TY - JOUR
T1 - Variation of body condition and plasma energy substrates with life stage, sex, and season in wild-sampled nurse sharks Ginglymostoma cirratum
AU - Moorhead, Shannon G.
AU - Gallagher, Austin J.
AU - Merly, Liza
AU - Hammerschlag, Neil
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors are grateful to the staff, students and interns of the University of Miami Shark Research and Conservation Program for field and logistical support, especially R.P. Roemer, S.T. Cain, A. Tinari, A.M. Fragola, A. Anstett and P.S. Albano. The authors also thank M.L. Estevanez and the University of Miami Marine Operations Department for technical support. A special thanks to C. Riopelle for his assistance with data analysis. Funding for this research was generously provided by the Disney Conservation Fund, the Save Our Seas Foundation and the Herbert W. Hoover Foundation.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 Fisheries Society of the British Isles
PY - 2021/3
Y1 - 2021/3
N2 - Reported here are the relationships among morphological (i.e., body condition) and biochemical (i.e., plasma concentrations of triglycerides, cholesterol, free fatty acids, and ketone bodies and ketone body ratios) parameters related to energy storage and use, as well as the variation of such parameters, for 107 free-ranging nurse sharks Ginglymostoma cirratum sampled off South Florida. Immature G. cirratum exhibited a higher variance in body condition, plasma free fatty acid concentrations and ketone body ratios compared to adults. Mature female G. cirratum had significantly higher body condition than mature males, driven by a seasonal increase in mature female body condition during the wet season. Mature male G. cirratum showed a decrease in the ketone body β-hydroxybutyric acid during the dry season. Taken together, this study provides a baseline assessment of body condition and internal physiological state for a data-poor marine species and demonstrates significant ontogenetic, sexual and seasonal variation in G. cirratum energetic state. As concluded by other studies of energy metabolism in free-ranging sharks, this research highlights the importance of considering intraspecific patterns and sampling context for inferring the drivers of variation.
AB - Reported here are the relationships among morphological (i.e., body condition) and biochemical (i.e., plasma concentrations of triglycerides, cholesterol, free fatty acids, and ketone bodies and ketone body ratios) parameters related to energy storage and use, as well as the variation of such parameters, for 107 free-ranging nurse sharks Ginglymostoma cirratum sampled off South Florida. Immature G. cirratum exhibited a higher variance in body condition, plasma free fatty acid concentrations and ketone body ratios compared to adults. Mature female G. cirratum had significantly higher body condition than mature males, driven by a seasonal increase in mature female body condition during the wet season. Mature male G. cirratum showed a decrease in the ketone body β-hydroxybutyric acid during the dry season. Taken together, this study provides a baseline assessment of body condition and internal physiological state for a data-poor marine species and demonstrates significant ontogenetic, sexual and seasonal variation in G. cirratum energetic state. As concluded by other studies of energy metabolism in free-ranging sharks, this research highlights the importance of considering intraspecific patterns and sampling context for inferring the drivers of variation.
KW - Ginglymostoma cirratum
KW - body condition
KW - cholesterol
KW - free fatty acids
KW - ketone bodies
KW - triglycerides
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U2 - 10.1111/jfb.14612
DO - 10.1111/jfb.14612
M3 - Article
C2 - 33161578
AN - SCOPUS:85096854495
VL - 98
SP - 680
EP - 693
JO - Journal of Fish Biology
JF - Journal of Fish Biology
SN - 0022-1112
IS - 3
ER -
