Diet of whale sharks Rhincodon typus inferred from stomach content and signature fatty acid analyses

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dc.contributor.authorRohner, Christoph A.
dc.contributor.authorCouturier, Lydie I. E.
dc.contributor.authorRichardson, Anthony J.
dc.contributor.authorPierce, Simon J.
dc.contributor.authorPrebble, Clare E. M.
dc.contributor.authorGibbons, Mark J.
dc.contributor.authorNichols, Peter D.
dc.date.accessioned2017-06-13T01:41:35Z
dc.date.available2017-06-13T01:41:35Z
dc.date.issued2013
dc.description.abstractWhale sharks Rhincodon typus are large filter-feeders that are frequently observed feeding in surface zooplankton patches at their tropical and subtropical coastal aggregation sites. Using signature fatty acid (FA) analyses from their subdermal connective tissue and stomach content analysis, we tested whether whale sharks in Mozambique and South Africa predominantly feed on these prey and/or what other prey they target. Arachidonic acid (20:4ω6; mean ± SD = 17.8 ± 2.0% of total FA), 18:0 and 18:1ω9c were major FA of whale sharks, while in contrast, coastal epipelagic zooplankton collected near feeding whale sharks had 22:6ω3 (docosahexaenoic acid), 16:0 and 20:5ω3 (eicosapentaenoic acid) as major FA. Stomach contents of 3 stranded sharks were dominated by mysids (61 to 92% of prey items), another one by sergestids (56%), and a fifth stomach was empty. The dominant mysids (82% index of relative importance) were demersal zooplankton that migrate into the water column at night, suggesting night-time feeding by whale sharks. High levels of bacterial FA in whale sharks (5.3 ± 1.4% TFA), indicating a detrital link, potentially via demersal zooplankton, also support night-time foraging activity. High levels of oleic acid (16.0 ± 2.5%) in whale sharks and their similarity with FA profiles of shrimp, mysids, copepods and myctophid fishes from the meso- and bathypelagic zone suggest that whale sharks also forage in deep-water. Our findings suggest that, in the patchy food environment of tropical systems, whale sharks forage in coastal waters during the day and night, and in oceanic waters on deep-water zooplankton and fishes during their long-distance movements.en_US
dc.description.accreditationWeb of Science
dc.identifier.citationRhoner, C. A. et al. (2013). Diet of whale sharks Rhincodon typus inferred from stomach content and signature fatty acid analyses. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 493: 219-235en_US
dc.identifier.issn0171-8630
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10566/2972
dc.identifier.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.3354/meps10500
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.privacy.showsubmitterFALSE
dc.publisherInter Researchen_US
dc.rights© The authors 2013. Open Access under Creative Commons by Attribution Licence. Use, distribution and reproduction are unrestricted. Authors and original publication must be credited.
dc.status.ispeerreviewedTRUE
dc.subjectFeeding ecologyen_US
dc.subjectOmega 6 fatty acidsen_US
dc.subjectSignature lipidsen_US
dc.subjectMysida Chondrichthyansen_US
dc.subjectFatty acid biomarkersen_US
dc.titleDiet of whale sharks Rhincodon typus inferred from stomach content and signature fatty acid analysesen_US
dc.typeArticleen_US

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