[en] Amphipods are one of the most diverse and abundant taxa of vagile invertebrates associated to Mediterranean Posidonia oceanica meadows. Therefore, they likely play an essential part in those ecosystems’ functioning, notably in organic matter transfers from producers to higher level consumers. Nevertheless, their trophic ecology remains poorly known, and they are generally regarded as epiflora grazers or generalist detritivores.
Here, we focused on interspecific trophic diversity, and on the importance of other food sources (epifauna, Posidonia leaves & litter, suspended organic matter, …) in those amphipod’s diet. To achieve these goals, we used C and N stable isotopes ratios as trophic tracers.
We noticed considerable trophic diversity among amphipods from different species, with δ13C values ranging from -16 to -26 ‰. Moreover, while some species (such as Apherusa chiereghinii and Aora spinicornis) seem to feed mainly on epiphytes, others, like Dexamine spiniventris, exploit other food sources. This study enhances the comprehension of the feeding ecology of these amphipods, and therefore of the way they interact with the Posidonia meadow ecosystem.
