that competition with these species may be more likely during periods of prey scarcity.
Publisher
Canadian Science Publishing
Subject
Animal Science and Zoology,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Cited by
11 articles.
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