Trophic relationships of a subtidal fish assemblage in the Francisco Coloane Coastal Marine Protected Area, southern Chilean Patagonia
Hune, Mathias
Fdn Ictiol
Davis, Ernesto
Ctr Estudios Cuaternario Fuego Patagonia & Antart
Gutierrez, David
Fdn Integrac Patrimonio Nat & Cultural
Haro, Daniela
Universidad de Chile
Journal
Polar Research
ISSN
0800-0395
1751-8369
Open Access
gold
Volume
37
A combination of stomach content and nitrogen (delta N-15) and carbon (delta C-13) stable-isotope analysis was used to assess the trophic interactions and feeding habits of three notothenioid coastal fish (Champsocephalus esox, Patagonotothen tessellata and Patagonotothen cornucola) and one exotic salmon species (Oncorhynchus tschawytscha) with diverse life habits (benthic and benthopelagic) in the Francisco Coloane Coastal Marine Protected Area, southern Chile. The stomach contents of C. esox were mainly fish; those of P. cornucola and O. tschawytscha were crustacean decapods, Munida gregaria. A cluster analysis on isotope data and stable-isotope Bayesian ellipses detected two different predator groups, one with benthopelagic habits (C. esox and O. tshawytscha) and one with benthic habits (P. cornucola and P. tessellata). These results were supported with similar isotopic trophic level of each group. We suggest that the exotic salmon O. tschawytscha is a generalist predator with a broad trophic niche that may compete with the native notothenioid C. esox, as both have equivalent trophic levels with substantial overlap. This preliminary study is the first on trophic relationships of a subtidal fish assemblage within a remote ecosystem of fjords and channels in Chile's southern Patagonia.
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