Differences in food web structure of mangroves and freshwater marshes: evidence from stable isotope studies in the Southern Gulf of Mexico
Alejandra Sepúlveda-Lozada
Manuel Mendoza-Carranza
Matthias Wolff
Ulrich Saint-Paul
Alejandro Ponce-Mendoza
Abstract
Tropical coastal habitats like marshes, mangroves, and submerged grasses comprise diverse plant and animal communities and a certain degree of connectivity with other ecosystems. We compared the food web structure of a fringing mangrove-seagrass habitat and three fluvio-lagoons with marsh-eelgrass and mangrove-bare sediments during a dry season in Terminos Lagoon and Centla Wetlands, Southern Gulf of Mexico. Analysis of δ13C and δ15N stable isotopes in tissues of aquatic consumers, primary producers, and other carbon sources, in combination with isotope-based Bayesian methods, were performed to determine the main food sources and the isotopic niche of the consumers’ communities. Consumers in the mangrove-seagrass site showed high dependence on phytoplankton (average contribution 31 %), macroalgae (20 %) and organic matter derived from seagrasses (17 %). In the fluvio-lagoons, consumers showed high dependence on marginal vegetation (16–46 %). Phytoplankton and mangrove epiphytes comprised other important resources at these sites (with contributions of 24–44 %). The isotopic niche of consumers from the fringing mangrove-seagrass site did not overlap with those from the fluvio-lagoons. Moreover, despite the predominance of generalist consumers in all sites, differences in their isotopic niche area were observed, with consumers from the marsh-eelgrass site showing the narrowest. This suggests that consumer resource availability greatly differs in these habitats. Our results provide valuable information that help increase our understanding about the trophic structure in these important estuarine systems.
Sepúlveda-Lozada A., Mendoza-Carranza M., Wolff M., Saint-Paul U. and Ponce-Mendoza A. (2015) Differences in food web structure of mangroves and freshwater marshes: evidence from stable isotope studies in the Southern Gulf of Mexico. Wetlands Ecology and Management 23(2): 293-314. 10.1007/s11273-014-9382-2
@article{Sepúlveda-Lozada2015,
Title = {Differences in food web structure of mangroves and freshwater marshes: evidence from stable isotope studies in the Southern Gulf of Mexico},
Author = {Sepúlveda-Lozada, Alejandra and Mendoza-Carranza, Manuel and Wolff, Matthias and Saint-Paul, Ulrich and Ponce-Mendoza, Alejandro},
Editor = {},
Journal = {Wetlands Ecology and Management},
Year = {2015},
Pages = {293-314},
Volume = {23},
Doi = {10.1007/s11273-014-9382-2},
Abstract = {Tropical coastal habitats like marshes, mangroves, and submerged grasses comprise diverse plant and animal communities and a certain degree of connectivity with other ecosystems. We compared the food web structure of a fringing mangrove-seagrass habitat and three fluvio-lagoons with marsh-eelgrass and mangrove-bare sediments during a dry season in Terminos Lagoon and Centla Wetlands, Southern Gulf of Mexico. Analysis of δ13C and δ15N stable isotopes in tissues of aquatic consumers, primary producers, and other carbon sources, in combination with isotope-based Bayesian methods, were performed to determine the main food sources and the isotopic niche of the consumers’ communities. Consumers in the mangrove-seagrass site showed high dependence on phytoplankton (average contribution 31 %), macroalgae (20 %) and organic matter derived from seagrasses (17 %). In the fluvio-lagoons, consumers showed high dependence on marginal vegetation (16–46 %). Phytoplankton and mangrove epiphytes comprised other important resources at these sites (with contributions of 24–44 %). The isotopic niche of consumers from the fringing mangrove-seagrass site did not overlap with those from the fluvio-lagoons. Moreover, despite the predominance of generalist consumers in all sites, differences in their isotopic niche area were observed, with consumers from the marsh-eelgrass site showing the narrowest. This suggests that consumer resource availability greatly differs in these habitats. Our results provide valuable information that help increase our understanding about the trophic structure in these important estuarine systems.},
}
TY - JOUR
AU - Sepúlveda-Lozada, Alejandra
AU - Mendoza-Carranza, Manuel
AU - Wolff, Matthias
AU - Saint-Paul, Ulrich
AU - Ponce-Mendoza, Alejandro
TI - Differences in food web structure of mangroves and freshwater marshes: evidence from stable isotope studies in the Southern Gulf of Mexico
T2 - Wetlands Ecology and Management
PY - 2015
SP - 293-314
VL - 23
DO - 10.1007/s11273-014-9382-2
AB - Tropical coastal habitats like marshes, mangroves, and submerged grasses comprise diverse plant and animal communities and a certain degree of connectivity with other ecosystems. We compared the food web structure of a fringing mangrove-seagrass habitat and three fluvio-lagoons with marsh-eelgrass and mangrove-bare sediments during a dry season in Terminos Lagoon and Centla Wetlands, Southern Gulf of Mexico. Analysis of δ13C and δ15N stable isotopes in tissues of aquatic consumers, primary producers, and other carbon sources, in combination with isotope-based Bayesian methods, were performed to determine the main food sources and the isotopic niche of the consumers’ communities. Consumers in the mangrove-seagrass site showed high dependence on phytoplankton (average contribution 31 %), macroalgae (20 %) and organic matter derived from seagrasses (17 %). In the fluvio-lagoons, consumers showed high dependence on marginal vegetation (16–46 %). Phytoplankton and mangrove epiphytes comprised other important resources at these sites (with contributions of 24–44 %). The isotopic niche of consumers from the fringing mangrove-seagrass site did not overlap with those from the fluvio-lagoons. Moreover, despite the predominance of generalist consumers in all sites, differences in their isotopic niche area were observed, with consumers from the marsh-eelgrass site showing the narrowest. This suggests that consumer resource availability greatly differs in these habitats. Our results provide valuable information that help increase our understanding about the trophic structure in these important estuarine systems.
ER -
