Hydrogen sulfide, bacteria, and fish: a unique, subterranean food chain. Academic Article

abstract

• Photoautotrophs are generally considered to be the base of food webs, and habitats that lack light, such as caves, frequently rely on surface-derived carbon. Here we show, based on analysis of gut contents and stable isotope ratios of tissues (13C:12C and 15N:14N), that sulfur-oxidizing bacteria are directly consumed and assimilated by the fish Poecilia mexicana in a sulfide-rich cave stream in Tabasco state, Mexico. Our results provide evidence of a vertebrate deriving most of its organic carbon and nitrogen from in situ chemoautotrophic production, and reveals the importance of alternative energy production sources supporting animals in extreme environments.

authors

• Winemiller, Kirk

published proceedings

• Ecology

author list (cited authors)

• Roach, K. A., Tobler, M., & Winemiller, K. O.

complete list of authors

• Roach, Katherine A||Tobler, Michael||Winemiller, Kirk O

publisher

• Wiley  Publisher

published in

• ECOLOGY  Journal

keywords

• Animals
• Caves
• Feeding Behavior
• Food Chain
• Hydrogen Sulfide
• Poecilia
• Rivers
• Sulfur-Reducing Bacteria

PubMed Central ID

• 22164830

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

• 10.1890/11-0276.1

URI

• https://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/181278

start page

• 2056

end page

• 2062

volume

• 92

issue

• 11