Feeding ecology and niche overlap of Lake Ontario offshore forage fish assessed with stable isotopes

• Published in: Canadian journal of fisheries and aquatic sciences Vol. 75; no. 5; pp. 759 - 771
• Main Authors: Mumby, James A, Johnson, Timothy B, Stewart, Thomas J, Halfyard, Edmund A, Weidel, Brian C, Walsh, Maureen G, Lantry, Jana R, Fisk, Aaron T
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ottawa NRC Research Press 01.05.2018; Canadian Science Publishing NRC Research Press
• Subjects: Alosa pseudoharengus; Biological competition; Body size; Competitors; Cottidae; Cottus cognatus; Ecological monitoring; Ecological niches; Ecosystem disturbance; Ecosystem structure; Environmental aspects; Environmental factors; Fish; Fish populations; Food and nutrition; Food chains; Foods; Forage; Forage fishes; Forage species; Foraging habitats; Freshwater; Geographical distribution; Habitat selection; Habitats; Isotopes; Lakes; Myoxocephalus; Myoxocephalus thompsonii; Neogobius melanostomus; Niche overlap; Niches; Niches (Ecology); Observations; Osmerus mordax; Seasonal variation; Species; Stable isotopes; Canada; Lake Ontario; Canada, Ontario, Lake Ontario

The forage fish communities of the Laurentian Great Lakes continue to experience changes that have altered ecosystem structure, yet little is known about how they partition resources. Seasonal, spatial, and body size variation in δ 13 C and δ 15 N was used to assess isotopic niche overlap and resour...