Patterns of mercury and selenium in tissues and stomach contents of the dolphinfish Coryphaena hippurus from the SE Gulf of California, Mexico: Concentrations, biomagnification and dietary intake

Stomach contents of 533 jumbo squid, Dosidicus gigas, ranging between 14·5 and 87·5 cm dorsal mantle length were collected on a monthly basis in the central Gulf of California from November 1995 to April 1997. Fish prey were identified by sagittal otoliths, cephalopods by beaks and crustaceans by exoskeletal features. The diet was dominated by Benthosema panamense, an abundant near-shore nyctoepipelagic myctophid that forms dense aggregations. Another myctophid, Triphoturus mexicanus, several micronektonic squid, pelagic red crab and small pelagic fish such as northern anchovy and Pacific sardine played a secondary role. The largest differences in diet were due to spatial and monthly changes, while differences regarding squid size or sex were smaller. Prey size (averaging 5–7 cm) and prey number did not vary with size of jumbo squid. Jumbo squid in the slopes of the Guaymas basin feed on abundant schooling mesopelagic micronekton of annual nature with a quick response to environmental changes, which could partly explain the large annual fluctuations of this commercial resource.

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Selenium and mercury in dolphinfish (Coryphaena hippurus) from the Gulf of California: inter-annual variations and selenium health benefit value

Environmental Science and Pollution Research ◽

10.1007/s11356-019-06795-3 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 27 (2) ◽

pp. 2311-2318 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Brisa Vega-Sánchez ◽

Sofía Ortega-García ◽

Jorge Ruelas-Inzunza ◽

Martín Frías-Espericueta ◽

Ofelia Escobar-Sánchez ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gulf Of California ◽

Health Benefit ◽

Annual Variations ◽

Coryphaena Hippurus

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Feeding habits of dolphinfish (Coryphaena hippurus) in the southeastern Gulf of California, Mexico

Journal of Applied Ichthyology ◽

10.1111/j.1439-0426.2010.01483.x ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 26 (4) ◽

pp. 578-582 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

A. Tripp-Valdez ◽

F. Galván-Magaña ◽

S. Ortega-García

Keyword(s):

Gulf Of California ◽

Feeding Habits ◽

Coryphaena Hippurus

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Food sources of common dolphinfish (Coryphaena hippurus) based on stomach content and stable isotopes analyses

Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom ◽

10.1017/s0025315414001842 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 95 (3) ◽

pp. 579-591 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

A. Tripp-Valdez ◽

F. Galván-Magaña ◽

S. Ortega-García

Keyword(s):

Stable Isotope ◽

Stomach Content ◽

Gulf Of California ◽

Stomach Contents ◽

Isotopic Analysis ◽

Stomach Content Analysis ◽

Food Sources ◽

Important Prey ◽

Opportunistic Predator ◽

Ecological Importance

Dolphinfish (Mahimahi) are a high-demand resource for sport and coastal fisheries, mainly in the Pacific Ocean. Due to their economic and ecological importance, studies of their biology are very important to understand their function in ecosystems. We used stable isotope and stomach content analyses to determine the most important prey of the common dolphinfish, as well as the trophic level of this species in two areas of the southern Gulf of California. Stomach contents of 445 specimens were analysed. Using both techniques, we found that the most important prey for dolphinfish in the southern Gulf of California were three invertebrate species followed by fish. This contrasts with results from other authors who found that this species was mainly piscivorous in other locations. Stomach content analysis indicated differences in prey biomass by area, season and size class. The isotopic analysis did not show significant differences between seasons or sexes. Both stomach contents and stable isotope analyses showed that although this predator consumed a wide prey spectrum, only a few prey items made up the bulk of the diet, which resulted in a low SD in δ15N values and low Levin's index values. We conclude that this fish is an opportunistic predator that may consume a wide prey spectrum, but that it mainly consumes prey that are abundant in the area, such as crustaceans and cephalopods in the Gulf of California.

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Interannual and seasonal variation of dolphinfish (Coryphaena hippurus) catch rates in the southern Gulf of California, Mexico

Fisheries Research ◽

10.1016/j.fishres.2008.06.003 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 94 (1) ◽

pp. 13-17 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Marcela S. Zúñiga Flores ◽

Sofía Ortega-García ◽

Alexander Klett-Traulsen

Keyword(s):

Seasonal Variation ◽

Gulf Of California ◽

Coryphaena Hippurus ◽

Catch Rates

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