{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,8]],"date-time":"2026-10-08T02:51:55Z","timestamp":1791427915852,"version":"4.3.3"},"reference-count":50,"publisher":"Wiley","issue":"9","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,26]],"date-time":"2026-08-26T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1787702400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,26]],"date-time":"2026-08-26T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1787702400000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/doi.wiley.com\/10.1002\/tdm_license_1.1"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["onlinelibrary.wiley.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Ecology and Evolution"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,9]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>ABSTRACT<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>\n                    The Amur softshell turtle (\n                    <jats:styled-content style=\"fixed-case\">\n                      <jats:italic>Pelodiscus maackii<\/jats:italic>\n                    <\/jats:styled-content>\n                    ) has undergone severe population declines across northeastern China, yet its trophic ecology remains poorly understood. Because ontogenetic dietary shifts can generate size\u2010structured functional roles within food webs, clarifying diet across life stages is critical for both ecological inference and conservation. We examined diet composition and ontogenetic trophic differentiation in a remnant population of\n                    <jats:styled-content style=\"fixed-case\">\n                      <jats:italic>P. maackii<\/jats:italic>\n                    <\/jats:styled-content>\n                    from the midstream Ussuri River (China side) using stomach content analysis. Samples were obtained opportunistically from incidental fishery bycatch and market\u2010derived remains collected between July 2022 and October 2025. Diet was quantified using frequency of occurrence and volumetric contribution of five functional prey categories and analyzed with multivariate ordination and permutation\u2010based tests, and niche overlap indices. Across 41 individuals with nonempty stomachs, diet composition differed strongly among ontogenetic stages, whereas no sex\u2010specific differences were detected after accounting for body mass. Juveniles exhibited diverse, invertebrate\u2010dominated diets, particularly freshwater snails, while fish increased sharply with body size and dominated the diets of subadult and adult turtles. Dietary richness and within\u2010group variability declined with ontogeny, and niche overlap was lowest between juveniles and adults but high among older stages. Together, these results demonstrate pronounced size\u2010structured trophic differentiation in\n                    <jats:styled-content style=\"fixed-case\">\n                      <jats:italic>P. maackii<\/jats:italic>\n                    <\/jats:styled-content>\n                    , indicating that population declines or size\u2010selective losses may have disproportionate consequences for riverine food\u2010web structure and function.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1002\/ece3.74221","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,27]],"date-time":"2026-08-27T06:08:11Z","timestamp":1787810891000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1002\/crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Ontogenetic Trophic Differentiation in the Amur Softshell Turtle (\n                    <i>Pelodiscus maackii<\/i>\n                    ) From a Temperate Large\u2010River System"],"prefix":"10.1002","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5180-4461","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Xiaochen","family":"Hou","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Medicine and Health Tonghua Normal University  Tonghua China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"311","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,26]]},"reference":[{"key":"e_1_2_12_2_1","first-page":"117","article-title":"On the Distribution of \n                     Pelodiscus sinensis\n                   (Wiegmann, 1834) (Testudines: Trionychidae) in the Russian Far East","volume":"12","author":"Adnagulov E. V.","year":"2003","journal-title":"Herpetologia Petropolitana"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_3_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1095-8649.1996.tb01455.x"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_4_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1442-9993.2001.01070.pp.x"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_5_1","first-page":"275","article-title":"Sex\u2010Specific Foraging Patterns in Freshwater Turtles: The Role of Body Size and Habitat Use","volume":"279","author":"Aresco M. J.","year":"2009","journal-title":"Journal of Zoology"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_6_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3354\/meps07440"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_7_1","first-page":"199","volume-title":"The Biology of Sea Turtles","author":"Bjorndal K. A.","year":"1997"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_8_1","volume-title":"The Biology of Sea Turtles","author":"Bjorndal K. A.","year":"2003"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_9_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.23788\/IEF\u201008\u2010301"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_10_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1086\/498190"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_11_1","first-page":"110","article-title":"Observationes Quaedam Ad Generis Trionychum Species Duas Novas Spectantes","volume":"16","author":"Brandt J. F.","year":"1857","journal-title":"Bulletin de l'Acad\u00e9mie Imp\u00e9riale Des Sciences de Saint\u2010P\u00e9tersbourg, Classe Physico\u2010Math\u00e9matique"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_12_1","first-page":"23","article-title":"On the Biology of the Chinese Soft\u2010Shell Turtle in Lake Khanka","volume":"2","author":"Cherepanov G. O.","year":"1990","journal-title":"Bulletin of Leningrad State University, Series 3"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_13_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2307\/1563789"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_14_1","first-page":"964","article-title":"The Life\u2010History Evolution of Turtles","volume":"86","author":"Congdon J. D.","year":"2011","journal-title":"Biological Reviews"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_15_1","volume-title":"Turtles of the World","author":"Ernst C. H.","year":"1989"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_16_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.56021\/9780801891212"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_17_1","first-page":"11","article-title":"Ecology of the Green Turtle (\n                     Chelonia mydas\n                  ) and Its Conservation in the Indian Ocean","volume":"333","author":"Hawkes L. A.","year":"2007","journal-title":"Marine Ecology Progress