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Functional groups in piscivorous fishes.

ABSTRACT: Piscivory is a key ecological function in aquatic ecosystems, mediating energy flow within trophic networks. However, our understanding of the nature of piscivory is limited; we currently lack an empirical assessment of the dynamics of prey capture and how this differs between piscivores. We therefore conducted aquarium-based performance experiments, to test the feeding abilities of 19 piscivorous fish species. We quantified their feeding morphology, striking, capturing, and processing behavior. We identify two major functional groups: grabbers and engulfers. Grabbers are characterized by horizontal, long-distance strikes, capturing their prey tailfirst and subsequently processing their prey using their oral jaw teeth. Engulfers strike from short distances, from high angles above or below their prey, engulfing their prey and swallowing their prey whole. Based on a meta-analysis of 2,209 published in situ predator-prey relationships in marine and freshwater aquatic environments, we show resource partitioning between grabbers and engulfers. Our results provide a functional classification for piscivorous fishes delineating patterns, which transcend habitats, that may help explain size structures in fish communities.

SUBMITTER: Mihalitsis M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8462170 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Functional groups in piscivorous fishes.

Mihalitsis Michalis M Bellwood David R DR

Ecology and evolution 20210902 18

Piscivory is a key ecological function in aquatic ecosystems, mediating energy flow within trophic networks. However, our understanding of the nature of piscivory is limited; we currently lack an empirical assessment of the dynamics of prey capture and how this differs between piscivores. We therefore conducted aquarium-based performance experiments, to test the feeding abilities of 19 piscivorous fish species. We quantified their feeding morphology, striking, capturing, and processing behavior. ...[more]

PMID: 34594537

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Project description:Fish predation is important in shaping populations and community structure in aquatic systems. These predator-prey interactions can be influenced by environmental, behavioural and morphological factors. Morphological constraints influence the feeding performance of species, and interspecific differences can thus affect patterns of resource use. For piscivorous fishes that swallow prey whole, feeding performance has traditionally been linked to three key morphological constraints: oral gape, pharyngeal gape, and the cleithral gape. However, other constraints may be important. We therefore examine 18 potential morphological constraints related to prey capture and processing, on four predatory species (Cephalopholis urodeta, Paracirrhites forsteri, Pterois volitans, Lates calcarifer). Aquarium-based experiments were then carried out to determine capture and processing behaviour and maximum prey size in two focal species, C. urodeta and P. forsteri. All four species showed a progressive decrease in gape measurements from anterior to posterior with oral gape ≥ buccal ≥ pharyngeal ≥ pectoral girdle ≥ esophagus ≥ stomach. C. urodeta was able to process prey with a maximum depth of 27% of the predators' standard length; for P. forsteri it was 20%. C. urodeta captured prey head-first in 79% of successful strikes. In P. forsteri head-first was 16.6%, mid-body 44.4%, and tail-first 38.8%. Regardless of capture mode, prey were almost always swallowed head first and horizontally in both focal species. Most internal measurements appeared too small for prey to pass through. This may reflect the compressibility of prey, i.e. their ability to be dorsoventrally compressed during swallowing movements. Despite examining all known potential morphological constraints on prey size, horizontal maxillary oral gape in a mechanically stretched position appears to be the main morphological variable that is likely to affect maximum prey size and resource use by these predatory species.

Project description:Teeth facilitate the acquisition and processing of food in most vertebrates. However, relatively little is known about the functions of the diverse tooth morphologies observed in fishes. Piscivorous fishes (fish-eating fish) are crucial in shaping community structure and rely on their oral teeth to capture and/or process prey. However, how teeth are utilized in capturing and/or processing prey remains unclear. Most studies have determined the function of teeth by assessing morphological traits. The behavior during feeding, however, is seldom quantified. Here, we describe the function of teeth within piscivorous fishes by considering how morphological and behavioral traits interact during prey capture and processing. This was achieved through aquarium-based performance experiments, where prey fish were fed to 12 species of piscivorous fishes. Building on techniques in forensic odontology, we incorporate a novel approach to quantify and categorize bite damage on prey fish that were extracted from the piscivore's stomachs immediately after being ingested. We then assess the significance of morphological and behavioral traits in determining the extent and severity of damage inflicted on prey fish. Results show that engulfing piscivores capture their prey whole and head-first. Grabbing piscivores capture prey tail-first using their teeth, process them using multiple headshakes and bites, before spitting them out, and then re-capturing prey head-first for ingestion. Prey from engulfers sustained minimal damage, whereas prey from grabbers sustained significant damage to the epaxial musculature. Within grabbers, headshakes were significantly associated with more severe damage categories. Headshaking behavior damages the locomotive muscles of prey, presumably to prevent escape. Compared to non-pharyngognaths, pharyngognath piscivores inflict significantly greater damage to prey. Overall, when present, oral jaw teeth appear to be crucial for both prey capture and processing (immobilization) in piscivorous fishes.

Project description:BackgroundColor vision plays a critical role in visual behavior. An animal's capacity for color vision rests on the presence of differentially sensitive cone photoreceptors. Spectral sensitivity is a measure of the visual responsiveness of these cones at different light wavelengths. Four classes of cone pigments have been identified in vertebrates, but in teleost fishes, opsin genes have undergone gene duplication events and thus can produce a larger number of spectrally distinct cone pigments. In this study, we examine the question of large-scale variation in color vision with respect to individual, sex and species that may result from differential expression of cone pigments. Cichlid fishes are an excellent model system for examining variation in spectral sensitivity because they have seven distinct cone opsin genes that are differentially expressed.ResultsTo examine the variation in the number of cones that participate in cichlid spectral sensitivity, we used whole organism electrophysiology, opsin gene expression and empirical modeling. Examination of over 100 spectral sensitivity curves from 34 individuals of three species revealed that (1) spectral sensitivity of individual cichlids was based on different subsets of four or five cone pigments, (2) spectral sensitivity was shaped by multiple cone interactions and (3) spectral sensitivity differed between species and correlated with foraging mode and the spectral reflectance of conspecifics. Our data also suggest that there may be significant differences in opsin gene expression between the sexes.ConclusionsOur study describes complex opponent and nonopponent cone interactions that represent the requisite neural processing for color vision. We present the first comprehensive evidence for pentachromatic color vision in vertebrates, which offers the potential for extraordinary spectral discrimination capabilities. We show that opsin gene expression in cichlids, and possibly also spectral sensitivity, may be sex-dependent. We argue that females and males sample their visual environment differently, providing a neural basis for sexually dimorphic visual behaviour. The diversification of spectral sensitivity likely contributes to sensory adaptations that enhance the contrast of transparent prey and the detection of optical signals from conspecifics, suggesting a role for both natural and sexual selection in tuning color vision.

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Functional groups in piscivorous fishes.

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Functional groups in piscivorous fishes.

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