Trophic relationships between anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) and zooplankton in the Strait of Sicily (Central Mediterranean sea): a stable isotope approach

The study of the relationships among environmental factors, primary production, zooplankton community, and feeding behavior of fish species represents a key aspect to obtain a deeper knowledge of biological processes acting at ecosystem level. In this context, oceanographic data and biological samples were collected in two different surveys, carried out during late June 2011 and early July 2015 in the Strait of Sicily (Central Mediterranean Sea). Differences in abundance, biomass, and assemblage structure of zooplankton and anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus Linnaeus, 1758) population were observed between the two surveys. Still, zooplankton biomass was significantly correlated to longitude, chlorophyll a recorded during the surveys (as a proxy of primary production), and oxygen concentrations. Such differences affected the isotopic composition of anchovy, which showed changes in δ15N and δ13C values between the two surveys. Mixing models identified different contributions of food sources in the two sampling periods, i.e., major consumption on large copepods and euphausiids in 2015 with respect to 2011, which was consistent with a greater availability of these preys in the environment in 2015. The obtained results evidenced that E. encrasicolus may be affected by any environmental change that influences the plankton community, which is the basis of the diet of these fishes. Such findings highlighted the importance to further investigate the trophic relationships among different compartments of the food web, as well as the possible environmental influences, in order to obtain a more complete picture of ecosystem functioning and also in the light of an ecosystem-based approach to fisheries management.

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