DNA metabarcoding reveals a diverse, omnivorous diet of Arctic amphipods during the polar night, with jellyfish and fish as major prey
IntroductionCurrently, Arctic marine ecosystems are witnessing the most rapid physical changes worldwide, leading to shifts in pelagic and benthic communities and food web structure, concomitant with the introduction of boreal species. Gelatinous zooplankton or jellyfish represent one particular gro...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2024-02-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Marine Science |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2024.1327650/full |
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| author | Annkathrin Dischereit Annkathrin Dischereit Jan Beermann Benoit Lebreton Owen S. Wangensteen Stefan Neuhaus Charlotte Havermans Charlotte Havermans |
| author_facet | Annkathrin Dischereit Annkathrin Dischereit Jan Beermann Benoit Lebreton Owen S. Wangensteen Stefan Neuhaus Charlotte Havermans Charlotte Havermans |
| author_sort | Annkathrin Dischereit |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | IntroductionCurrently, Arctic marine ecosystems are witnessing the most rapid physical changes worldwide, leading to shifts in pelagic and benthic communities and food web structure, concomitant with the introduction of boreal species. Gelatinous zooplankton or jellyfish represent one particular group of which several boreal species are prone to undergo significant poleward range expansions and population increases in the Arctic in the course of the ongoing changes. Historically, jellyfish were considered a trophic dead-end, but an increasing number of studies using modern tools have highlighted their role as major prey items in marine food webs. In this study, we aimed to verify the role of jellyfish and other metazoans as food sources in the Arctic polar night food web, when pelagic resources are limited.MethodsWe identified the diet of different bentho-pelagic amphipod species in the Atlantifying Kongsfjorden (West Svalbard) during the polar night. We regularly sampled lysianassoid and gammarid amphipods using baited traps and hand nets over a period of one month during the polar night and identified their diet spectrum by applying DNA metabarcoding (COI) to their stomach contents.ResultsWe demonstrate that all investigated species are omnivorous. Fish species including polar cod and snailfish, likely in the shape of carrion, played an important role in the diet of the scavengers Orchomenella minuta and Anonyx sarsi. Predation and potential scavenging on jellyfish contributed to the diet of all four investigated species, particularly for the species Gammarus setosus and G. oceanicus, as evidenced by high read abundances and high frequencies of occurrence. Besides jellyfish, crustaceans and macroalgae were important components of the diet of the two Gammarus species.DiscussionThe diverse jellyfish community present in Kongsfjorden in the polar night is clearly being utilized as a food source, either through pelagic feeding or feeding on jelly-falls, albeit to a different extent in the local amphipod community. These findings provide novel insights into the Arctic food web during the polar night and represent the first evidence of feeding on natural (non-experimental) jelly-falls. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T02:02:36Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4444b958fbc1456685461415b9942d17 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-7745 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T02:02:36Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Marine Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-4444b958fbc1456685461415b9942d172024-02-14T04:15:29ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Marine Science2296-77452024-02-011110.3389/fmars.2024.13276501327650DNA metabarcoding reveals a diverse, omnivorous diet of Arctic amphipods during the polar night, with jellyfish and fish as major preyAnnkathrin Dischereit0Annkathrin Dischereit1Jan Beermann2Benoit Lebreton3Owen S. Wangensteen4Stefan Neuhaus5Charlotte Havermans6Charlotte Havermans7Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, GermanyUniversity of Bremen, FB2, BreMarE – Bremen Marine Ecology, Bremen, GermanyAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, GermanyJoint Research Unit (UMR) Littoral, Environment and Societies (CNRS – University of La Rochelle), La Rochelle, FranceUniversity of Barcelona, Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Barcelona, SpainAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, GermanyAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, GermanyUniversity of Bremen, FB2, BreMarE – Bremen Marine Ecology, Bremen, GermanyIntroductionCurrently, Arctic marine ecosystems are witnessing the most rapid physical changes worldwide, leading to shifts in pelagic and benthic communities and food web structure, concomitant with the introduction of boreal species. Gelatinous zooplankton or jellyfish represent one particular group of which several boreal species are prone to undergo significant poleward range expansions and population increases in the Arctic in the course of the ongoing changes. Historically, jellyfish were considered a trophic dead-end, but an increasing number of studies using modern tools have highlighted their role as major prey items in marine food webs. In this study, we aimed to verify the role of jellyfish and other metazoans as food sources in the Arctic polar night food web, when pelagic resources are limited.MethodsWe identified the diet of different bentho-pelagic amphipod species in the Atlantifying Kongsfjorden (West Svalbard) during the polar night. We regularly sampled lysianassoid and gammarid amphipods using baited traps and hand nets over a period of one month during the polar night and identified their diet spectrum by applying DNA metabarcoding (COI) to their stomach contents.ResultsWe demonstrate that all investigated species are omnivorous. Fish species including polar cod and snailfish, likely in the shape of carrion, played an important role in the diet of the scavengers Orchomenella minuta and Anonyx sarsi. Predation and potential scavenging on jellyfish contributed to the diet of all four investigated species, particularly for the species Gammarus setosus and G. oceanicus, as evidenced by high read abundances and high frequencies of occurrence. Besides jellyfish, crustaceans and macroalgae were important components of the diet of the two Gammarus species.DiscussionThe diverse jellyfish community present in Kongsfjorden in the polar night is clearly being utilized as a food source, either through pelagic feeding or feeding on jelly-falls, albeit to a different extent in the local amphipod community. These findings provide novel insights into the Arctic food web during the polar night and represent the first evidence of feeding on natural (non-experimental) jelly-falls.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2024.1327650/fullGammarusAnonyxOrchomenellaKongsfjordenSvalbardArctic ocean |
| spellingShingle | Annkathrin Dischereit Annkathrin Dischereit Jan Beermann Benoit Lebreton Owen S. Wangensteen Stefan Neuhaus Charlotte Havermans Charlotte Havermans DNA metabarcoding reveals a diverse, omnivorous diet of Arctic amphipods during the polar night, with jellyfish and fish as major prey Frontiers in Marine Science Gammarus Anonyx Orchomenella Kongsfjorden Svalbard Arctic ocean |
| title | DNA metabarcoding reveals a diverse, omnivorous diet of Arctic amphipods during the polar night, with jellyfish and fish as major prey |
| title_full | DNA metabarcoding reveals a diverse, omnivorous diet of Arctic amphipods during the polar night, with jellyfish and fish as major prey |
| title_fullStr | DNA metabarcoding reveals a diverse, omnivorous diet of Arctic amphipods during the polar night, with jellyfish and fish as major prey |
| title_full_unstemmed | DNA metabarcoding reveals a diverse, omnivorous diet of Arctic amphipods during the polar night, with jellyfish and fish as major prey |
| title_short | DNA metabarcoding reveals a diverse, omnivorous diet of Arctic amphipods during the polar night, with jellyfish and fish as major prey |
| title_sort | dna metabarcoding reveals a diverse omnivorous diet of arctic amphipods during the polar night with jellyfish and fish as major prey |
| topic | Gammarus Anonyx Orchomenella Kongsfjorden Svalbard Arctic ocean |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2024.1327650/full |
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