Trophic niche partitioning between two Rock Nuthatches (Sitta tephronota&Sitta neumayer) in a contact zone in Iran

2016 ◽  
Vol 299 (2) ◽  
pp. 116-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Mohammadi ◽  
M. Kaboli ◽  
S. Ashrafi ◽  
M. Mofidi-Neyestanak ◽  
M. Yousefi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Contact Zone ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Trophic Niche

scholarly journals Three-dimensional niche partitioning between two colonially nesting ardeid species in central China

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuanxing Ye ◽  
Canshi Hu ◽  
Yiting Jiang ◽  
Geoffrey W. H. Davison ◽  
Changqing Ding
Keyword(s):  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Trophic Niche ◽  
Egg Laying ◽  
Central China ◽  
Paddy Fields ◽  
Shaanxi Province ◽  
Similar Species ◽  
Wetland Birds ◽  
Cattle Egret ◽  
River Banks

Abstract Background Interspecific competition is known to be strongest between those species that are both closely related and sympatric. Egrets are colonially nesting wetland birds that often overlap and can therefore be expected to compete in roosting and nesting habitat as well as in diet. According to the niche partitioning hypothesis, it is to be expected that these similar species would show differentiation in at least one of the main niche dimensions to reduce competition. We tested niche partitioning between the colonially nesting Little Egret (Egretta garzetta) and Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis) in temporal, spatial and trophic dimensions. Methods Field study was conducted in three mixed egret colonies in Yangxian County, southwest Shaanxi Province, central China. For each nest colony we recorded its spatial location, the height of nesting trees and of nests, the height of roosting trees and of roosting individuals within the trees. We determined the first egg-laying and first hatching dates of the two species. Craw dissection of storm-killed egret nestlings was used to measure the diet. Six transects were surveyed to study foraging habitat selection. Results We found that hatching time of Little Egrets peaked earlier (by about 1 month) than that of Cattle Egrets. Cattle Egrets nested and roosted higher than Little Egrets. The foraging habitats used by Little Egrets were dominated by river banks (73.49%), followed by paddy fields (13.25%) and reservoirs (10.84%), whereas Cattle Egret foraging sites were characterized by grasslands (44.44%), paddy fields (33.33%) and river banks (22.22%). Little Egrets consumed more fishes (65.66%) and Odonata larvae (13.69%) than Cattle Egrets, while Cattle Egrets were found feeding mainly on Coleoptera (29.69%) and Orthoptera (23.29%). Little Egrets preyed on larger mean biomasses of food items than Cattle Egrets. Conclusions Our results confirm the niche partitioning hypothesis as a mechanism for coexistence among ecologically similar species. In two coexisting egret species, niche partitioning is multidimensional, such that the two coexistent species occupy differing ecological space based on all three temporal, spatial and trophic niche dimensions.

Identification of trophic niches of subterranean diving beetles in a calcrete aquifer by DNA and stable isotope analyses

2014 ◽  
Vol 65 (2) ◽  
pp. 95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tessa M. Bradford ◽  
William F. Humphreys ◽  
Andrew D. Austin ◽  
Steven J. B. Cooper
Keyword(s):  
Stable Isotope ◽  
Trophic Ecology ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Niche Differentiation ◽  
Trophic Niche ◽  
Coi Gene ◽  
Stable Isotope Analyses ◽  
Prey Preferences ◽  
Diving Beetles ◽  
Isotope Analyses

The Yilgarn calcrete aquifers in Western Australia are an interesting system for investigating the process of speciation within subterranean habitats, because of the limited opportunities for dispersal between isolated calcretes. The presence of different-sized diving beetles (Dytiscidae) in separate calcretes, including sympatric sister-species pairs, suggests that species may have evolved within calcretes by an adaptive shift as a result of ecological-niche differentiation. We have studied the potential for trophic niche partitioning in a sister triplet of diving beetles, of distinctly different sizes, from a single aquifer. Fragments of the mitochondrial COI gene, specific to known species of amphipods and copepods, were polymerase chain reaction-amplified from each of the three beetle species, indicating that there is an overlap in their prey items. Significant differences were found in the detected diets of the three species, and results showed a propensity for prey preferences of amphipods by the large beetles and one species of copepod for the small beetles. A terrestrial source of carbon to the calcrete was suggested by stable isotope analyses. The combined approach of molecular, stable isotope and behavioural studies have provided insight into the trophic ecology of this difficult-to-access environment, providing a framework for more fine-scale analyses of the diet of different-sized species to examine speciation underground.

