Journal article
Prey Density Threshold and Tidal Influence on Reef Manta Ray Foraging at an Aggregation Site on the Great Barrier Reef
PLoS One, Vol.11(5), e0153393
2016
Abstract
Large tropical and sub-tropical marine animals must meet their energetic requirements in a largely oligotrophic environment. Many planktivorous elasmobranchs, whose thermal ecologies prevent foraging in nutrient-rich polar waters, aggregate seasonally at predictable locations throughout tropical oceans where they are observed feeding. Here we investigate the foraging and oceanographic environment around Lady Elliot Island, a known aggregation site for reef manta rays Manta alfredi in the southern Great Barrier Reef. The foraging behaviour of reef manta rays was analysed in relation to zooplankton populations and local oceanography, and compared to long-term sighting records of reef manta rays from the dive operator on the island. Reef manta rays fed at Lady Elliot Island when zooplankton biomass and abundance were significantly higher than other times. The critical prey density threshold that triggered feeding was 11.2 mg m-3 while zooplankton size had no significant effect on feeding. The community composition and size structure of the zooplankton was similar when reef manta rays were feeding or not, with only the density of zooplankton changing. Higher zooplankton biomass was observed prior to low tide, and long-term (~5 years) sighting data confirmed that more reef manta rays are also observed feeding during this tidal phase than other times. This is the first study to examine prey availability at an aggregation site for reef manta rays and it indicates that they feed in locations and at times of higher zooplankton biomass.
Details
- Title
- Prey Density Threshold and Tidal Influence on Reef Manta Ray Foraging at an Aggregation Site on the Great Barrier Reef
- Authors
- A O Armstrong (Author) - University of QueenslandA J Armstrong (Author) - University of QueenslandF R Jaine (Author) - University of QueenslandL I Couturier (Author) - University of QueenslandK Fiora (Author)J Uribe-Palomino (Author) - CSIROS J Weeks (Author) - University of QueenslandKathy A Townsend (Author) - University of QueenslandM B Bennett (Author) - University of QueenslandA J Richardson (Author) - University of Queensland
- Publication details
- PLoS One, Vol.11(5), e0153393; 18
- Publisher
- Public Library of Science
- Date published
- 2016
- DOI
- 10.1371/journal.pone.0153393
- ISSN
- 1932-6203
- Copyright note
- Copyright © 2016 Armstrong et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
- Organisation Unit
- School of Science and Engineering - Legacy; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Science, Technology and Engineering
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99451157702621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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- Marine & Freshwater Biology
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