Temperature, species identity and morphological traits predict carbonate excretion and mineralogy in tropical reef fishes.

ABSTRACT: Anthropogenic pressures are restructuring coral reefs globally. Sound predictions of the expected changes in key reef functions require adequate knowledge of their drivers. Here we investigate the determinants of a poorly-studied yet relevant biogeochemical function sustained by marine bony fishes: the excretion of intestinal carbonates. Compiling carbonate excretion rates and mineralogical composition from 382 individual coral reef fishes (85 species and 35 families), we identify the environmental factors and fish traits that predict them. We find that body mass and relative intestinal length (RIL) are the strongest predictors of carbonate excretion. Larger fishes and those with longer intestines excrete disproportionately less carbonate per unit mass than smaller fishes and those with sh

SUBMITTER: Ghilardi M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9947118 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature