Predator size, prey size, and dietary niche breadth relationships in marine predators

Ecology ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 90 (7) ◽  
pp. 2014-2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriel C. Costa
Keyword(s):  
Niche Breadth ◽  
Prey Size ◽  
Marine Predators ◽  
Predator Size ◽  
Dietary Niche

A length-based approach to predator–prey relationships in marine predators

2016 ◽  
Vol 73 (4) ◽  
pp. 677-684 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francis Juanes
Keyword(s):  
Niche Breadth ◽  
Prey Size ◽  
Trophic Niche ◽  
Aquatic Environments ◽  
Critical Feature ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Marine Predators ◽  
Prey Mass ◽  
Aquatic Predators ◽  
Prey Length

Body size is a critical feature of the ecology of most organisms and has been used to describe and understand predator–prey interactions in both terrestrial and aquatic environments. Most previous studies have used prey mass to examine the relationships between predator size and prey size; however, using prey lengths may provide a different perspective, particularly for gape-limited fishes. Using a large database of predator and prey lengths for marine aquatic predators, I found the expected positive wedge-shaped relationship between predator length and prey length and a negative converging relationship between relative prey length (prey–predator length ratio = a measure of trophic niche breadth) and predator length. Distinct patterns in the size scaling of this measure of trophic niche breadth were identified using quantile regression: converging relationships were common among adults but absent among larvae. This difference suggests contrasting ontogenetic foraging opportunities between adults and larvae: a lack of large relative prey sizes for the largest adult predators, and a greater ability of larvae to include larger prey items in their diet as they grow.

scholarly journals Morphology and stable isotope analysis demonstrate different structuring of bat communities in rainforest and savannah habitats

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (12) ◽  
pp. 180849 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ara Monadjem ◽  
Adam Kane ◽  
Peter Taylor ◽  
Leigh R. Richards ◽  
Grant Hall ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stable Isotope ◽  
Stable Isotope Analysis ◽  
Niche Breadth ◽  
Isotope Analysis ◽  
Morphological Characters ◽  
Trophic Levels ◽  
Species Packing ◽  
Dietary Niche ◽  
The One ◽  
Ellipse Area

Bats play important ecological roles in tropical systems, yet how these communities are structured is still poorly understood. Our study explores the structure of African bat communities using morphological characters to define the morphospace occupied by these bats and stable isotope analysis to define their dietary niche breadth. We compared two communities, one in rainforest (Liberia) and one in savannah (South Africa), and asked whether the greater richness in the rainforest was due to more species ‘packing’ into the same morphospace and trophic space than bats from the savannah, or some other arrangement. In the rainforest, bats occupied a larger area in morphospace and species packing was higher than in the savannah; although this difference disappeared when comparing insectivorous bats only. There were also differences in morphospace occupied by different foraging groups (aerial, edge, clutter and fruitbat). Stable isotope analysis revealed that the range of δ 13 C values was almost double in rainforest than in savannah indicating a greater range of utilization of basal C 3 and C 4 resources in the former site, covering primary productivity from both these sources. The ranges in δ 15 N, however, were similar between the two habitats suggesting a similar number of trophic levels. Niche breadth, as defined by either standard ellipse area or convex hull, was greater for the bat community in rainforest than in savannah, with all four foraging groups having larger niche breadths in the former than the latter. The higher inter-species morphospace and niche breadth in forest bats suggest that species packing is not necessarily competitive. By employing morphometrics and stable isotope analysis, we have shown that the rainforest bat community packs more species in morphospace and uses a larger niche breadth than the one in savannah.

scholarly journals Diet Composition and Feeding Strategies of the Stone Marten (Martes foina) in a Typical Mediterranean Ecosystem

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dimitrios E. Bakaloudis ◽  
Christos G. Vlachos ◽  
Malamati A. Papakosta ◽  
Vasileios A. Bontzorlos ◽  
Evangelos N. Chatzinikos
Keyword(s):  
Diet Composition ◽  
Niche Breadth ◽  
Interference Competition ◽  
Mediterranean Ecosystem ◽  
Feeding Strategies ◽  
Stone Marten ◽  
Martes Foina ◽  
Dietary Niche ◽  
Individual Specialisation ◽  
The Individual

