Energyscapes pinpoint marine megafauna feeding hotspots in the Mediterranean.

ABSTRACT: Ocean giants shape the structure and functioning of marine food webs via trophic top-down controls, landscapes of fear, vertical and horizontal redistribution of nutrients, energy, and matter. Yet, they face threats from overfishing, pollution, habitat degradation, and climate change, and one-third of marine megafauna species are at risk of extinction, ultimately endangering the resilience of entire ecosystems. In such a context, knowing when and where megafauna find resources to balance their substantial energy requirements is critical for their management. Through an energyscape approach integrating abundance censuses, diet, and energy requirements, we investigated the prey consumption patterns of Mediterranean marine megafauna during the summer. We thereby shed light on a diverse guild

SUBMITTER: Lambert C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11831130 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature