Using the otolith sulcus to aid in prey identification and improve estimates of prey size in diet studies of a piscivorous predator
Document (DOC) | Southeast Fisheries Science Center (SEFSC)GUID: gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:58440 | Updated: August 9, 2022 | Published / External
Item Identification
Title: | Using the otolith sulcus to aid in prey identification and improve estimates of prey size in diet studies of a piscivorous predator |
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Status: | Completed |
Publication Date: | 2020-03-23 |
Abstract: |
Diet studies are fundamental for understanding trophic connections in marine ecosystems. In the southeastern US, the common bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus is the predominant marine mammal in coastal waters, but its role as a top predator has received little attention. Diet studies of piscivorous predators, like bottlenose dolphins, start with assessing prey otoliths recovered from stomachs or feces, but digestive erosion hampers species identification and underestimates fish weight (FW). To compensate, FW is often estimated from the least affected otoliths and scaled to other otoliths, which also introduces bias. The ulcus, an otolith surface feature, has a species-specific shape of its ostium and caudal extents, which is within the otolith edge for some species. We explored whether the sulcus could improve species identification and estimation of prey size using a case study of four sciaenid species targeted by fisheries and bottlenose dolphins in North Carolina. Methods were assessed first on otoliths from a reference collection (n=421) and applied to prey otoliths (n=5308) recovered from 20 stomachs of dead stranded dolphins. We demonstrated in reference collection otoliths that cauda to sulcus length (CL:SL) could discriminate between spotted seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosus) and weakfish (Cynoscion regalis) (classification accuracy=0.98). This method confirmed for the first time predation of spotted seatrout by bottlenose dolphins in North Carolina. Using predictive models developed from reference collection otoliths, we provided evidence that digestion affects otolith length more than sulcus or cauda length, making the latter better predictors. Lastly, we explored scenarios of calculating total consumed biomass across degrees of digestion. A suggested approach was for the least digested otoliths to be scaled to other otoliths iteratively from within the same stomach, month, or season as samples allow. Using the otolith sulcus helped overcome challenges of species identification and fish-size estimation, indicating their potential use in other diet studies. |
Purpose: |
To explore whether the sulcus could improve species identification and estimation of prey size using a case study of four sciaenid species targeted by fisheries and bottlenose dolphins in North Carolina |
Other Citation Details: |
Byrd, BL, Hohn, AA, Krause, JR. Using the otolith sulcus to aid in prey identification and improve estimates of prey size in diet studies of a piscivorous predator. Ecol Evol. 2020; 10: 3584-3604. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.6085 (actual Journal article) |
Supplemental Information: |
ECE-2019-07-00864.R2_Proof_for inport.pdf is the pre-publication version of the paper found on the SEFSC PARR Data Server Information on the published paper has been added to this record. |
DOI (Digital Object Identifier): | 10.1002/ece3.6085 |
DOI Registration Authority: | Wiley Online Library |
Document Information
Document Type: | Journal article |
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Format: | Acrobat Portable Document Format |
Status Code: | Published |
Support Roles
Author
Date Effective From: | 2020 |
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Date Effective To: | |
Contact (Person): | Byrd, Barbie |
Email Address: | barbie.byrd@ncdenr.gov |
Phone: | 252-726-7021 |
Co-Author
Date Effective From: | 2020 |
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Date Effective To: | |
Contact (Person): | Hohn, Aleta |
Address: |
101 Pivers Island Road Beaufort, NC 28156 |
Email Address: | Aleta.Hohn@noaa.gov |
Phone: | 252-728-8797 |
Fax: | 252-728-8784 |
URLs
URL 1
URL: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.6085 |
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Name: | Byrd, BL, Hohn, AA, Krause, JR. Using the otolith sulcus to aid in prey identification and improve estimates of prey size in diet studies of a piscivorous predator. Ecol Evol. 2020; 10: 3584-3604. |
URL Type: |
Online Resource
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Description: |
Online version of article |
Catalog Details
Catalog Item ID: | 58440 |
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GUID: | gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:58440 |
Metadata Record Created By: | Lee M Weinberger |
Metadata Record Created: | 2020-01-08 08:11+0000 |
Metadata Record Last Modified By: | SysAdmin InPortAdmin |
Metadata Record Last Modified: | 2022-08-09 17:11+0000 |
Metadata Record Published: | 2021-04-29 |
Owner Org: | SEFSC |
Metadata Publication Status: | Published Externally |
Do Not Publish?: | N |
Metadata Last Review Date: | 2021-04-29 |
Metadata Review Frequency: | 1 Year |
Metadata Next Review Date: | 2022-04-29 |