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. 2025 Jul 24;15(7):e71869.
doi: 10.1002/ece3.71869. eCollection 2025 Jul.

The Influence of Habitat Heterogeneity and Human Disturbance on Trophic Interactions of Sebastiscus marmoratus and Scorpaenopsis cirrosa in Wanshan Archipelago

Hongyu Xie  1   2   3 , Yu Liu  1   2 , Teng Wang  1   2 , Peng Wu  1   2 , Yayuan Xiao  1   2 , Chunling Wang  4 , Jian Zou  1   2 , Yong Liu  1   2 , Jinhui Sun  5 , Jianzhong Shen  3 , Xuefu Ao  1 , Yanqiao Wang  1   5
Affiliations

The Influence of Habitat Heterogeneity and Human Disturbance on Trophic Interactions of Sebastiscus marmoratus and Scorpaenopsis cirrosa in Wanshan Archipelago

Hongyu Xie et al. Ecol Evol. .

Abstract

Habitat heterogeneity and human disturbances drive variations in interspecific interactions among fish species. Trophic niche analysis is a crucial approach for understanding these interactions. This study investigates the interspecific interaction mechanisms of two scorpionfish species, Sebastiscus marmoratus and Scorpaenopsis cirrosa, across different habitat conditions in the Wanshan Archipelago of the Pearl River Estuary. Three island groups-Guishan Island, Wailingding Island, and Dongao & Wanshan Islands-were selected as study sites. Using carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis, we examined variations in their trophic relationships. The results revealed significant regional differences in the δ13C values of S. marmoratus and S. cirrosa (p < 0.05), indicating regional variation in their food sources. Bayesian mixing model analysis showed that at Guishan Island, annelids constituted the primary food source for both species. However, at Wailingding Island and Dongao & Wanshan Islands, their reliance on annelids significantly decreased, with a preference shift towards mollusks, reflecting region-specific foraging strategies and niche differentiation. The δ15N values of the two species did not exhibit significant regional differences, suggesting that S. marmoratus and S. cirrosa occupy similar trophic levels across different regions. Trophic niche metrics, including CR, NR, CD, and TA, indicated that S. cirrosa has a broader trophic niche, suggesting a more flexible feeding strategy and a potential competitive advantage in resource utilization. The two species exhibited overlapping trophic niches, with distinct regional variations. Notably, at Guishan Island, where trophic niches were the broadest, potential competition between the species was most pronounced, which may be associated with higher human activity intensity. Differences in ecosystem structure among islands contributed to variations in food resource availability and niche space, ultimately shaping the foraging behaviors and adaptive strategies of S. marmoratus and S. cirrosa across regions. These findings provide theoretical insights into interspecific interactions in heterogeneous habitats and inform fisheries resource conservation.

Keywords: estuary; geographical variation; interspecific interactions; stable isotopes; trophic niche.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Sampling area of fish in Wanshan Islands.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Stable isotope values (δ13C and δ15N) of Sebastiscus marmoratus and Scorpaenopsis cirrosa collected from Guishan Island, Wai Lingding Island, and Dongao & Wanshan Island. Different colors represent the two species at each location. Different lowercase letters indicate significant differences among groups (p < 0.05).
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Trophic niche structure indices of Sebastiscus marmoratus and Scorpaenopsis cirrosa at Guishan Island, Wai Lingding Island, and Dongao & Wanshan Island. Different bars represent values for the two species at each location. CD, centroid distance; CR, carbon range; MNND, mean nearest neighbor distance; NR, nitrogen range; SDNND, standard deviation of nearest neighbor distance; SEA, standard ellipse area; TA, total area of convex hull.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Directional changes in the trophic structure of S. marmoratus and S. cirrosa at varying islands.
FIGURE 5
FIGURE 5
Left: 10 random elliptical projections of niche region for two investigated fish species ( S. marmoratus and S. cirrosa ) across three island groups (i: Guishan Island, ii: Wai Lingding Island, iii: Dongao & Wanshan Island), including smoothed histograms (A and D) and scatterplot (C). Red and green represent S. marmoratus and S. cirrosa , respectively. Right: Posterior distribution of niche overlap metric (%) for a specified niche range of 95% across the three island groups. The posterior means and 95% credible interval are displayed in light green.
FIGURE 6
FIGURE 6
Posterior density distribution of dietary proportions for S. marmoratus and S. cirrosa at Guishan Island, Wai Lingding Island, and Dongao & Wanshan Islands.
FIGURE 7
FIGURE 7
Contribution ratio of carbon sources to food of S. marmoratus and S. cirrosa in Guishan Island, Wai lingding Island, and Dongao&Wanshan Island.
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