Hagfish feeding habits along a depth gradient inferred from stable isotopes

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dc.citation.volume485
dc.contributor.authorZintzen V
dc.contributor.authorRogers KM
dc.contributor.authorRoberts CD
dc.contributor.authorStewart AL
dc.contributor.authorAnderson MJ
dc.date.available2013
dc.date.issued2013-06-27
dc.description.abstractFeeding habits of 3 hagfish species were investigated along a depth gradient (~50 to 900 m) in New Zealand using nitrogen (?15N) and carbon (?13C) stable isotopes. Neomyxine biniplicata had the lowest mean ?15N value (14.2%), followed by Eptatretus cirrhatus (14.9 %) and Eptatretus sp. 1 (15.8%). Neomyxine biniplicata (~50 m depth) was characterized by (1) relative low lipid content in muscles and (2) consistent body condition index which together with its trophic position indicated that this species probably acquires its food by active predation, supplemented by opportunistic scavenging. Eptatretus cirrhatus (48 to 912 m) and Eptatretus sp. 1 (290 to 922 m) had similar morphology, but their ?15N signature indicated that they were feeding on slightly different trophic levels. For Eptatretus sp. 1, the combination of (1) variable lipid content, indicating phases of feeding and fasting, (2) decreasing body condition index with depth, indicating less regular feeding at depth, (3) increasing ?15N with depth and (4) decreasing ?13C signature with depth, pointed towards a feeding behaviour specialized in scavenging on large but rare falls of high-level predators such as whales, sharks or bony fishes. On the other hand, E. cirrhatus was characterized by (1) less variable lipid content, (2) a body condition index not influenced by depth, (3) ?15N values decreasing with depth and ?13C values constant across its depth range, which is likely to indicate a more opportunistic and mobile feeding behaviour on a range of prey © 2013 Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa and Massey University and GNS Science.
dc.description.publication-statusPublished
dc.format.extent223 - U266
dc.identifierhttp://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000321008200017&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=c5bb3b2499afac691c2e3c1a83ef6fef
dc.identifier.citationMARINE ECOLOGY PROGRESS SERIES, 2013, 485 pp. 223 - U266
dc.identifier.doi10.3354/meps10341
dc.identifier.eissn1616-1599
dc.identifier.elements-id193689
dc.identifier.harvestedMassey_Dark
dc.identifier.issn0171-8630
dc.relation.isPartOfMARINE ECOLOGY PROGRESS SERIES
dc.rights© Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa and Massey University and GNS Science 2013. Open Access under Creative Commons by Attribution Licence. Use, distribution and reproduction are un restricted. Author(s) and original publication must be credited.
dc.subjectFish
dc.subjectEcology
dc.subjectNitrogen
dc.subjectCarbon
dc.subjectBody condition index
dc.subjectLipid content
dc.subjectEptatretus
dc.subjectNeomyxine
dc.subject.anzsrc0405 Oceanography
dc.subject.anzsrc0602 Ecology
dc.subject.anzsrc0608 Zoology
dc.titleHagfish feeding habits along a depth gradient inferred from stable isotopes
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.notesNot known
pubs.organisational-group/Massey University
pubs.organisational-group/Massey University/College of Sciences
pubs.organisational-group/Massey University/College of Sciences/NZ Institute of Advanced Studies
pubs.organisational-group/Massey University/College of Sciences/School of Natural and Computational Sciences
pubs.organisational-group/Massey University/College of Sciences/School of Natural and Computational Sciences/NZ Institute of Advanced Studies
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