Dietary shifts in a stressed fish assemblage: Consequences of a bivalve invasion in the San Francisco Estuary

Feyrer, Frederick; Herbold, Bruce; Matern, Scott A.; Moyle, Peter B.

doi:10.1023/a:1025839132274

Cited by 133 publications

(75 citation statements)

References 22 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The invasive clams P. amurensis and C. fluminea are included because of their known impact on phyto-and zooplankton populations (Kimmerer 1996(Kimmerer , 2006. Epibenthic invertebrates are included because they are well-represented in fish diets, and because of evidence that amphipods have replaced the native mysid (Neomysis mercedis) as an important food source (Kjelson and Feyrer et al 2003;Dean et al 2005;Nobriga and Feyrer 2008;O'Rear 2012).…”

Section: Linkages Describe Population-level Responsesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The microbial loop is highly important to epibenthic organisms (Linkage 4.21), offering a parallel, indirect pathway to the direct pathway from detritus seen in Linkage 4.15. Benthic invertebrates, particularly amphipods, feed on detritus and microbes, forming an important food supply to fish (Feyrer et al 2003). Before the decline in plankton in the 1980s, the main macroinvertebrate prey for fishes was the formerly abundant mysid N. mercedis, which feeds on phytoplankton and zooplankton (Orsi and Knutson 1979).…”

Section: Sidebar 3 Key Uncertainties: Primary Production To Grazersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As most fish grow, they progress to larger foods, such as mysids, amphipods and other epibenthic invertebrates. Filter feeders such as American (Alosa sapidissima) and threadfin (Dorosoma petenense) shad, and planktivores such as delta and longfin (Spirinchus thaleichthys), smelt remain largely tied to the pelagic food web, although they use epibenthic organisms such as mysids at least periodically (Moyle et al 1992;Feyrer et al 2003;Feyrer et al 2007;Slater and Baxter 2014).…”

Section: Diagram 5-secondary Production To Predatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The native mysid N. mercedis may represent a lost link of larger epibenthic organisms to the pelagic phytoplankton-derived web (Feyrer et al 2003). Mysids are dependent upon phytoplankton during juvenile development, switching to invertebrate prey as adults (Baldo Kost and Knight 1975).…”

Section: Diagram 5-secondary Production To Predatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Mysids are dependent upon phytoplankton during juvenile development, switching to invertebrate prey as adults (Baldo Kost and Knight 1975). Mysid decline may be due to the decline in phytoplankton production (Orsi and Mecum 1986), competition for food with benthic grazers, loss of habitat, and competition with introduced invertebrate species (Orsi and Knutson 1979;Knutson and Orsi 1983;Orsi and Mecum 1996;Feyrer et al 2003).…”

Section: Diagram 5-secondary Production To Predatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

A Conceptual Model of the Aquatic Food Web of the Upper San Francisco Estuary

Durand¹

2015

SFEWS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Section: Linkages Describe Population-level Responsesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Sidebar 3 Key Uncertainties: Primary Production To Grazersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Diagram 5-secondary Production To Predatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Diagram 5-secondary Production To Predatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Diagram 5-secondary Production To Predatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

A Conceptual Model of the Aquatic Food Web of the Upper San Francisco Estuary

Durand¹

2015

SFEWS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Conservation of Estuarine Fishes

Cowley¹,

Tweedley²,

Whitfield³

2022

Fish and Fisheries in Estuaries

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Feeding habits and novel prey of larval fishes in the northern San Francisco Estuary

et al. 2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Food limitation can dampen the survival and growth of fish species during early development. To investigate prey diversity important to the planktivorous larval longfin smelt (Spirinchus thaleichthys) and Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) from the San Francisco Estuary, we used DNA metabarcoding analysis of the cytochrome oxidase I gene on the guts of these fishes and on environmental zooplankton samples, in comparison with results from abundance analyses of zooplankton samples. Overall, both fish consumed the prey that were commonly available and relatively abundant: Diets were dominated by arthropods but also included soft‐bodied and difficult to identify organisms. Prey taxa substantially overlapped between the two species (Schoener's index = 0.66), and alpha diversity analysis suggested high variability in the content of guts from different individuals. Abundant prey taxa in both fish species included the copepods Eurytemora carolleeae, Acanthocyclops americanus, and A. robustus; Acanthocyclops spp. are difficult to distinguish morphologically. Differential abundance analysis suggested that both species consumed the most abundant zooplankton in lower proportions than their availability in the environment. A few uncommon prey observed in the diets may hint at feeding strategies employed by the larvae, such as herring DNA in the longfin smelt diets, suggesting feeding on eggs near substrates or schooling behavior. Herring consumed the small (<0.5 mm) copepod Limnoithona tetraspina much more frequently (30%) than did smelt (2%), possibly indicating differences in foraging behavior or sensory abilities. Among the unexpected prey found in the diets was the cnidarian Hydra oligactis, the polychaete Dasybranchus sp., and the copepod Mesocyclops pehpeiensis, a species not previously described in the San Francisco Estuary. Our findings illustrate the power of molecular methods in revealing feeding patterns and novel plankton diversity that can be undetectable with complementary morphological analysis methods.

show abstract

Dietary shifts in a stressed fish assemblage: Consequences of a bivalve invasion in the San Francisco Estuary

Cited by 133 publications

References 22 publications

A Conceptual Model of the Aquatic Food Web of the Upper San Francisco Estuary

A Conceptual Model of the Aquatic Food Web of the Upper San Francisco Estuary

Conservation of Estuarine Fishes

Feeding habits and novel prey of larval fishes in the northern San Francisco Estuary

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About