Increased food availability at offshore wind farms affects trophic ecology of plaice Pleuronectes platessa
Offshore wind farms (OWFs) and their associated cables, foundations and scour protection are often constructed in soft -sediment environments. This introduction of hard substrate has been shown to have similar effects as artificial reefs by providing food resources and offering increased habitat com...
Published in: | Science of The Total Environment |
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Main Authors: | , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
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2023
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Online Access: | https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160730 https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE/file/01GR16J0K9509TP84N0V8758YC |
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ftunivgent:oai:archive.ugent.be:01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE 2023-12-24T10:16:52+01:00 Increased food availability at offshore wind farms affects trophic ecology of plaice Pleuronectes platessa Buyse, Jolien Hostens, Kris Degraer, Steven De Troch, Marleen Wittoeck, Jan De Backer, Annelies 2023 application/pdf https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160730 https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE/file/01GR16J0K9509TP84N0V8758YC eng eng https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE http://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160730 https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE/file/01GR16J0K9509TP84N0V8758YC No license (in copyright) info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT ISSN: 0048-9697 ISSN: 1879-1026 Earth and Environmental Sciences Biology and Life Sciences Pollution Waste Management and Disposal Environmental Chemistry Environmental Engineering Plaice(Pleuronectesplatessa) Artificial reef effect North Sea Trophic ecology Fish condition OWFs COD GADUS-MORHUA NORTH-SEA ARTIFICIAL REEFS FATTY-ACIDS BELGIAN PART HABITAT USE FISH ATTRACTION ENERGY GROWTH journalArticle info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion 2023 ftunivgent https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160730 2023-11-29T23:08:34Z Offshore wind farms (OWFs) and their associated cables, foundations and scour protection are often constructed in soft -sediment environments. This introduction of hard substrate has been shown to have similar effects as artificial reefs by providing food resources and offering increased habitat complexity, thereby aggregating fish around the turbines and foundations. However, as most studies have focused their efforts on fish species that are typically associated with reef structures, knowledge on how soft sediment species are affected by OWFs is still largely lacking. In this study, we analysed the trophic ecology and condition of plaice, a flatfish species of commercial interest, in relation to a Belgian OWF. The combination of a stomach and intestine content analysis with the use of biomarkers (i.e. fatty acids and stable isotopes) identified a clear shift in diet with increased occurrences of typical hard-substrate prey species for fish in the vicinity of the foundations and this both on the short and the long term. Despite some condition indices suggesting that the hard substrate provides increased food availability, no clear increases of overall plaice condition or fecundity were found. Samples from within the wind farm, however, contained larger fish and had a higher abundance of females compared to control areas, potentially indicating a refuge effect caused by the cessation of fisheries activities within the OWF. These results suggest that soft-sediment species can potentially benefit from the presence of an OWF, which could lead to fish production. However, more research is still needed to further elucidate the behavioral ecology of plaice within OWFs to make inferences on how they can impact fish populations on a larger spatial scale. Article in Journal/Newspaper Gadus morhua Ghent University Academic Bibliography Science of The Total Environment 862 160730 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Ghent University Academic Bibliography |
op_collection_id |
ftunivgent |
language |
English |
topic |
Earth and Environmental Sciences Biology and Life Sciences Pollution Waste Management and Disposal Environmental Chemistry Environmental Engineering Plaice(Pleuronectesplatessa) Artificial reef effect North Sea Trophic ecology Fish condition OWFs COD GADUS-MORHUA NORTH-SEA ARTIFICIAL REEFS FATTY-ACIDS BELGIAN PART HABITAT USE FISH ATTRACTION ENERGY GROWTH |
spellingShingle |
Earth and Environmental Sciences Biology and Life Sciences Pollution Waste Management and Disposal Environmental Chemistry Environmental Engineering Plaice(Pleuronectesplatessa) Artificial reef effect North Sea Trophic ecology Fish condition OWFs COD GADUS-MORHUA NORTH-SEA ARTIFICIAL REEFS FATTY-ACIDS BELGIAN PART HABITAT USE FISH ATTRACTION ENERGY GROWTH Buyse, Jolien Hostens, Kris Degraer, Steven De Troch, Marleen Wittoeck, Jan De Backer, Annelies Increased food availability at offshore wind farms affects trophic ecology of plaice Pleuronectes platessa |
topic_facet |
Earth and Environmental Sciences Biology and Life Sciences Pollution Waste Management and Disposal Environmental Chemistry Environmental Engineering Plaice(Pleuronectesplatessa) Artificial reef effect North Sea Trophic ecology Fish condition OWFs COD GADUS-MORHUA NORTH-SEA ARTIFICIAL REEFS FATTY-ACIDS BELGIAN PART HABITAT USE FISH ATTRACTION ENERGY GROWTH |
description |
Offshore wind farms (OWFs) and their associated cables, foundations and scour protection are often constructed in soft -sediment environments. This introduction of hard substrate has been shown to have similar effects as artificial reefs by providing food resources and offering increased habitat complexity, thereby aggregating fish around the turbines and foundations. However, as most studies have focused their efforts on fish species that are typically associated with reef structures, knowledge on how soft sediment species are affected by OWFs is still largely lacking. In this study, we analysed the trophic ecology and condition of plaice, a flatfish species of commercial interest, in relation to a Belgian OWF. The combination of a stomach and intestine content analysis with the use of biomarkers (i.e. fatty acids and stable isotopes) identified a clear shift in diet with increased occurrences of typical hard-substrate prey species for fish in the vicinity of the foundations and this both on the short and the long term. Despite some condition indices suggesting that the hard substrate provides increased food availability, no clear increases of overall plaice condition or fecundity were found. Samples from within the wind farm, however, contained larger fish and had a higher abundance of females compared to control areas, potentially indicating a refuge effect caused by the cessation of fisheries activities within the OWF. These results suggest that soft-sediment species can potentially benefit from the presence of an OWF, which could lead to fish production. However, more research is still needed to further elucidate the behavioral ecology of plaice within OWFs to make inferences on how they can impact fish populations on a larger spatial scale. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Buyse, Jolien Hostens, Kris Degraer, Steven De Troch, Marleen Wittoeck, Jan De Backer, Annelies |
author_facet |
Buyse, Jolien Hostens, Kris Degraer, Steven De Troch, Marleen Wittoeck, Jan De Backer, Annelies |
author_sort |
Buyse, Jolien |
title |
Increased food availability at offshore wind farms affects trophic ecology of plaice Pleuronectes platessa |
title_short |
Increased food availability at offshore wind farms affects trophic ecology of plaice Pleuronectes platessa |
title_full |
Increased food availability at offshore wind farms affects trophic ecology of plaice Pleuronectes platessa |
title_fullStr |
Increased food availability at offshore wind farms affects trophic ecology of plaice Pleuronectes platessa |
title_full_unstemmed |
Increased food availability at offshore wind farms affects trophic ecology of plaice Pleuronectes platessa |
title_sort |
increased food availability at offshore wind farms affects trophic ecology of plaice pleuronectes platessa |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160730 https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE/file/01GR16J0K9509TP84N0V8758YC |
genre |
Gadus morhua |
genre_facet |
Gadus morhua |
op_source |
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT ISSN: 0048-9697 ISSN: 1879-1026 |
op_relation |
https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE http://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160730 https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01GR16EZ6NJBDX1ERRN01JX9GE/file/01GR16J0K9509TP84N0V8758YC |
op_rights |
No license (in copyright) info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160730 |
container_title |
Science of The Total Environment |
container_volume |
862 |
container_start_page |
160730 |
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1786204611836641280 |