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The same but different: stable isotopes reveal two distinguishable, yet similar, neighbouring food chains in a coral reef

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 August 2017

Baptiste Le Bourg ,
Yves Letourneur Open the ORCID record for Yves Letourneur [Opens in a new window] ,
Daniela Bănaru ,
Jean Blanchot ,
Cristèle Chevalier ,
Gérard Mou-Tham ,
Benoit Lebreton  and
Marc Pagano
Baptiste Le Bourg*
Affiliation:
Aix Marseille Université, CNRS/INSU, IRD, Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography (MIO), UM 110, 13288 Marseille, France Université de Liège, Laboratory of Oceanology, MARE Centre, 4000 Liège, Belgium
Yves Letourneur
Affiliation:
Université de la Nouvelle-Calédonie, Laboratoire LIVE and LABEX ‘CORAIL’, BP R4, 98851 Nouméa cedex, New Caledonia
Daniela Bănaru
Affiliation:
Aix Marseille Université, CNRS/INSU, IRD, Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography (MIO), UM 110, 13288 Marseille, France
Jean Blanchot
Affiliation:
Aix Marseille Université, CNRS/INSU, IRD, Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography (MIO), UM 110, 13288 Marseille, France
Cristèle Chevalier
Affiliation:
Aix Marseille Université, CNRS/INSU, IRD, Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography (MIO), UM 110, 13288 Marseille, France
Gérard Mou-Tham
Affiliation:
Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD), Centre de Nouméa, 98848 Nouméa, New Caledonia
Benoit Lebreton
Affiliation:
Université de La Rochelle, UMR CNRS 7266 LIENSs, 17000 La Rochelle, France
Marc Pagano
Affiliation:
Aix Marseille Université, CNRS/INSU, IRD, Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography (MIO), UM 110, 13288 Marseille, France
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: B. Le Bourg, Université de Liège, Laboratory of Oceanology, MARE Centre, 4000 Liège, Belgium email: baptiste.lebourg@doct.ulg.ac.be
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Abstract

Stable isotope compositions were studied in particulate organic matter (POM), zooplankton and different trophic groups of teleosts to compare food chains based on plankton at two sites (lagoon and outer slope) in a New Caledonian coral reef. For each trophic compartment, δ13C values were always lower in the outer slope than in the lagoon. This result may be explained by potential differences in POM composition between the two environments, suggesting that the two food chains are based on different primary sources of carbon. In contrast, δ15N values did not vary between the lagoon and the outer slope, indicating that these two food chains presented similar length and trophic levels, despite being distinguishable.

Keywords

barrier reefparticulate organic matterzooplanktonreef teleostsstable isotopesPacific Ocean
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 98 , Issue 7 , November 2018 , pp. 1589 - 1597
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2017 

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