Mummichog Fundulus heteroclitus responses to long-term, whole-ecosystem nutrient enrichment
Date
2013-05Author
Lockfield, Konner C.
Concept link
Fleeger, John W.
Concept link
Deegan, Linda A.
Concept link
Metadata
Show full item recordCitable URI
https://hdl.handle.net/1912/6345As published
https://doi.org/10.3354/meps10495Keyword
Fundulus heteroclitus; Mark and recapture; Eutrophication; Decimal coded-wire tags; Growth rate; Salt marshAbstract
The effects of eutrophication on coastal plants and sessile animals are becoming well known, but responses of mobile species are less well studied. Here, we link variation in abundance, biomass, body size, growth rate, and resource utilization in mummichogs (Fundulus heteroclitus) > 40 mm in length to experimental nutrient enrichment in Plum Island Sound, Massachusetts, USA. To mimic cultural eutrophication, dissolved fertilizer was released into replicate saltmarsh creeks on each rising tide throughout entire growing seasons. In the summer of the 6th year of enrichment, we released coded-wire tagged mummichogs into nutrient-enriched (n = 3733 fish) and reference (n = 3894 fish) creeks and recaptured them over the next two months. We found increased abundance (by 37%), biomass (58%), body size (8%), and herbivory (115%, measured as photosynthetic gut pigment content) in nutrient-enriched creeks, although body condition was unaffected. However, individual growth rates were 43% lower in nutrient-enriched creeks. Nutrient enrichment stimulated primary production causing a bottom-up enrichment of the food web, which fostered increased biomass and body size. However, the reduction in growth rate indicates an adverse consequence of long-term nutrient enrichment. This negative effect occurred in the absence of increased hypoxia in these highly tidally (4-m amplitude) flushed study creeks. The mummichog is an important predator/grazer in salt marshes, and nutrient-induced alterations in biomass or resource utilization will directly or indirectly affect lower trophic levels, including benthic algae, thereby impacting the 63 ecosystem-wide response to eutrophication.
Description
Author Posting. © The Author(s), 2013. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Inter-Research for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Marine Ecology Progress Series 492 (2013): 211-222, doi:10.3354/meps10495.
Collections
Suggested Citation
Preprint: Lockfield, Konner C., Fleeger, John W., Deegan, Linda A., "Mummichog Fundulus heteroclitus responses to long-term, whole-ecosystem nutrient enrichment", 2013-05, https://doi.org/10.3354/meps10495, https://hdl.handle.net/1912/6345Related items
Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.
-
Hepatic metabolite profiling of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)-resistant and sensitive populations of Atlantic killifish (Fundulus heteroclitus)
Glazer, Lilah; Kido Soule, Melissa C.; Longnecker, Krista; Kujawinski, Elizabeth B.; Aluru, Neelakanteswar (2018-10-15)Atlantic killifish inhabiting polluted sites along the east coast of the U.S. have evolved resistance to toxic effects of contaminants. One such contaminated site is the Acushnet River estuary, near New Bedford Harbor ... -
Development of the morpholino gene knockdown technique in Fundulus heteroclitus : a tool for studying molecular mechanisms in an established environmental model
Matson, Cole W.; Clark, Bryan W.; Jenny, Matthew J.; Fleming, Carrie R.; Hahn, Mark E.; Di Giulio, Richard T. (2008-02-13)A significant challenge in environmental toxicology is that many genetic and genomic tools available in laboratory models are not developed for commonly used environmental models. The Atlantic killifish (Fundulus heteroclitus) ... -
Sequence and functional characterization of hypoxia inducible factors, HIF1α, HIF2αa, and HIF3α, from the estuarine fish, Fundulus heteroclitus
Townley, Ian K.; Karchner, Sibel I.; Skripnikova, Elena; Wiese, Thomas E.; Hahn, Mark E.; Rees, Bernard B. (2016-11)The hypoxia inducible factor (HIF) family of transcription factors plays central roles in the development, physiology, pathology, and environmental adaptation of animals. Because many aquatic habitats are characterized ...