Series"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_18_1","first-page":"705","article-title":"Trophic Interactions and Energy Flow in a Freshwater Turtle Community: Modeling the Effects of Turtle Removal","volume":"6","author":"Heppell S. S.","year":"1996","journal-title":"Ecological Applications"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_19_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1086\/282436"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_20_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3390\/ani14071088"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_21_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3390\/ani15020255"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_22_1","first-page":"68","article-title":"Feeding Ecology of Green Turtles (\n                     Chelonia mydas\n                  ) Across Life Stages in the Great Barrier Reef, Australia","volume":"478","author":"Howell L. J.","year":"2016","journal-title":"Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_23_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1095-8649.1980.tb02775.x"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_24_1","volume-title":"A Revised Checklist With Distribution Maps of the Turtles of the World","author":"Iverson J. B.","year":"1992"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_25_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2744\/CCB-0659.1"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_26_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.17582\/journal.pjz\/20181210041246"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_27_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/biosci\/biy095"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_28_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.22621\/cfn.v130i4.1917"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_29_1","first-page":"65","volume-title":"Animal and Plant World of the Far East","author":"Maslova I. V.","year":"2002"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_30_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/oso\/9780195102291.001.0001"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_31_1","unstructured":"Oksanen J. F. G.Blanchet M.Friendly et\u00a0al.2022.\u201cvegan: Community Ecology Package.\u201dR Package Version 2.6\u20104."},{"key":"e_1_2_12_32_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev.es.04.110173.000413"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_33_1","first-page":"1","article-title":"Food Habits of Albacore, Bluefin Tuna, and Bonito in California Waters","volume":"152","author":"Pinkas L.","year":"1971","journal-title":"California Department of Fish and Game Fish Bulletin"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_34_1","first-page":"245","article-title":"Sexual Dimorphism in Softshell Turtles","volume":"1977","author":"Plummer M. V.","year":"1977","journal-title":"Copeia"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_35_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2307\/1442977"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_36_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2307\/1563377"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_37_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1086\/284221"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_38_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S0169-5347(00)01971-6"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_39_1","volume-title":"R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing","author":"R Core Team","year":"2024"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_40_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2744\/CCB-1348.1"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_41_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev.es.02.110171.002101"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_42_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.5479\/si.03629236.58.i"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_43_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/cobi.12102"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_44_1","first-page":"153","volume-title":"Proceedings of the 10th Ordinary General Meeting of the Societas Europaea Herpetologica","author":"Tarasov I. G.","year":"1999"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_45_1","first-page":"1631","article-title":"The Influence of Food Availability on Growth, Reproduction, and Fitness in Ectotherms: A Study of European Pond Turtles (\n                     Emys orbicularis\n                  )","volume":"199","author":"Have T. M.","year":"1996","journal-title":"Journal of Experimental Biology"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_46_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev.es.15.110184.002141"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_47_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2307\/1940354"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_48_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.21105\/joss.01686"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_49_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1046\/j.1365-2656.2002.00669.x"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_50_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1670\/17-137"},{"key":"e_1_2_12_51_1","first-page":"61","article-title":"Distribution of Rare and Endangered Amphibians and Reptiles in Primorsky Krai (Far East, Russia)","volume":"3","author":"Yu P. E.","year":"2018","journal-title":"Nature Conservation Research"}],"container-title":["Ecology and Evolution"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/onlinelibrary.wiley.com\/doi\/pdf\/10.1002\/ece3.74221","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/onlinelibrary.wiley.com\/doi\/full-xml\/10.1002\/ece3.74221","content-type":"application\/xml","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/onlinelibrary.wiley.com\/doi\/pdf\/10.1002\/ece3.74221","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,8]],"date-time":"2026-10-08T02:44:53Z","timestamp":1791427493000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/onlinelibrary.wiley.com\/doi\/10.1002\/ece3.74221"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,26]]},"references-count":50,"journal-issue":{"issue":"9","published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,9]]}},"alternative-id":["10.1002\/ece3.74221"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1002\/ece3.74221","archive":["Portico"],"relation":{},"ISSN":["2045-7758","2045-7758"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2045-7758","type":"print"},{"value":"2045-7758","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,26]]},"assertion":[{"value":"2026-01-13","order":0,"name":"received","label":"Received","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}},{"value":"2026-08-13","order":2,"name":"accepted","label":"Accepted","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}},{"value":"2026-08-26","order":3,"name":"published","label":"Published","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}}],"article-number":"e74221"}}