Trophic markers and biometric measurements in Southern Ocean sea stars (1985-2017).

• Published in: Ecology
• Main Authors: Moreau, Camille, Le Bourg, Baptiste, Balazy, Piotr, Danis, Bruno, Eléaume, Marc, Jossart, Quentin, Kuklinski, Piotr, Lepoint, Gilles, Saucède, Thomas, van de Putte, Anton, Michel, Loïc N.
• Other Authors: Laboratoire de Biologie Marine (LBM), Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Freshwater and Oceanic Sciences Unit of reSearch (FOCUS), Laboratory of Oceanology, Université de Liège-Université de Liège, Institute of Oceanology, Polska Akademia Nauk = Polish Academy of Sciences = Académie polonaise des sciences (PAN), Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB ), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université des Antilles (UA), Marine Biology Group, Vrije Universiteit Brussel Bruxelles (VUB), Biogéosciences UMR 6282 (BGS), Université de Bourgogne (UB)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), OD Nature, Royal Belgian Institute for Natural Sciences Belgium, Laboratoire Environnement Profond (LEP), Etudes des Ecosystèmes Profonds (EEP), Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER)-Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER), Australian Antarctic Division, Grant/Award Number: IPY project 53 CEAMARC; Belgian Federal Science Policy Office, Grant/Award Numbers: BR/132/A1/VERSO, BR/154/A1/RECTO; Fonds pour la Formation a la Recherche dans l'Industrie et dans l'Agriculture, Grant/Award Number: 1.E091.16; Institut Polaire Francais Paul Emile Victor, Grant/Award Numbers: IPEV research program 1044 PROTEKER, IPEV research program 1124 REVOLTA; Narodowe Centrum Nauki, Grant/Award Number: OPUS grant number 2020/37/B/ST10/02905
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2022
• Subjects: Antarctica; Asteroidea; Echinodermata; Southern Ocean; benthos; biometric measurements; elemental contents; invertebrates; marine ecosystems; sea stars; stable isotopes; subantarctic Islands; [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology; Antarctic; The Antarctic; Antarc*
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-03613350; https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.3611

International audience Sea stars (Echinodermata: Asteroidea) are a key component of Southern Ocean benthos, with 16% of the known sea star species living there. In temperate marine environments, sea stars commonly play an important role in food webs, acting as keystone species. However, trophic ecology and functional role of Southern Ocean sea stars are still poorly known, notably due to the scarcity of large-scale studies. Here, we report 24,332 trophic marker (stable isotopes and elemental contents of C, N, and S of tegument and/or tube feet) and biometric (arm length, disk radius, arm to disk ratio) measurements in 2,456 specimens of sea stars. Samples were collected between 12 January 1985 and 8 October 2017 in numerous locations along the Antarctic littoral and subantarctic islands. The spatial scope of the data set covers a significant portion of the Southern Ocean (47.717° S to 86.273° S; 127.767° W to 162.201° E; depth, 6-5,338 m). The data set contains 133 distinct taxa, including 72 currently accepted species spanning 51 genera, 20 families, and multiple feeding guilds/functional groups (suspension feeders, sediment feeders, omnivores, predators of mobile or sessile prey). For 505 specimens, mitochondrial CO1 genes were sequenced to confirm and/or refine taxonomic identifications, and those sequences are already publicly available through the Barcode of Life Data System. This number will grow in the future, as molecular analyses are still in progress. Overall, thanks to its large taxonomic, spatial, and temporal extent, as well as its integrative nature (combining genetic, morphological, and ecological data), this data set can be of wide interest to Southern Ocean ecologists, invertebrate zoologists, benthic ecologists, and environmental managers dealing with associated areas. Please cite this data paper in research products derived from the data set, which is freely available without copyright restrictions.