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Temporal Variation in the Trophic Levels of Secondary Consumers in a Mediterranean Coastal Lagoon (Cabras Lagoon, Italy)

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Abstract

Trophic levels (TLs) of fish were estimated on three sampling dates (March, May, and August 2006) for different fish sizes in the Cabras Lagoon (Sardinia, Italy). A temporal TL variation for Atherina boyeri, Gobius niger, and Engraulis encrasicolus was observed. In March and May, the TL ranged from 3.3 to 3.4, characterizing these species as secondary consumers, while in August, this range moved to between 3.7 and 3.8, indicating a TL shift towards tertiary consumers. For Liza ramada, TL was consistently lower in small individuals (mean TL 2.5) than in larger individuals (mean TL 3.0). Increased TL of the fish species A. boyeri, G. niger, and E. encrasicolus in August was consistent with the seasonal changes in the macrobenthic assemblage in this system, with a dominance of primary consumers (benthic deposit feeders) in winter–spring and a dominance of secondary consumers (the nereidids Alitta succinea and Hediste diversicolor) in summer. These fish species took advantage of the high availability of nereidids leading to a rise in their TL values. Furthermore, the increase of TL with size of L. ramada, the most economically valuable fish species in the Cabras Lagoon, indicated an ontogenetic diet shift, the juveniles being omnivorous, while the adults being secondary consumers. We conclude that variability in the trophic levels of fish due to species traits, ontogenetic diet shifts, and variation in prey availability should be taken into account to further understand the food web structure of coastal lagoons.

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Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge J. Eygensteyn (Radboud University) for the assistance during the stable isotope analysis, F.S. Blok and M.F.M. Van de Steeg for their help in the field and in the laboratory, and Jonathan Matthews for critical reading and improving the manuscript. This study is a contribution to the Flagship Project RITMARE—The Italian Research for the Sea—coordinated by the Italian National Research Council and funded by the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research. We thank the handling editor, Marianne Holmer, and three anonymous reviewers for their constructive remarks.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto per l’Ambiente Marino Costiero (CNR-IAMC), Località Sa Mardini, 09170, Torregrande, Oristano, Italy

    Serena Como & Paolo Magni

  2. Department of Animal Ecology and Physiology, Institute for Water and Wetland Research, Radboud University, Heyendaalseweg 135, Nijmegen, 6525, AJ, The Netherlands

    Gerard van der Velde

  3. Naturalis Biodiversity Center, P.O. Box 9517, Leiden, RA, 2300, The Netherlands

    Gerard van der Velde

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  1. Serena Como
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  2. Gerard van der Velde
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  3. Paolo Magni
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Correspondence to Serena Como.

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Communicated by Marianne Holmer

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Como, S., van der Velde, G. & Magni, P. Temporal Variation in the Trophic Levels of Secondary Consumers in a Mediterranean Coastal Lagoon (Cabras Lagoon, Italy). Estuaries and Coasts 41, 218–232 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-017-0265-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-017-0265-7

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