Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Inter-Research
Résumé : Precise knowledge of lifetime migrations is vital in exploited fish species, since all essential habitats must be protected to maintain sustainable stock levels. The present study used multi-element otolith fingerprints of the gilthead sea bream Sparus aurata (L.) to discriminate its main juvenile and adult habitats in the Languedoc-Roussillon region (Gulf of Lions, northwest Mediterranean) and infer the lifetime migrations of 12 individuals from the area (11 from the present day and 1 from the Roman era). This allowed for the first time the identification of key habitats for the successful completion of the species' life cycle in the Gulf of Lions, and the connectivity between them. Our results revealed that lagoon use by S. aurata is probably ancient (>2500 yr) and confirmed its current commonness. Yet, although most observed migration patterns were in accordance with the migratory behavior previously described for the species, strong inter-individual variations and new patterns in habitat use were detected. At the juvenile stage, a preference for shallow lagoons with low salinities was evidenced. Nevertheless, the first year of life can also be successfully completed in marine conditions. At the adult stage, lagoon use was shown to occur until at least age 4 yr, with periods of lagoon residency of up to 11 mo in a year, often including winter months. Because overwintering in the lagoons was previously thought to be impossible for S. aurata due to low temperatures, this finding has important implications for future stock management, especially since the species breeds in winter.
Marine Ecology Progress Series

hal-00682003
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00682003
DOI : 10.3354/meps09444

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Station Biologique
Résumé : International audience
This study deals with temporal variations in eel diet Anguilla anguilla sampled at each of the four seasons in the Languedocian Prévost lagoon (Gulf of Lion) from Autumn 1998 to Summer 1999. The following feeding indices were calculated based on observations of 12 categories of prey found in the contents of full stomachs: coefficient of vacuity CV, degree of fullness DR, occurrence frequency PP, relative abundance N (in %) and relative weight P (in %). The interpretation of results is also based on the Costello's method (1990) which combines PP and N. Anguilla anguilla mainly feeds on benthic organisms, primarily Gammarus gr. locusta, Polychaeta, insect larvae, small fish. Based on variations in eel diet, seasonal influence is illustrated by a decrease in feeding activity in summer which gradually increases during the following seasons. The good trophic quality available to eels in the Prévost lagoon depends on its hydrodynamics which is directly related to the movement of water entering and leaving lagoon by a short communication with the sea. This water movement accelerates the enrichment and production processes of this ecosystem. Changes observed during the four seasons illustrate an opportunistic type of feeding behaviour. Eels consume the most available benthic prey. They favour the importance of the prey at a given moment without using a particular feeding strategy like specialisation or generalisation. Thus, eel adapts its diet in adjusting available energy resources in the ecosystem. Because of this, the lagoon-resident species Anguilla anguilla is an obvious indirect bioindicator of the trophic capacity and present level of confinement in the brackish water lagoon ecosystem of Prévost.
ISSN: 0007-9723

hal-00753021
https://hal.univ-antilles.fr/hal-00753021

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Ecological Society of America
Résumé : Reliable assessment of fish origin is of critical importance for exploited species, since nursery areas must be identified and protected to maintain recruitment to the adult stock. During the last two decades, otolith chemical signatures (or "fingerprints") have been increasingly used as tools to discriminate between coastal habitats. However, correct assessment of fish origin from otolith fingerprints depends on various environmental and methodological parameters, including the choice of the statistical method used to assign fish to unknown origin. Among the available methods of classification, Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) is the most frequently used, although it assumes data are multivariate normal with homogeneous within-group dispersions, conditions that are not always met by otolith chemical data, even after transformation. Other less constrained classification methods are available, but there is a current lack of comparative analysis in applications to otolith microchemistry. Here, we assessed stock identification accuracy for four classification methods (LDA, Quadratic Discriminant Analysis [QDA], Random Forests [RF], and Artificial Neural Networks [ANN]), through the use of three distinct data sets. In each case, all possible combinations of chemical elements were examined to identify the elements to be used for optimal accuracy in fish assignment to their actual origin. Our study shows that accuracy differs according to the model and the number of elements considered. Best combinations did not include all the elements measured, and it was not possible to define an ad hoc multielement combination for accurate site discrimination. Among all the models tested, RF and ANN performed best, especially for complex data sets (e. g., with numerous fish species and/or chemical elements involved). However, for these data, RF was less time-consuming and more interpretable than ANN, and far more efficient and less demanding in terms of assumptions than LDA or QDA. Therefore, when LDA and QDA assumptions cannot be reached, the use of machine learning methods, such as RF, should be preferred for stock assessment and nursery identification based on otolith microchemistry, especially when data set include multispecific otolith signatures and/or many chemical elements.
ISSN: 1051-0761

