Investigating the utility of incorporating stable isotope analysis into ecosystem models: an oyster aquaculture case study

Details

• Journal Title:
  Ecological Modelling
• Personal Author:
  Motz, Noah ; Campbell, Brendan ; Hudock, Rileigh E. ; Avery, Tess ; Marsaly, Ben ; Townsend, Howard ; Vasslides, James ; Hale, Edward ; Carlisle, Aaron
• NOAA Program & Office:
  NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service) ; OST (Office of Science and Technology) ; NEFSC (Northeast Fisheries Science Center) ; Sea Grant
• Sea Grant Program:
  DELU (Delaware Sea Grant)
• Description:
  Despite numerous recommendations to incorporate stable isotope analysis (SIA) into ecosystem models to improve accuracy, a direct comparison between a traditional and SIA informed model has yet to be explored. In this study, we constructed and compared three complimentary Ecopath models of an off-bottom oyster aquaculture reef in Delaware Bay, one using conventional methods (previously published diet studies), one using SIA data collected in situ, and one hybrid approach using a mix of both. Diet studies from stomach content analysis (SCA) have some limitations, including the underestimation of soft-bodied prey and detritus, which could be aided by using SIA. Additionally, species diets change over space and time, so previously published diet studies may not be applicable to the modeled ecosystem, which in situ data can address. Our SIA-informed model resulted in 54% lower summed group production, and 27% greater overall reliance on detritus than the conventional methods. Additionally, by using SIA to characterize ecological functional groups in the food web, we identified a different set of functional groups that was not indicated from previously published literature, which altered the metrics reported from the ecosystem model. While additional work needs to be done, this case study demonstrates incorporating SIA into ecosystem models can provide complimentary ecosystem information to conventional models and be used for in situ diet estimation, functional group formation, and estimating the importance of soft-bodied prey and detritus in the ecosystem.
• Keywords:
  • Ecopath
  • Detritus
  • Diet estimation
  • Ecosystem model
• Source:
  Ecological Modelling 522 (2026) 111798
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2026.111798
• Format:
  PDF
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Rights Information:
  Accepted Manuscript
• Compliance:
  Submitted
• Download URL:
  https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/76620/noaa_76620_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.14 MB]
• Collection(s):
  Sea Grant Publications ; National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:00596bb4974b36659a40fd0a05abef72f639d5a32c82254d6ff76c7bfaeef1fca2048b9aab499f095755b68b871e3318672ccadfe165e0a8c9629f612dda669f