4.5 Article

Integrating siphonophores into marine food-web ecology

Journal

LIMNOLOGY AND OCEANOGRAPHY LETTERS
Volume 7, Issue 2, Pages 81-95

Publisher

WILEY
DOI: 10.1002/lol2.10235

Keywords

-

Funding

  1. National Science Foundation [OCE-1829812, OCE-1829805, OCE-1829835]

Ask authors/readers for more resources

Siphonophores are understudied colonial hydrozoans that play an important role in oceanic ecosystems. This study reveals their diverse diet and potential trophic differences between depth habitats, emphasizing the importance of gelatinous zooplankton in shaping the food web structure.
Siphonophores are a clade of understudied colonial hydrozoans (Cnidaria) that are abundant predators in oceanic ecosystems, with species present across the water column. We (1) synthesize current knowledge about siphonophore trophic ecology and predator-prey interactions, (2) analyze siphonophore-prey networks to compare food-web topology between shallow and deep-pelagic habitats, (3) discuss contemporary techniques that will allow for more integrative studies of siphonophore feeding ecology, and (4) and present a vision for future research. We found distinct diet differences between siphonophore species, indicating that siphonophores occupy multiple trophic niches and prey on a diversity of taxa. Our results suggest that siphonophore-prey networks may be more specialized in the deep pelagic than in the epipelagic, suggesting potential trophic differences between depth habitats. This study highlights niche differentiation and trophic complexity among siphonophores and demonstrates the importance of gelatinous zooplankton in shaping food web structure in pelagic ecosystems.

Authors

I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.

Reviews

Primary Rating

4.5
Not enough ratings

Secondary Ratings

Novelty
-
Significance
-
Scientific rigor
-
Rate this paper

Recommended

No Data Available
No Data Available