Meyer-Rust Kelsey A, Strickland Alyssa, Lee Bo-Young, Sevigny Joseph L, Bradt Gabriela, Brown Bonnie L
Department of Biological Sciences, Ecological Genetics Laboratory, University of New Hampshire, 38 Academic Way, Durham, NH, 03824, USA.
Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Hubbard Center for Genomic Studies, 35 Colovos Road, Durham, NH, 03824, USA.
BMC Genomics. 2024 Dec 23;25(1):1238. doi: 10.1186/s12864-024-10907-w.
Great Bay Estuary (GBE), within the rapidly warming Gulf of Maine, has experienced significant ecological shifts this century due to naturalization of invasive species. The range expansion of the American blue crab (Callinectes sapidus) currently underway from the mid-Atlantic northward brings the possibility of similar ecological shifts. This study accounts recent trapping and diet analysis of C. sapidus in GBE. Diet is an important component of understanding how the blue crab range expansion may affect GBE ecosystem functions. Across all sites and trap types, 27 blue crabs were captured. Metagenomic analysis of shotgun sequencing techniques were used on the gut contents of blue crabs captured. Most specimens had > 50% Eukaryote sequences. Overall results of this gut content study confirm a mixed diet indicative of an opportunistic feeder. Using metagenomics to analyze the diet of blue crabs as they establish viable populations in GBE will be a useful tool for predicting how these range expanding organisms are interacting within this important estuarine ecosystem, which will promote sustainable development by informing end users who may be affected by these crabs to help them meet their needs in the present and future. This project falls within Global Goal SDG14: Life Below Water.
大湾河口（GBE）位于迅速变暖的缅因湾内，由于入侵物种的归化，在本世纪经历了重大的生态变化。目前正在进行的美洲蓝蟹（Callinectes sapidus）从中大西洋向北的范围扩张带来了类似生态变化的可能性。本研究记录了GBE中美洲蓝蟹最近的诱捕和饮食分析情况。饮食是理解蓝蟹范围扩张如何影响GBE生态系统功能的一个重要组成部分。在所有地点和诱捕类型中，共捕获了27只蓝蟹。对捕获的蓝蟹的肠道内容物采用鸟枪法测序技术进行宏基因组分析。大多数样本的真核生物序列>50%。这项肠道内容物研究的总体结果证实了蓝蟹的混合饮食，表明它是一种机会主义觅食者。利用宏基因组学分析蓝蟹在GBE中建立可行种群时的饮食，将是预测这些范围不断扩大的生物如何在这个重要的河口生态系统中相互作用的一个有用工具，这将通过告知可能受到这些螃蟹影响的最终用户来促进可持续发展，帮助他们满足当前和未来的需求。该项目属于全球目标可持续发展目标14：水下生物。
