Utility of fish scales from stock assessment surveys in stable isotope analysis for initial assessments of trophic relationships in riverine fish communities

The utility of using fish scales collected during stock assessment exercises to assess the trophic relationships of riverine fishes using their stable isotopes of d¹³C and d¹⁵N was tested using three riverine fish communities in England (Rivers Great Ouse, Ivel and Goyt). In each river, European barbel Barbus barbus was an important species, with other cyprinid species, including chub Squalius cephalus, present. Stable isotope analyses was completed using relatively small sample sizes per species (<11) from fish samples collected in 2001, 2005 and 2006 when up to 5 scales were collected from each fish. The calculation of standard ellipse areas (as a measure of trophic niche size) revealed that relative to other fishes, B. barbus occupied high trophic positions with minimal overlap in their trophic niche with other species, especially S. cephalus. As the analysed fish samples comprised species of various length ranges and as length has strong ontogenetic consequences for fish diet composition, generalized linear models were developed in which length was the covariate; model outputs included length‐adjusted mean δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N for each species. In each fish community, significant differences in δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N were apparent between B. barbus and S. cephalus, but were less apparent between B. barbus and other fishes. Thus, whilst the utility of using fish scales from stock assessments in stable isotope analyses are limited due to the differing length ranges of the sampled fishes, they can be useful in identifying trophic differences between species when methods such as stomach content analyses are unavailable.     

Intra‐lake stable isotope ratio variation in selected fish species and their possible carbon sources in Lake Kyoga (Uganda): implications for aquatic food web studies

The stable isotopes of nitrogen (δ¹⁵N) and carbon (δ¹³C) provide powerful tools for quantifying trophic relationships and carbon flow to consumers in food webs; however, the isotopic signatures of organisms vary within a lake. Assessment of carbon and nitrogen isotopic signatures in a suite of plants, invertebrates, and fishes in Lake Kyoga, indicated significant variation between two sites for δ¹³C (paired t = 6.305; df = 14, P < 0.001 and δ¹⁵N paired t = 1.292; df = 14; P < 0.05). The fish fauna in Bukungu was generally more ¹³C enriched (mean δ¹³C = –16.37 ± 1.64‰) than in Iyingo (mean δ¹³C = –20.80 ± 2.41‰) but more δ¹⁵N depleted (mean δ¹⁵N = 5.57 ± 0.71‰) than in Iyingo (mean δ¹⁵N = 6.92 ± 0.83‰). The simultaneous shifts in phytoplankton and consumer signatures confirmed phytoplankton as the major source of carbon for the food chain leading to fish. Limited sampling coverage within lakes may affect lake wide stable isotope signatures, and the same error is transferred into trophic position estimation. Consideration of potential intra‐lake spatial variability in isotope ratios and size is essential in evaluating the spatial and trophic structure of fish assemblages.