Short Communication

Inter-tissue variability in the stable isotope values of European perch (Perca fluviatilis) and pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus)

¹ Marine and Inland Waters Sciences and Technology Department, Faculty of Fisheries, Ege University, İzmir, Türkiye
² Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology, Bournemouth University, Poole, Dorset, UK
³ Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Fisheries, Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University, Muğla, Türkiye
⁴ Department of Ecology and Vertebrate Zoology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Łódź, Łódź, Poland

^* Corresponding author: irmak.kurtul@gmail.com

Received: 12 April 2023
Accepted: 10 July 2023

Abstract

Ecological studies on native and invasive populations of European perch Perca fluviatilis and pumpkinseed Lepomis gibbosus are often based on stable isotope (SI) analysis based on dorsal muscle, where samples are usually taken from sacrificed fishes. However, other tissues, such as scale and fin tissue, can be used as non-lethal alternatives, where their SI values can be standardised to dorsal muscle values for comparative purposes. In both perch and pumpkinseed, there was a pattern of δ¹³C enrichment and δ¹⁵N depletion from muscle to fin and scale. As comparative studies must account for these inter-tissue differences prior to analyses, conversion equations for SI data from scale and fin tissue to standardised muscle values are provided.