Simulated eutrophication and browning alters zooplankton nutritional quality and determines juvenile fish growth and survival.

ABSTRACT: The first few months of life is the most vulnerable period for fish and their optimal hatching time with zooplankton prey is favored by natural selection. Traditionally, however, prey abundance (i.e., zooplankton density) has been considered important, whereas prey nutritional composition has been largely neglected in natural settings. High-quality zooplankton, rich in both essential amino acids (EAAs) and fatty acids (FAs), are required as starting prey to initiate development and fast juvenile growth. Prey quality is dependent on environmental conditions, and, for example, eutrophication and browning are two major factors defining primary producer community structures that will directly determine the nutritional quality of the basal food sources (algae, bacteria, terrestrial matter) for

SUBMITTER: Taipale SJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5838055 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature