title: Use of morphological characteristics to define functional groups of predatory fishes in the Celtic Sea.
abstract: An ecomorphological method was developed, with a focus on predation functions, to define functional groups in the Celtic Sea fish community. Eleven functional traits, measured for 930 individuals from 33 species, led to 11 functional groups. Membership of functional groups was linked to body size and taxonomy. For seven species, there were ontogenetic changes in group membership. When diet composition, expressed as the proportions of different prey types recorded in stomachs, was compared among functional groups, morphology-based predictions accounted for 28-56% of the interindividual variance in prey type. This was larger than the 12-24% of variance that could be explained solely on the basis of body size.
authors.affiliation: IFREMER, Rue de l'Ile d'Yeu, B.P. 21105, 44311 NANTES Cedex 03, France. Marie.Joelle.Rochet@ifremer.fr
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Reecht
authors.forename: M-J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Rochet
authors.forename: V M
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Trenkel
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jennings
authors.forename: J K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Pinnegar
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D044822:Biodiversity; D049628:Body Size; D002965:Classification / Q000379:methods; D005399:Fishes / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000145:classification* / Q000502:physiology; D020387:Food Chain; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D011235:Predatory Behavior
keywords: ecomorphology; functional traits; predation strategy; trophic functions