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Fish "Eavesdropping" for Food Odors Connected to Global Climate Regulation
Newswise — Climate change may be predicted by fish who "eavesdrop" their way to healthy food sources using chemical cues given off by ocean organisms. This research, conducted by the University of North Carolina Wilmington assistant professor Sean Lema and collaborators, was published in the March edition of the journal Science in the article "Dimethylsulfoniopropionate as a Foraging Cue for Reef Fishes."
Marine animals gather and spawn in the "islands" of productive coral reef habitats. On the Caribbean island of Curacao, Netherlands Antilles, Lema and collaborators Jennifer DeBose and Gabrielle Nevitt from the University of California Davis found that the sulfur compound dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) can provide odor signals that communicate the presence of healthy food sources for marine organisms.
The research team found that some fish aggregated to releases of DMSP, a byproduct of algae and phytoplankton in reefs, usually indicating algae growth, or that tiny animals in plankton are feeding on the algae.
"Algae is the first level in the ocean food chain. Understanding how marine creatures find such productive hotspots can help us track these populations and their long-term impact on the sea." said Lema, Department of Biology and Marine Biology and Center for Marine Science.
Marine animals gather and spawn in the "islands" of productive coral reef habitats. On the Caribbean island of Curacao, Netherlands Antilles, Lema and collaborators Jennifer DeBose and Gabrielle Nevitt from the University of California Davis found that the sulfur compound dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) can provide odor signals that communicate the presence of healthy food sources for marine organisms.
The research team found that some fish aggregated to releases of DMSP, a byproduct of algae and phytoplankton in reefs, usually indicating algae growth, or that tiny animals in plankton are feeding on the algae.
"Algae is the first level in the ocean food chain. Understanding how marine creatures find such productive hotspots can help us track these populations and their long-term impact on the sea." said Lema, Department of Biology and Marine Biology and Center for Marine Science.
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