Trophic Dynamics in Marine Copepod Systems
Summary
Marine copepods constitute a critical link between primary producers and higher trophic levels, mediating the transfer of energy and matter through the world’s oceans. Their feeding rates, reproductive output and elemental composition respond sensitively to variations in phytoplankton quality, nutrient supply and temperature. Ecological stoichiometry provides a framework for quantifying how the carbon:nitrogen:phosphorus balance of prey influences copepod growth efficiency and population dynamics. Experimental advances have revealed that copepod life stages differ in nutrient requirements, with nauplii often exhibiting strict phosphorus demands and adults showing greater homeostatic capacity. These dynamics shape food-web structure, carbon export and biogeochemical cycles at local and global scales. Modern approaches integrate laboratory experiments, field observations and modelling to predict how climate change, eutrophication and ocean warming will alter trophic transfer efficiency in pelagic ecosystems.
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Trophic Dynamics in Marine Copepod Systems publication trend
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Technical terms
Ecological stoichiometry: Study of the balance of multiple chemical elements in ecological interactions and its effects on organism function and ecosystem processes.
C:N:P ratio: The molar proportions of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus in an organism or resource, indicative of nutritional quality.
Gross-growth efficiency (GGE): The fraction of ingested carbon or nutrients that is converted into consumer biomass.
Stoichiometric homeostasis: The ability of an organism to maintain constant internal elemental composition despite variation in food quality.
Microbial food web: Network of trophic interactions among bacteria, microzooplankton and small metazoans within aquatic ecosystems.
References
- The effects of food stoichiometry and temperature on copepods are mediated by ontogeny. Oecologia (2018).
- Ecophysiological response of marine copepods to dietary elemental imbalances. Marine Environmental Research (2023).
- Are all copepods the same? Variation in copepod stoichiometry with taxonomy, ontogeny, latitude, and habitat. Ecosphere (2023).
- A matter of time and proportion: the availability of phosphorus-rich phytoplankton influences growth and behavior of copepod nauplii. Journal of Plankton Research (2020).
- Ingestion rate estimated from food concentration and predatory role of copepod nauplii in the microbial food web of temperate embayment waters. Journal of Plankton Research (2023).
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