Marine Fish Larvae Dynamics
funded by Harbour Energy
In MarFilD we investigate the role of meroplankton (larvae of benthic invertebrate species) as food source for fish larvae and its temporal dynamics. We hypothesize that meroplankton can utilize other components of the spring bloom and has a different timing than Calanus nauplii, thereby prolonging the time window with available food for fish larvae. To study this hypothesis, we propose a PhD project mainly consisting of three interconnected tasks:
1. Larval fish diet: we will test DNA metabarcoding approaches to identify prey items consumed by larval fish over time (early vs. late spawning) in sub-Arctic regions.
2. Temporal community succession: the (mero)plankton community will be studied in high temporal resolution throughout the whole period of potential presence of fish larvae in the region.
3. Long-term and seasonal dynamics of meroplankton in a sub-Arctic fjord will be assesed based on the plankton time series at Nord Universityfor the period 2014 until 2024.
4. Carbon sources: Grazing experiments on natural plankton communities with important prey species in the first project.
More details coming soon…!
Team / Collaborators:
Sofia Mau, Henning Reiss, Vilde Olsen Benjaminsen, Valerio Paloni, Solal Freneau (all Benthic Ecology Team)
Ketil Eiane, Nord University
Marc Silberberger, National Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Gdynia, Poland
Paul Renaud and Kanchana Bandara, Akvaplan Niva, Tromsø, Norway
Project cruises with RV Prinsesse Ingrid Alexandra in spring 2023 and 2024.
Upper left: Sofia and Seva securing a sample; upper middle: multinet back on board; upper left: Bongo net is deployed; mid left: Sofia searching for fish larvae; mid right: Calanus soup – the sample; bottom: the MarFilD team with Sofia, Eric, Henning and Olivia (from left to right).
