Bioenergetics of the copepod Temora longicornis under different nutrient regimes

Abstract

The copepod Temora longicornis depends on constant prey availability, but its performance also depends on how efficiently it utilizes its food sources. Our research goal was to understand copepod energy allocation in relation to diet quality. The working hypothesis was that Temora performs better on the diet whose elemental ratio is closest to its own. Diatoms (Diat) and dinoflagellates (Dino) cultured in nutrient-replete (+) and nitrogen-depleted (-) conditions were fed to the copepods. Ingestion, respiration, excretion and egg and fecal pellet production rates were measured. Carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) budgets were built to investigate differences in dietary C and N partitioning.