scholarly journals The role of ecotype‐environment interactions in intraspecific trophic niche partitioning subsequent to stocking

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
O. Morissette ◽  
P. Sirois ◽  
C. C. Wilson ◽  
M. Laporte ◽  
L. Bernatchez
Keyword(s):  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Trophic Niche

scholarly journals Intersexual Trophic Niche Partitioning in an Ant-Eating Spider (Araneae: Zodariidae)

PLoS ONE ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. e14603 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stano Pekár ◽  
Martina Martišová ◽  
Trine Bilde
Keyword(s):  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Trophic Niche ◽  
Ant Eating

scholarly journals Trophic niche partitioning of cryptic species of long-eared bats in Switzerland: implications for conservation

2011 ◽  
Vol 57 (4) ◽  
pp. 843-849 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sohrab Ashrafi ◽  
Andres Beck ◽  
Marianne Rutishauser ◽  
Raphaël Arlettaz ◽  
Fabio Bontadina
Keyword(s):  
Cryptic Species ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Trophic Niche

Feeding behavior and trophic niche partitioning between co-existing river otter species

Hydrobiologia ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carine G. Moraes ◽  
Jensen Hegg ◽  
Tommaso Giarrizzo ◽  
Marcelo C. Andrade
Keyword(s):  
Feeding Behavior ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Trophic Niche ◽  
River Otter

scholarly journals Stable isotope analyses identify trophic niche partitioning between sympatric terrestrial vertebrates in coastal saltmarshes with differing oiling histories

PeerJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. e11392
Author(s):  
Sydney Moyo ◽  
Hayat Bennadji ◽  
Danielle Laguaite ◽  
Anna A. Pérez-Umphrey ◽  
Allison M. Snider ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stable Isotope ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Foraging Ecology ◽  
Isotope Analysis ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Trophic Niche ◽  
Bioindicator Species ◽  
Terrestrial Vertebrates ◽  
Oryzomys Palustris ◽  
Trophic Niches

Bioindicator species are commonly used as proxies to help identify the ecological effects of oil spills and other stressors. However, the utility of taxa as bioindicators is dependent on understanding their trophic niche and life history characteristics, as these factors mediate their ecological responses. Seaside sparrows (Ammospiza maritima) and marsh rice rats (Oryzomys palustris) are two ubiquitous terrestrial vertebrates that are thought to be bioindicators of oil spills in saltmarsh ecosystems. To improve the utility of these omnivorous taxa as bioindicators, we used carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis to quantify their trophic niches at saltmarshes in coastal Louisiana with differing oiling histories. We found that rats generally had lower trophic positions and incorporated more aquatic prey relative to seaside sparrows. The range of resources used (i.e.,trophic niche width) varied based on oiling history. Seaside sparrows had wider trophic niches than marsh rice rats at unoiled sites, but not at oiled sites. Trophic niche widths of conspecifics were less consistent at oiled sites, although marsh rice rats at oiled sites had wider trophic niches than rats at unoiled sites. These results suggest that past oiling histories may have imparted subtle, yet differing effects on the foraging ecology of these two co-occurring species. However, the temporal lag between initial oiling and our study makes identifying the ultimate drivers of differences between oiled and unoiled sites challenging. Even so, our findings provide a baseline quantification of the trophic niches of sympatric seaside sparrows and marsh rice rats that will aid in the use of these species as indicators of oiling and other environmental stressors in saltmarsh ecosystems.

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