In Antarctica, amphipods form a highly diverse group, occupy many different ecological niches and hold an important place in food webs. Here, we aimed to test whether differences in Antarctic amphipod feeding habits were reflected in their mandible morphology, and if mouthpart specialization could be used to describe amphipod trophic ecology. To do so, we compared mandible morphology in nine species spanning seven families and five functional groups (grazers, suspension feeders, generalist predators, specialist predators and scavengers). Mandible morphology adequately depicted some aspects of amphipod trophic ecology, such as the trophic level at which animals feed or their degree of dietary specialization. On the other hand, links between mandible morphology and amphipod diet were seldom unambiguous or straightforward. Similar adaptations were found in distinct functional groups. Conversely, mandible morphology could vary within a single functional group, and phylogenetic effects sometimes complicated the interpretation of form-function relationships. Overall, mandible morphology on its own was generally not sufficient to precisely predict amphipod feeding strategies. However, when combined with other methods (e.g. gut contents, trophic markers), it constitutes a valuable source of information for integrative studies of amphipod ecological diversity in the Southern Ocean.

中文翻译：

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下颌骨形态可以帮助预测南极片脚类动物的摄食习惯吗？

在南极洲，片脚类动物形成了一个高度多样化的群体，占据了许多不同的生态位，并在食物网中占有重要地位。在这里，我们旨在测试南极片脚类动物摄食习性的差异是否反映在它们的下颌形态中，以及口器特化是否可以用来描述片脚类动物的营养生态学。为此，我们比较了跨越 7 个科和 5 个功能组（食草动物、悬浮饲养者、通才捕食者、专业捕食者和清道夫）的 9 个物种的下颌骨形态。下颌骨形态充分描述了片足类营养生态学的某些方面，例如动物进食的营养水平或其饮食专业化程度。另一方面，下颌骨形态和片脚类动物饮食之间的联系很少是明确或直接的。在不同的功能组中发现了类似的适应。相反，下颌骨形态在单个功能组内可能会有所不同，系统发育影响有时会使形状-功能关系的解释复杂化。总体而言，下颌形态本身通常不足以精确预测片脚类动物的摄食策略。然而，当与其他方法（例如肠道内容物、营养标记）结合使用时，它构成了南大洋片足类生态多样性综合研究的宝贵信息来源。下颌形态本身通常不足以精确预测片脚类动物的摄食策略。然而，当与其他方法（例如肠道内容物、营养标记）结合使用时，它构成了南大洋片足类生态多样性综合研究的宝贵信息来源。下颌形态本身通常不足以精确预测片脚类动物的摄食策略。然而，当与其他方法（例如肠道内容物、营养标记）结合使用时，它构成了南大洋片足类生态多样性综合研究的宝贵信息来源。