Source and fate of lipids in polar gelatinous zooplankton

Abstract

Presence or absence of accumulated lipids in arctic and Antarctic medusae and ctenophores was determined. In the Antarctic, average lipid content of gelatinous predators is c3% DW (range 0.4-6%), whereas in the Arctic it is nearly 3 times higher, c8% DW (range 1.5-22%). These differences are probably related to the amounts of lipids in their prey. The abundance of lipid-rich Calanus spp. copepods in the Arctic may be responsible for the high levels of lipids in gelatinous predators. -from Authors