Selective feeding of southern Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus maccoyii) larvae on appendicularians in their eastern Indian Ocean spawning region
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Le résumé fourni par la source
We investigated ontogenetic variability in feeding and prey selection by Southern Bluefin Tuna larvae (SBT; Thunnus maccoyii ) in their only global spawning region, located in the eastern Indian Ocean between northwestern Australia and Indonesia. Zooplankton prey and SBT larvae were sampled during four multi-day Lagrangian experiments conducted in the southern Argo Basin during the peak midsummer spawning season in January–February 2022. The zooplankton were identified, enumerated, sizes measured, and their developmental stages ascertained both in situ and from the stomach contents of the larvae. Larval stomach contents revealed high feeding incidence of 95% with at least one prey item ingested with an average of 3.9 zooplankton prey per larva. Diet and prey selection transitioned during larval ontogeny from copepod nauplii to calanoid and corycaeid copepodites, and ultimately to cladocerans, as well as fish larvae when these were available. However, for all developmental stages and experiments, appendicularians stood out as the most significant prey taxon, constituting an average of 57% of prey carbon biomass consumed and up to 79% for postflexion stages. We observed some indication of increasing selection for appendicularians and fish larvae where they were most abundant, even when other suitable prey items were more readily available. Our study documents unprecedented high feeding incidence and positive selection for appendicularians compared to previous investigations of bluefin species, highlighting a pathway that enhances food web transfer efficiency. Appendicularians are uniquely able to thrive in oligotrophic environments and could be an optimal food source supporting SBT larvae in the future ocean.
Ce résumé expose les affirmations des auteurs. BNTIC ne l’interprète pas comme une validation indépendante des résultats.
Le contrôle bibliographique ouvert
DOI retrouvé dans Crossref DOI retrouvé ; titre concordant.
- Titre Crossref
- Selective feeding of southern Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus maccoyii) larvae on appendicularians in their eastern Indian Ocean spawning region
- Date Crossref
- 01/04/2026
- Éditeur
- Elsevier BV
- Type
- journal-article
Ce recoupement confirme des métadonnées liées au DOI. Il ne confirme ni la méthode ni les conclusions de l’étude, et il ne compte pas comme une seconde source scientifique indépendante.
Où se fait cette recherche
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Scripps Institution of Oceanography pays non établi dans la noticeStructure de recherche
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University of Miami and Earth Science pays non établi dans la noticeUniversité ou école supérieure
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Instituto Español de Oceanografía pays non établi dans la noticeOrganisme public
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Universidad de Málaga pays non établi dans la noticeUniversité ou école supérieure
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CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere pays non établi dans la noticeStructure de recherche
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Murdoch University Environmental and Conservation Sciences pays non établi dans la noticeUniversité ou école supérieure
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Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn pays non établi dans la noticeStructure de recherche
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University of California at San Diego Scripps Institution of Oceanography pays non établi dans la noticeUniversité ou école supérieure
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Instituto Espaol de Oceanografía (IEO-CSIC) Centro Oceanográfico de Málaga pays non établi dans la noticeStructure de recherche
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Departamento de Biología Animal pays non établi dans la noticeInstitution
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CSIRO Environment pays non établi dans la noticeInstitution
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Integrative Marine Ecology pays non établi dans la noticeInstitution
Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and Earth Science — University of Miami et Instituto Español de Oceanografía, avec 9 autres affiliations.
Une affiliation ne permet pas de déduire la nationalité d’un auteur.