Variation in blubber fatty acid composition among marine mammals in the Canadian Arctic
Abstract The composition of predator adipose stores can provide important insights into foraging patterns and the ecological relationships among species. We determined the fatty acid (FA) composition of 843 blubber samples from 80 bearded seals ( Erignathus barbatus ), 33 harbor seals ( Phoca vituli...
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crwiley:10.1111/j.1748-7692.2007.00165.x 2024-06-23T07:49:00+00:00 Variation in blubber fatty acid composition among marine mammals in the Canadian Arctic Thiemann, Gregory W. Iverson, Sara J. Stirling, Ian 2007 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1748-7692.2007.00165.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2Fj.1748-7692.2007.00165.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1748-7692.2007.00165.x en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Marine Mammal Science volume 24, issue 1, page 91-111 ISSN 0824-0469 1748-7692 journal-article 2007 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1748-7692.2007.00165.x 2024-06-04T06:36:08Z Abstract The composition of predator adipose stores can provide important insights into foraging patterns and the ecological relationships among species. We determined the fatty acid (FA) composition of 843 blubber samples from 80 bearded seals ( Erignathus barbatus ), 33 harbor seals ( Phoca vitulina ), 239 harp seals ( Pagophilus groenlandicus ), 32 hooded seals ( Cystophora cristata ), 281 ringed seals ( Phoca hispida ), 53 walruses ( Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus ), 105 beluga whales ( Delphinapterus leucas ), and 20 narwhals ( Monodon monoceros ) across the Canadian Arctic to examine patterns of variability among and within species. FA signatures accurately distinguished phocid seals, walruses, and whales. Belugas and narwhals had the most similar FA signatures of any two species, suggesting substantial overlap in their diets, especially in the narwhal‐wintering area off eastern Baffin Island. Among phocid seals, harp and hooded seals had the most similar FA signatures. Bearded seals were most similar to walruses, which was consistent with the benthic feeding habits of both species. Within species, geographic differences in FA signatures were found over both large (>4,000 km) and small (<100 km) spatial scales. Overall, within‐species differences were smaller than among‐species differences. In general, FA signature patterns were consistent with previous studies of the ecology and diets of arctic marine mammals. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic marine mammals Arctic Baffin Island Baffin Beluga Beluga* Cystophora cristata Delphinapterus leucas Erignathus barbatus Monodon monoceros narwhal* Odobenus rosmarus Pagophilus groenlandicus Phoca hispida Phoca vitulina walrus* Wiley Online Library Arctic Baffin Island Marine Mammal Science 24 1 91 111 |
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Wiley Online Library |
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English |
description |
Abstract The composition of predator adipose stores can provide important insights into foraging patterns and the ecological relationships among species. We determined the fatty acid (FA) composition of 843 blubber samples from 80 bearded seals ( Erignathus barbatus ), 33 harbor seals ( Phoca vitulina ), 239 harp seals ( Pagophilus groenlandicus ), 32 hooded seals ( Cystophora cristata ), 281 ringed seals ( Phoca hispida ), 53 walruses ( Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus ), 105 beluga whales ( Delphinapterus leucas ), and 20 narwhals ( Monodon monoceros ) across the Canadian Arctic to examine patterns of variability among and within species. FA signatures accurately distinguished phocid seals, walruses, and whales. Belugas and narwhals had the most similar FA signatures of any two species, suggesting substantial overlap in their diets, especially in the narwhal‐wintering area off eastern Baffin Island. Among phocid seals, harp and hooded seals had the most similar FA signatures. Bearded seals were most similar to walruses, which was consistent with the benthic feeding habits of both species. Within species, geographic differences in FA signatures were found over both large (>4,000 km) and small (<100 km) spatial scales. Overall, within‐species differences were smaller than among‐species differences. In general, FA signature patterns were consistent with previous studies of the ecology and diets of arctic marine mammals. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Thiemann, Gregory W. Iverson, Sara J. Stirling, Ian |
spellingShingle |
Thiemann, Gregory W. Iverson, Sara J. Stirling, Ian Variation in blubber fatty acid composition among marine mammals in the Canadian Arctic |
author_facet |
Thiemann, Gregory W. Iverson, Sara J. Stirling, Ian |
author_sort |
Thiemann, Gregory W. |
title |
Variation in blubber fatty acid composition among marine mammals in the Canadian Arctic |
title_short |
Variation in blubber fatty acid composition among marine mammals in the Canadian Arctic |
title_full |
Variation in blubber fatty acid composition among marine mammals in the Canadian Arctic |
title_fullStr |
Variation in blubber fatty acid composition among marine mammals in the Canadian Arctic |
title_full_unstemmed |
Variation in blubber fatty acid composition among marine mammals in the Canadian Arctic |
title_sort |
variation in blubber fatty acid composition among marine mammals in the canadian arctic |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2007 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1748-7692.2007.00165.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2Fj.1748-7692.2007.00165.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1748-7692.2007.00165.x |
geographic |
Arctic Baffin Island |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Baffin Island |
genre |
Arctic marine mammals Arctic Baffin Island Baffin Beluga Beluga* Cystophora cristata Delphinapterus leucas Erignathus barbatus Monodon monoceros narwhal* Odobenus rosmarus Pagophilus groenlandicus Phoca hispida Phoca vitulina walrus* |
genre_facet |
Arctic marine mammals Arctic Baffin Island Baffin Beluga Beluga* Cystophora cristata Delphinapterus leucas Erignathus barbatus Monodon monoceros narwhal* Odobenus rosmarus Pagophilus groenlandicus Phoca hispida Phoca vitulina walrus* |
op_source |
Marine Mammal Science volume 24, issue 1, page 91-111 ISSN 0824-0469 1748-7692 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1748-7692.2007.00165.x |
container_title |
Marine Mammal Science |
container_volume |
24 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
91 |
op_container_end_page |
111 |
_version_ |
1802639293947052032 |