Dataset Information

Differentiating salmonid migratory ecotypes through stable isotope analysis of collagen: Archaeological and ecological applications.

ABSTRACT: The ability to distinguish between different migratory behaviours (e.g., anadromy and potamodromy) in fish can provide important insights into the ecology, evolution, and conservation of many aquatic species. We present a simple stable carbon isotope (?13C) approach for distinguishing between sockeye (anadromous ocean migrants) and kokanee (potamodromous freshwater residents), two migratory ecotypes of Oncorhynchus nerka (Salmonidae) that is applicable throughout most of their range across coastal regions of the North Pacific Ocean. Analyses of kokanee (n = 239) and sockeye (n = 417) from 87 sites spanning the North Pacific (Russia to California) show that anadromous and potamodromous ecotypes are broadly distinguishable on the basis of the ?13C values of their scale and bone collagen. We present three case studies demonstrating how this approach can address questions in archaeology, archival, and conservation research. Relative to conventional methods for determining migratory status, which typically apply chemical analyses to otoliths or involve genetic analyses of tissues, the ?13C approach outlined here has the benefit of being non-lethal (when applied to scales), cost-effective, widely available commercially, and should be much more broadly accessible for addressing archaeological questions since the recovery of otoliths at archaeological sites is rare.

SUBMITTER: Guiry E

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7188214 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Differentiating salmonid migratory ecotypes through stable isotope analysis of collagen: Archaeological and ecological applications.

Guiry Eric E Royle Thomas C A TCA Matson R G RG Ward Hillary H Weir Tyler T Waber Nicholas N Brown Thomas J TJ Hunt Brian P V BPV Price Michael H H MHH Finney Bruce P BP Kaeriyama Masahide M Qin Yuxue Y Yang Dongya Y DY Szpak Paul P

PloS one 20200428 4

The ability to distinguish between different migratory behaviours (e.g., anadromy and potamodromy) in fish can provide important insights into the ecology, evolution, and conservation of many aquatic species. We present a simple stable carbon isotope (δ13C) approach for distinguishing between sockeye (anadromous ocean migrants) and kokanee (potamodromous freshwater residents), two migratory ecotypes of Oncorhynchus nerka (Salmonidae) that is applicable throughout most of their range across coast ...[more]

PMID: 32343728

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Project description:Hydrogen isotope analysis of feather keratin (?2HF) has become an essential tool for tracking movements between breeding and wintering populations of migratory birds. In particular, ?2HF has been used to create ?2HF isoscapes that can be used to assign the geographic origins of molt. The majority of past studies have sampled a portion of a single feather as an isotopic proxy for the entire plumage although surprisingly little is known about variation of stable isotopes within and between feather tracts of individuals in local populations. Here we examine ?2HF variation in 24 pterylographic variables (9 primaries, 6 secondaries, 6 rectrices, and 3 patches of ventral contour feathers) in individual specimens of black-throated blue warbler (Setophaga caerulescens) breeding in the Big Santeetlah Creek watershed (5350 ha), southern Appalachian Mountains. By restricting our study to territorial ASY males (after second year) inhabiting a small watershed, we could focus on ?2HF variation generated during the complete prebasic annual molt in a circumscribed population while factoring out age and sexual differences in foraging behavior, isotopic incorporation, and post-breeding dispersal. Summed within-individual variation (?2HF) across 24 pterylographic variables ranged from 12 to 60‰ (= 21.8 ± 9.4‰), with 81% of the individuals exhibiting variation ? 16‰ (reproducibility of analyses was ? 4 ‰). Adjacent feathers in feather tracts tend to have more similar ?2HF values than feathers grown weeks apart, consistent with the stepwise replacement of flight feathers. The pooled population sample exhibited significant ?2HF variation in primaries (-78 to -21‰), secondaries (-80 to -17‰), rectrices (-78 to -23‰), and ventral contour feathers (-92 to -32‰). Strong year effects in ?2HF variation were observed in each of the 24 pterylographic variables. Altitudinal effects were observed only in ventral contour feathers. The current findings demonstrate that within-individual variation (?2HF) may be much greater than previously thought in migratory species that molt on or near breeding territories. Our study also highlights the need for greater pterylographic precision in research design of isotope-based studies of avian movement. Within-individual and within-population ?2HF variation should be incorporated in geographic assignment models. In a broader context, the staggered Staffelmauser pattern of molt in wood warblers provides an exceptional view of the seasonal variation of hydrogen isotopes circulating in blood plasma during the six-week period of annual molt.

Dataset Information

Differentiating salmonid migratory ecotypes through stable isotope analysis of collagen: Archaeological and ecological applications.

Publications

Differentiating salmonid migratory ecotypes through stable isotope analysis of collagen: Archaeological and ecological applications.

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