Longer and less overlapping food webs in anthropogenically disturbed marine ecosystems: confirmations from the past

The human exploitation of marine resources is characterised by the preferential removal of the largest species. Although this is expected to modify the structure of food webs, we have a relatively poor understanding of the potential consequences of such alteration. Here, we take advantage of a colle...

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Autores: Saporiti, Fabiana, Bearhop, Stuart, Silva, L., Vales, Damián G., Zenteno Devaud, Lisette, Crespo, Enrique A., Aguilar, Àlex, Cardona Pascual, Luis
Formato: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2014
País:España
Recursos:Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)
Repositorio:Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
OAI Identifier:oai:recercat.cat:2445/59263
Acesso em linha:https://hdl.handle.net/2445/59263
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palavra-chave:Biologia marina
Ecosistemes
Peixos marins
Holocè
Marine biology
Biotic communities
Marine fishes
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spelling Longer and less overlapping food webs in anthropogenically disturbed marine ecosystems: confirmations from the pastSaporiti, FabianaBearhop, StuartSilva, L.Vales, Damián G.Zenteno Devaud, LisetteCrespo, Enrique A.Aguilar, ÀlexCardona Pascual, LuisBiologia marinaEcosistemesPeixos marinsHolocèMarine biologyBiotic communitiesMarine fishesThe human exploitation of marine resources is characterised by the preferential removal of the largest species. Although this is expected to modify the structure of food webs, we have a relatively poor understanding of the potential consequences of such alteration. Here, we take advantage of a collection of ancient consumer tissues, using stable isotope analysis and SIBER to assess changes in the structure of coastal marine food webs in the South-western Atlantic through the second half of the Holocene as a result of the sequential exploitation of marine resources by hunter-gatherers, western sealers and modern fishermen. Samples were collected from shell middens and museums. Shells of both modern and archaeological intertidal herbivorous molluscs were used to reconstruct changes in the stable isotopic baseline, while modern and archaeological bones of the South American sea lion Otaria flavescens, South American fur seal Arctocephalus australis and Magellanic penguin Spheniscus magellanicus were used to analyse changes in the structure of the community of top predators. We found that ancient food webs were shorter, more redundant and more overlapping than current ones, both in northern-central Patagonia and southern Patagonia. These surprising results may be best explained by the huge impact of western sealing on pinnipeds during the fur trade period, rather than the impact of fishing on fish populations. As a consequence, the populations of pinnipeds at the end of the sealing period were likely well below the ecosystem's carrying capacity, which resulted in a release of intraspecific competition and a shift towards larger and higher trophic level prey. This in turn led to longer and less overlapping food webs.Public Library of Science (PLoS)2014201420142014info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion13 p.application/pdfhttps://hdl.handle.net/2445/59263Articles publicats en revistes (Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals)reponame:Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunyainstname:Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)InglésReproducció del document publicat a: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0103132PLoS One, 2014, vol. 9, num. 7http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0103132cc-by (c) Saporiti, F. et al., 2014http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/esinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:recercat.cat:2445/592632026-05-29T05:05:01Z
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Longer and less overlapping food webs in anthropogenically disturbed marine ecosystems: confirmations from the past
title Longer and less overlapping food webs in anthropogenically disturbed marine ecosystems: confirmations from the past
spellingShingle Longer and less overlapping food webs in anthropogenically disturbed marine ecosystems: confirmations from the past
Saporiti, Fabiana
Biologia marina
Ecosistemes
Peixos marins
Holocè
Marine biology
Biotic communities
Marine fishes
title_short Longer and less overlapping food webs in anthropogenically disturbed marine ecosystems: confirmations from the past
title_full Longer and less overlapping food webs in anthropogenically disturbed marine ecosystems: confirmations from the past
title_fullStr Longer and less overlapping food webs in anthropogenically disturbed marine ecosystems: confirmations from the past
title_full_unstemmed Longer and less overlapping food webs in anthropogenically disturbed marine ecosystems: confirmations from the past
title_sort Longer and less overlapping food webs in anthropogenically disturbed marine ecosystems: confirmations from the past
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Saporiti, Fabiana
Bearhop, Stuart
Silva, L.
Vales, Damián G.
Zenteno Devaud, Lisette
Crespo, Enrique A.
Aguilar, Àlex
Cardona Pascual, Luis
author Saporiti, Fabiana
author_facet Saporiti, Fabiana
Bearhop, Stuart
Silva, L.
Vales, Damián G.
Zenteno Devaud, Lisette
Crespo, Enrique A.
Aguilar, Àlex
Cardona Pascual, Luis
author_role author
author2 Bearhop, Stuart
Silva, L.
Vales, Damián G.
Zenteno Devaud, Lisette
Crespo, Enrique A.
Aguilar, Àlex
Cardona Pascual, Luis
author2_role author
author
author
author
author
author
author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Biologia marina
Ecosistemes
Peixos marins
Holocè
Marine biology
Biotic communities
Marine fishes
topic Biologia marina
Ecosistemes
Peixos marins
Holocè
Marine biology
Biotic communities
Marine fishes
description The human exploitation of marine resources is characterised by the preferential removal of the largest species. Although this is expected to modify the structure of food webs, we have a relatively poor understanding of the potential consequences of such alteration. Here, we take advantage of a collection of ancient consumer tissues, using stable isotope analysis and SIBER to assess changes in the structure of coastal marine food webs in the South-western Atlantic through the second half of the Holocene as a result of the sequential exploitation of marine resources by hunter-gatherers, western sealers and modern fishermen. Samples were collected from shell middens and museums. Shells of both modern and archaeological intertidal herbivorous molluscs were used to reconstruct changes in the stable isotopic baseline, while modern and archaeological bones of the South American sea lion Otaria flavescens, South American fur seal Arctocephalus australis and Magellanic penguin Spheniscus magellanicus were used to analyse changes in the structure of the community of top predators. We found that ancient food webs were shorter, more redundant and more overlapping than current ones, both in northern-central Patagonia and southern Patagonia. These surprising results may be best explained by the huge impact of western sealing on pinnipeds during the fur trade period, rather than the impact of fishing on fish populations. As a consequence, the populations of pinnipeds at the end of the sealing period were likely well below the ecosystem's carrying capacity, which resulted in a release of intraspecific competition and a shift towards larger and higher trophic level prey. This in turn led to longer and less overlapping food webs.
publishDate 2014
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2014
2014
2014
2014
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv https://hdl.handle.net/2445/59263
url https://hdl.handle.net/2445/59263
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv Inglés
language_invalid_str_mv Inglés
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv Reproducció del document publicat a: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0103132
PLoS One, 2014, vol. 9, num. 7
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0103132
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv cc-by (c) Saporiti, F. et al., 2014
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/es
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv cc-by (c) Saporiti, F. et al., 2014
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/es
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv 13 p.
application/pdf
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv Public Library of Science (PLoS)
publisher.none.fl_str_mv Public Library of Science (PLoS)
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv Articles publicats en revistes (Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals)
reponame:Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
instname:Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)
instname_str Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)
reponame_str Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
collection Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
repository.name.fl_str_mv
repository.mail.fl_str_mv
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