期刊
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
卷 8, 期 -, 页码 -出版社
FRONTIERS MEDIA SA
DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.01297
关键词
Chl a; C:N; ecological stoichiometry; intertidal; marine; mussel; phytoplankton; stoichiometric mismatch
类别
资金
- National Science Foundation [OCE-0351778, OCE-0549944]
- Andrew W. Mellon Foundation
- Partnership for Interdisciplinary Studies of Coastal Oceans (PISCO)
- David and Lucile Packard Foundation
- Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
The concept of ecological stoichiometry-the balancing of elemental ratios in ecological interactions-has transformed our thinking about processes in natural systems. Here, this perspective is applied to rocky shore ecosystems to explore the consequences of variation in internal nutrient ratios across two trophic levels. Specifically, I measured the internal concentrations of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) in mussels (Mytilus spp.) and particulate organic matter (POM) to evaluate the effects of stoichiometric mismatch-the difference in the carbon-to-nitrogen ratio (C:N) between a consumer and its resources-on mussel growth at sites on the coasts of Oregon, USA, and the South Island of New Zealand. As POM quality (i. e., Chl a, a proxy for phytoplankton availability in the POM) increased, C: N of the POM declined, but C: N of mussels increased. This resulted in a greater mismatch in C: N between mussels and their food source at low Chl a. Mussel growth across sites was positively associated with Chl a, particulate organic carbon (POC), and particulate organic nitrogen (PON) but negatively associated with stoichiometric mismatch. Overall, as the elemental ratios of consumers became more different from those of their resources, growth declined, likely due to the energetic cost associated with processing lower quality food. Furthermore, the effect of food quantity on growth depended on stoichiometric mismatch. In New Zealand, where mismatch was high-i. e., consumer C:N differed substantially from resource C: N-consumer growth was strongly affected by resource quantity (Chl a or POC). However, in Oregon, where mismatch was low, the relationship between resource quantity and growth was considerably weaker. This interaction between resource quantity and mismatch was not apparent for PON, which is consistent with variation in PON underlying variation in POM C:N and highlights the role of N in limiting growth. Previous research has neglected the importance of ecological stoichiometry as a mediator of consumer-resource interactions in rocky intertidal communities. I show that resource quality and quantity interact to determine consumer growth, highlighting the utility of ecological stoichiometry in understanding spatial subsidies in benthic marine systems.
作者
我是这篇论文的作者
点击您的名字以认领此论文并将其添加到您的个人资料中。
推荐
暂无数据