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Heiple Z, Huie JM, Medeiros APM, Hart PB, Goatley CHR, Arcila D, Miller EC. Many ways to build an angler: diversity of feeding morphologies in a deep-sea evolutionary radiation. Biol Lett 2023; 19:20230049. [PMID: 37376854 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2023.0049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2023] [Accepted: 06/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Almost nothing is known about the diets of bathypelagic fishes, but functional morphology can provide useful tools to infer ecology. Here we quantify variation in jaw and tooth morphologies across anglerfishes (Lophiiformes), a clade spanning shallow and deep-sea habitats. Deep-sea ceratioid anglerfishes are considered dietary generalists due to the necessity of opportunistic feeding in the food-limited bathypelagic zone. We found unexpected diversity in the trophic morphologies of ceratioid anglerfishes. Ceratioid jaws span a functional continuum ranging from species with numerous stout teeth, a relatively slow but forceful bite, and high jaw protrusibility at one end (characteristics shared with benthic anglerfishes) to species with long fang-like teeth, a fast but weak bite and low jaw protrusibility at the other end (including a unique 'wolftrap' phenotype). Our finding of high morphological diversity seems to be at odds with ecological generality, reminiscent of Liem's paradox (morphological specialization allowing organisms to have broader niches). Another possible explanation is that diverse ceratioid functional morphologies may yield similar trophic success (many-to-one mapping of morphology to diet), allowing diversity to arise through neutral evolutionary processes. Our results highlight that there are many ways to be a successful predator in the deep sea.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zach Heiple
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA
- Department of Ichthyology, Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, Norman, OK 73072, USA
| | - Jonathan M Huie
- Department of Biological Sciences, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
| | - Aline P M Medeiros
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Paraíba, João Pessoa 58051-900, Brazil
| | - Pamela B Hart
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA
- Department of Ichthyology, Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, Norman, OK 73072, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
| | - Christopher H R Goatley
- School of Ocean and Earth Science, National Oceanography Centre, University of Southampton, Southampton, Hampshire SO14 3ZH, UK
- School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Australian Museum Research Institute, Australian Museum, 1 William Street, Sydney, NSW 2010, Australia
| | - Dahiana Arcila
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA
- Department of Ichthyology, Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, Norman, OK 73072, USA
| | - Elizabeth Christina Miller
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA
- Department of Ichthyology, Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, Norman, OK 73072, USA
- School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
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Olsson KH, Gurka R, Holzman R. Trophic guilds of suction-feeding fishes are distinguished by their characteristic hydrodynamics of swimming and feeding. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20211968. [PMID: 35016537 PMCID: PMC8753175 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.1968] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2021] [Accepted: 12/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Suction-feeding in fishes is a ubiquitous form of prey capture whose outcome depends both on the movements of the predator and the prey, and on the dynamics of the surrounding fluid, which exerts forces on the two organisms. The inherent complexity of suction-feeding has challenged previous efforts to understand how the feeding strikes are modified when species evolve to feed on different prey types. Here, we use the concept of dynamic similarity, commonly applied to understanding the mechanisms of swimming, flying, walking and aquatic feeding. We characterize the hydrodynamic regimes pertaining to (i) the forward movement of the fish (ram), and (ii) the suction flows for feeding strikes of 71 species of acanthomorph fishes. A discriminant function analysis revealed that feeding strikes of zooplanktivores, generalists and piscivores could be distinguished based on their hydrodynamic regimes. Furthermore, a phylogenetic comparative analysis revealed that there are distinctive hydrodynamic adaptive peaks associated with zooplanktivores, generalists and piscivores. The scaling of dynamic similarity across species, body sizes and feeding guilds in fishes indicates that elementary hydrodynamic principles govern the trophic evolution of suction-feeding in fishes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karin H. Olsson
- School of Zoology, George S Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- Interuniversity Institute for Marine Sciences in Eilat, Eilat, Israel
| | - Roi Gurka
- Department of Physics and Engineering Science, Coastal Carolina University, Conway, SC, USA
| | - Roi Holzman
- School of Zoology, George S Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- Interuniversity Institute for Marine Sciences in Eilat, Eilat, Israel
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