Trophic ecology of the deep-sea squid Moroteuthopsis ingens (Cephalopoda: Onychoteuthidae) from the Chatham Rise, Aotearoa New Zealand ...

• Main Authors: McBride, Laura E., Braid, Heather E., Stevens, Darren W., Bolstad, Kathrin S. R.
• Format: Dataset
• Language: unknown
• Published: Taylor & Francis 2022
• Subjects: Evolutionary Biology; FOS Biological sciences; Environmental Sciences not elsewhere classified; Ecology; Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified; Inorganic Chemistry; FOS Chemical sciences; New Zealand; Pacific; Sperm whale
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.20063757.v1; https://tandf.figshare.com/articles/dataset/Trophic_ecology_of_the_deep-sea_squid_i_Moroteuthopsis_ingens_i_Cephalopoda_Onychoteuthidae_from_the_Chatham_Rise_Aotearoa_New_Zealand/20063757/1

Cephalopods form important components of marine trophic systems worldwide, including those in the South Pacific. Moroteuthopsis ingens (Onychoteuthidae) is one of the most abundant deep–sea squids in the Aotearoa New Zealand region and is preyed upon by predators such as the sperm whale and orange roughy. However, despite the many publications on M. ingens ’ diet, knowledge on its feeding ecology remains limited. In this study, we analysed the prey of M. ingens from the Chatham Rise (an ecologically and economically important region east of Te Waipounamu/New Zealand’s South Island) using DNA barcoding and otolith identification. Lanternfishes (Myctophidae) were the most frequently encountered prey item, but other teleost species, cephalopods and crustacean fragments were also found, indicating opportunistic and likely cannibalistic feeding behaviour. Five fish species (including a possibly undescribed species of Gymnoscopelus ) and Bathyteuthis abyssicola are reported as prey items of M. ingens for the first ...