- Title
- Protected nearshore shallow and deep subtidal rocky reef communities differ in their trophic diversity but not their nutritional condition
- Creator
- Heyns-Veale, Elodie R, Richoux, Nicole B, Bernard, Anthony T F, Götz, Albrecht
- Subject
- To be catalogued
- Date
- 2019
- Type
- text
- Type
- article
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10962/454362
- Identifier
- vital:75338
- Identifier
- xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.2989/1814232X.2019.1580614"
- Description
- Large physical changes that alter reef macrobenthos and fish assemblages occur with increasing depth, so the biological processes that regulate communities at different depths are expected to diverge. We used analyses of stable isotopes (δ13C and δ15N) and fatty acids to establish whether shallow (11–25 m) and deep (45–75 m) warm-temperate reef communities within a South African marine protected area differ in their trophic organisation and nutritional condition. We found evidence of enhanced nutritional condition in plankton from the deeper reef as compared with the shallow reef based on the essential fatty acid content, but this effect was generally not observed in the macrobenthos or the fish communities. Community-based indices derived from the stable isotope data indicated that the shallow-reef community had significantly greater niche diversification (greater diversity of carbon sources at the base of the food web) and more niche space occupied than the deep-reef community. One obvious difference in available carbon sources between reef communities was the absence of benthic primary production on the deep reef, where light is limiting. Our results highlight that the decreased trophic diversity, and to an extent functional redundancy, associated with the simplification of food webs at depth may translate into greater vulnerability of deep reefs to disturbance.
- Format
- computer, online resource, application/pdf, 1 online resource (12 pages), pdf
- Publisher
- Taylor and Francis
- Language
- English
- Relation
- African Journal of Marine Science, Heyns-Veale, E.R., Richoux, N.B., Bernard, A.T.F. and Götz, A., 2019. Protected nearshore shallow and deep subtidal rocky reef communities differ in their trophic diversity but not their nutritional condition. African journal of marine science, 41(1), pp.103-114, African Journal of Marine Science volume 41 number 1 p. 103 2019 1814-2338
- Rights
- Publisher
- Rights
- Use of this resource is governed by the terms and conditions of the Taylor and Francis Online Terms and Conditions Statement (https://www.tandfonline.com/terms-and-conditions)
- Rights
- Closed Access
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- Visitors: 53
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Collections
Richoux, Nicole Bertine (Assoc Prof)
RU South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB)
SDG 15. Life On Land
RU Department of Zoology and Entomology
SDG 14. Life Below Water
| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Details | SOURCE1 | Protected nearshore shallow and deep subtidal rocky reef communities differ in their trophic diversity but not their nutritional condition.pdf | 720 KB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details |