Stone martens (Martes foina) are documented as generalist throughout their distributional range whose diet composition is affected by food availability. We tested if this occurs and what feeding strategies it follows in a typical Mediterranean ecosystem in Central Greece by analysing contents from 106 stomachs, seasonally collected from three different habitats during 2003–2006. Seasonal variation in diet and feeding strategies was evident and linked to seasonal nutritional requirements, but possibly imposed by strong interference competition and intraguild predation. Fleshy fruits and arthropods predominated in the diet, but also mammals and birds were frequently consumed. An overall low dietary niche breadth (BA=0.128) indicated a fruit specialization tendency. A generalised diet occurred in spring with high individual specialisation, whereas more animal-type prey was consumed than fruits. A population specialization towards fruits was indicated during summer and autumn, whereas insects were consumed occasionally by males. In those seasons it switched to more clumped food types such as fruits and insects. In winter it selectively exploited both adult and larvae insects and partially fruits overwinter on plants. The tendency to consume particular prey items seasonally reflected both the population specialist behaviour and the individual flexibility preyed on different food resources.

scholarly journals Drought but not population density influences dietary niche breadth in white-tailed deer in a semiarid environment

Ecosphere ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (12) ◽  
pp. art162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald J. Folks ◽  
Kory Gann ◽  
Timothy E. Fulbright ◽  
David G. Hewitt ◽  
Charles A. DeYoung ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Population Density ◽  
Niche Breadth ◽  
Semiarid Environment ◽  
Dietary Niche

scholarly journals Predator size and prey size-gut capacity ratios determine kill frequency and carcass production in terrestrial carnivorous mammals

Oikos ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 128 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annelies De Cuyper ◽  
Marcus Clauss ◽  
Chris Carbone ◽  
Daryl Codron ◽  
An Cools ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prey Size ◽  
Predator Size

Feeding habits of cockfish, Callorhinchus callorhynchus (Holocephali: Callorhynchidae), in Patagonian waters (Argentina)

1996 ◽  
Vol 47 (6) ◽  
pp. 801 ◽  
Author(s):  
EE Di Giacomo ◽  
MR Perier
Keyword(s):  
Prey Size ◽  
Prey Availability ◽  
Feeding Habits ◽  
Food Composition ◽  
Commercial Fishing ◽  
Bivalve Molluscs ◽  
Invertebrate Prey ◽  
Selective Foraging ◽  
Predator Size ◽  
Two Factors

Morphology of the main digestive features of cockfish, Callorhinchus callorhynchus, is described and linked to feeding habits. Composition of the diet and size-selective foraging of this species on scallops was studied in northern Patagonian waters and analysed in relation to depth, sex and size. Three species of bivalve molluscs (Pitar rostratus, Aequipecten tehuelchus and Ennucula puelcha) and flabelligerid polychaetes were predominant in the diet of males. The scallop Zygochlamys patagonica dominated the diet of females. The diet of juveniles consisted of small gastropods (Olivella sp.), bivalves with fragile shells (e.g. Pandora cistula), amphipods and polychaetes. Differences in food composition between sexes and between juveniles and adults are attributed to two factors: extrinsic (concerning prey availability) and intrinsic (concerning the morphology and behaviour of the predator). Size-selective foraging on two species of scallops, Aequipecten tehuelchus (subject to commercial fishing) and Zygochlamys patagonica, was found in adults; it is argued that maximum scallop prey size is constrained by the strength of the crushing apparatus of the cockfish. The diet of the cockfish is compared with that of other holocephalans. It is concluded that species of Callorhinchus can be generally characterized as benthic foragers that specialize in crushing shelled invertebrate prey.

Optimal foraging constrains macroecological patterns: body size and dietary niche breadth in lizards

2008 ◽  
Vol 17 (5) ◽  
pp. 670-677 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriel C. Costa ◽  
Laurie J. Vitt ◽  
Eric R. Pianka ◽  
Daniel O. Mesquita ◽  
Guarino R. Colli
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Optimal Foraging ◽  
Niche Breadth ◽  
Dietary Niche
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