Coexistence, resource partitioning, and fisheries management: A tale of two mesopredators in equatorial waters
Rock hind (Epinephelus adscensionis) and spotted moray (Gymnothorax moringa) are ubiquitous mesopredators that co-occur in the nearshore waters of Ascension Island in the South Atlantic Ocean, where they have significant cultural and subsistence value, but management of their non-commercial take is...
Published in: | Journal of Fish Biology |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
Format: | Text |
Language: | unknown |
Published: |
Scholarship at UWindsor
2024
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/ibiopub/154 https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.15744 |
id |
ftunivwindsor:oai:scholar.uwindsor.ca:ibiopub-1153 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftunivwindsor:oai:scholar.uwindsor.ca:ibiopub-1153 2024-06-23T07:56:48+00:00 Coexistence, resource partitioning, and fisheries management: A tale of two mesopredators in equatorial waters Orrell, Danielle L. Sadd, Daniel Jones, Kirsty L. Chadwick, Kate Simpson, Tiffany Philpott, Darcy E. Hussey, Nigel E. 2024-01-01T08:00:00Z https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/ibiopub/154 https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.15744 unknown Scholarship at UWindsor https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/ibiopub/154 doi:10.1111/jfb.15744 https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.15744 Integrative Biology Publications acoustic telemetry Ascension Island coexistence Epinephelus adscensionis Gymnothorax moringa resource partitioning text 2024 ftunivwindsor https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.15744 2024-06-04T14:21:51Z Rock hind (Epinephelus adscensionis) and spotted moray (Gymnothorax moringa) are ubiquitous mesopredators that co-occur in the nearshore waters of Ascension Island in the South Atlantic Ocean, where they have significant cultural and subsistence value, but management of their non-commercial take is limited. This isolated volcanic system is home to high biomass and low species diversity, which poses two key questions: How can two mesopredators that perform similar ecological roles coexist? And if these two species are so ecologically similar, can they be managed using the same approach? Here, we combined acoustic telemetry, stomach content analysis, and stable isotope analysis to (i) explore space use and diet choices within and between these two species and (ii) to assess appropriate species-specific management options. Although rock hind had high residency and small calculated home ranges (0.0001–0.3114 km2), spotted moray exhibited shorter periods of residency (<3 months) before exiting the array. Vertical space use differed significantly across the 20-month tracking period, with individual differences in vertical space observed for both species. A hierarchical generalized additive model using 12-h averaged depth data identified that rock hind occurred lower in the water column than spotted moray, with both species occupying moderately deeper depths at night versus day (+1.6% relative depth). Spotted moray depth was also significantly predicted by lunar illumination. Aggregating samples by species and tissue type, Bayesian ecological niche modeling identified a 53.14%–54.15% and 78.02%–97.08% probability of niche overlap from fin clip and white muscle, respectively, whereas limited stomach content data indicated a preference for piscivorous prey. Variability in niche breadth between years suggests these species may exploit a range of prey items over time. These findings indicate that although these two species perform a similar ecological role by feeding on prey occupying the same trophic levels, ... Text South Atlantic Ocean University of Windsor, Ontario: Scholarship at UWindsor Journal of Fish Biology |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of Windsor, Ontario: Scholarship at UWindsor |
op_collection_id |
ftunivwindsor |
language |
unknown |
topic |
acoustic telemetry Ascension Island coexistence Epinephelus adscensionis Gymnothorax moringa resource partitioning |
spellingShingle |
acoustic telemetry Ascension Island coexistence Epinephelus adscensionis Gymnothorax moringa resource partitioning Orrell, Danielle L. Sadd, Daniel Jones, Kirsty L. Chadwick, Kate Simpson, Tiffany Philpott, Darcy E. Hussey, Nigel E. Coexistence, resource partitioning, and fisheries management: A tale of two mesopredators in equatorial waters |
topic_facet |
acoustic telemetry Ascension Island coexistence Epinephelus adscensionis Gymnothorax moringa resource partitioning |
description |
Rock hind (Epinephelus adscensionis) and spotted moray (Gymnothorax moringa) are ubiquitous mesopredators that co-occur in the nearshore waters of Ascension Island in the South Atlantic Ocean, where they have significant cultural and subsistence value, but management of their non-commercial take is limited. This isolated volcanic system is home to high biomass and low species diversity, which poses two key questions: How can two mesopredators that perform similar ecological roles coexist? And if these two species are so ecologically similar, can they be managed using the same approach? Here, we combined acoustic telemetry, stomach content analysis, and stable isotope analysis to (i) explore space use and diet choices within and between these two species and (ii) to assess appropriate species-specific management options. Although rock hind had high residency and small calculated home ranges (0.0001–0.3114 km2), spotted moray exhibited shorter periods of residency (<3 months) before exiting the array. Vertical space use differed significantly across the 20-month tracking period, with individual differences in vertical space observed for both species. A hierarchical generalized additive model using 12-h averaged depth data identified that rock hind occurred lower in the water column than spotted moray, with both species occupying moderately deeper depths at night versus day (+1.6% relative depth). Spotted moray depth was also significantly predicted by lunar illumination. Aggregating samples by species and tissue type, Bayesian ecological niche modeling identified a 53.14%–54.15% and 78.02%–97.08% probability of niche overlap from fin clip and white muscle, respectively, whereas limited stomach content data indicated a preference for piscivorous prey. Variability in niche breadth between years suggests these species may exploit a range of prey items over time. These findings indicate that although these two species perform a similar ecological role by feeding on prey occupying the same trophic levels, ... |
format |
Text |
author |
Orrell, Danielle L. Sadd, Daniel Jones, Kirsty L. Chadwick, Kate Simpson, Tiffany Philpott, Darcy E. Hussey, Nigel E. |
author_facet |
Orrell, Danielle L. Sadd, Daniel Jones, Kirsty L. Chadwick, Kate Simpson, Tiffany Philpott, Darcy E. Hussey, Nigel E. |
author_sort |
Orrell, Danielle L. |
title |
Coexistence, resource partitioning, and fisheries management: A tale of two mesopredators in equatorial waters |
title_short |
Coexistence, resource partitioning, and fisheries management: A tale of two mesopredators in equatorial waters |
title_full |
Coexistence, resource partitioning, and fisheries management: A tale of two mesopredators in equatorial waters |
title_fullStr |
Coexistence, resource partitioning, and fisheries management: A tale of two mesopredators in equatorial waters |
title_full_unstemmed |
Coexistence, resource partitioning, and fisheries management: A tale of two mesopredators in equatorial waters |
title_sort |
coexistence, resource partitioning, and fisheries management: a tale of two mesopredators in equatorial waters |
publisher |
Scholarship at UWindsor |
publishDate |
2024 |
url |
https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/ibiopub/154 https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.15744 |
genre |
South Atlantic Ocean |
genre_facet |
South Atlantic Ocean |
op_source |
Integrative Biology Publications |
op_relation |
https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/ibiopub/154 doi:10.1111/jfb.15744 https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.15744 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.15744 |
container_title |
Journal of Fish Biology |
_version_ |
1802650134550413312 |