Loading...
Research Project
Not Available
Funder
Authors
Publications
Differential effects of food restriction and warming in the two-spotted goby: impaired reproductive performance and stressed offspring
Publication . Lopes, Ana F.; Murdoch, Robyn; Martins-Cardoso, Sara; Madeira, Carolina; Costa, Pedro M.; Félix, Ana S.; Oliveira, Rui F.; Bandarra, Narcisa M.; Vinagre, Catarina; Lopes, Ana R.; Gonçalves, Emanuel J.; Faria, Ana Margarida
Climate change is a growing threat to marine organisms and ecosystems, and it is already
modifying ocean properties by, for example, increasing temperature and decreasing pH. Increasing
water temperature may also lead to an impairment of primary productivity and an overall depletion
of available zooplankton. Understanding how the crossover between warming and zooplankton
availability impacts fish populations has paramount implications for conservation and mitigation
strategies. Through a cross factorial design to test the effects of ocean temperature and food availability in a temperate marine teleost, Pomatochistus flavescens, we showed that hindered feeding impacted
sheltering and avoidance behaviour. Also, low food availability impaired fish reproduction, particularly male reproduction, as the expression of cyp11b1, a gene with a pivotal role in the synthesis of
the most important fish androgen, 11-ketotestosterone, was significantly reduced under a low food
regime. In contrast, temperature alone did not affect reproductive success, but offspring showed
increased saturated fatty acid content (embryos) and increased lipid peroxidation (larvae). Altogether,
food availability had a stronger effect on fitness, showing that coping with elevated temperatures, an
ability that may be expected in shallow-water fish, can be indirectly impacted, or even overwhelmed,
by the effects of ocean warming on primary productivity and downstream ecological processes.
Organizational Units
Description
Keywords
Contributors
Funders
Funding agency
Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia
Funding programme
CEEC IND 2018
Funding Award Number
CEECIND/01526/2018/CP1564/CT0008