The pelagic food web of the Western Adriatic Sea: a focus on the role of small pelagics.

ABSTRACT: The Adriatic Sea is one of the largest areas of occurrence of shared small pelagic stocks and the most fished area of the Mediterranean Sea, which is in turn one of the most exploited basins of the world. The variations in the stable isotope contents (δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C) were determined for three small pelagic fishes (i.e., Engraulis encrasicolus, Sardina pilchardus, and Sprattus sprattus, respectively known as anchovies, sardines and sprats) collected across the western side of the basin. Our data allowed to determine the width and features of their trophic niches, to assess potential overlap or resource partitioning among them, and likely anticipate species adaptation to future climate change scenarios. Moreover, variations in stable isotope contents were correlated to b

SUBMITTER: Fanelli E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10477188 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature