Abstract
Alternative pathways of energy transfer guarantee the functionality and productivity in marine food webs that experience strong seasonality. Nevertheless, the complexity of zooplankton interactions is rarely considered in trophic studies because of the lack of detailed information about feeding interactions in nature. In this study, we used DNA metabarcoding to highlight the diversity of trophic niches in a wide range of micro- and mesozooplankton, including ciliates, rotifers, cladocerans, copepods and their prey, by sequencing 16- and 18S rRNA genes. Our study demonstrates that the zooplankton trophic niche partitioning goes beyond both phylogeny and size and reinforces the importance of diversity in resource use for stabilizing food web efficiency by allowing for several different pathways of energy transfer. We further highlight that small, rarely studied zooplankton (rotifers and ciliates) fill an important role in the Baltic Sea pelagic primary production pathways and the potential of ciliates, rotifers and crustaceans in the utilization of filamentous and picocyanobacteria within the pelagic food web. The approach used in this study is a suitable entry point to ecosystem-wide food web modelling considering species-specific resource use of key consumers.
Highlights
The ability for ecosystems to maintain functionality and productivity under annual and seasonal variation in primary production relies on energy transfer pathways sustained by a network of diverse primary consumers [1,2]
Metabarcoding allows for a food web-oriented approach as several zooplankton species can be investigated simultaneously [29], thereby providing detailed insights on trophic interactions and better linking the trophic niche diversity with energy flow
Our results show that the trophic niche diversity extends beyond broad phylogenetic groups and size classes and that small, rarely studied zooplankton fill an important role in the pathways of the coastal pelagic primary production
Summary
The ability for ecosystems to maintain functionality and productivity under annual and seasonal variation in primary production relies on energy transfer pathways sustained by a network of diverse primary consumers [1,2]. In most food web studies, the trophic niche is based on size or phylogeny due to a lack of detailed information about feeding interactions in nature. The rotifer phylum contains members of different size classes [15], as well as organisms with various feeding behaviours including filter feeders [16], selective abundance (ind l−1). Metabarcoding allows for a food web-oriented approach as several zooplankton species can be investigated simultaneously [29], thereby providing detailed insights on trophic interactions and better linking the trophic niche diversity with energy flow. Our results show that the trophic niche diversity extends beyond broad phylogenetic groups and size classes and that small, rarely studied zooplankton fill an important role in the pathways of the coastal pelagic primary production
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