hal-00644549
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00644549
DOI : 10.1890/09-1887.1

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries, Split
Résumé : International audience
This study deals with temporal variations in eel Anguilla anguilla diet, sampled seasonally in the Languedocian Mauguio lagoon (Gulf of Lion), from Autumn 1998 to Summer 1999. Eel mainly feeds on benthic organisms, primarily small Amphipoda, Crustacea (mainly Gammarus gr. locusta), Polychaeta, insect larvae (Chironomidae) and small fish. Based on variations in the eels feeding regime, seasonal influence is illustrated by decreased feeding activity in summer, which progressively increases during the following seasons. The trophic quality available to eels in the Mauguio lagoon depends more on allochtonous inputs from the catchment area than on its own hydrodynamics on which water of marine origin has little influence due to its long distance from the sea. Variations observed during the four seasons illustrate the opportunist type feeding behaviour of eels. They consume the most available benthic preys at a given moment without using a particular feeding strategy like specialisation or generalisation. Eel adapts its diet according to the available resources offered by the ecosystem. Because of this eel, as an amphihaline migrant species, can be characterised as an obvious indirect bioindicator of the trophic capacity and very marked level of confinement in the brackish lagoon ecosystem of Mauguio.
ISSN: 0001-5113

hal-00750416
https://hal.univ-antilles.fr/hal-00750416
https://hal.univ-antilles.fr/hal-00750416/document
https://hal.univ-antilles.fr/hal-00750416/file/Acta_Adriatica_2009_50_2_.pdf

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Station Biologique
Résumé : International audience
This study focuses on the diet of the eel Anguilla anguilla, sampled during one month of each of the four seasons from autumn 1998 to summer 1999 in the Languedocian Ingril Lagoon (Gulf ot Lion). The following feeding indices were calculated based on observations of 11 categories of prey found in the contents of full stomachs: coefficient of vacuity (CV), degree of fullness (DR), occurrence frequency (PP, in %), relative abundance (N, in %) and relative weight (P, in %). A parallel monitoring of the benthic macrofauna was conducted in autumn and spring. The interpretation of the results is based on the degree III of the scale of confinement established by Guélorget & Perthuisot (1983) and on the Costello et al. (1990) method, which combines PP and N. A. anguilla mainly feeds on benthic organisms, primarily amphipods crustaceans, polychaetes, insect larvae and small fish. The eel's feeding activity is very low in November and February and usually increases during May. The trophic quality available to the eel population in the Ingril Lagoon depends on its hydrodynamic variables, which are directly related to its close communication with the sea. Changes observed in the eel's diet over this year long study illustrate an opportunist type of feeding behaviour that reflects the typical composition of the macroinvertebrate species assemblage at a given point in time. Eels consume the type of benthic prey that is most available at a given moment without using a particular feeding strategy (e.g., specialisation or generalisation). The eels adapt by shifting their diet according to the energetic resources available in the ecosystem, which vary depending on hydrological regime. Thus, the facultative catadromous migrant species Anguilla anguilla could be used as a bioindicator of changes in the biological zonation and in the available food resources in the brackish ecosystem of Ingril Lagoon during its lagoon-resident ecophase.
ISSN: 0007-9723

hal-00753020
https://hal.univ-antilles.fr/hal-00753020