Effect of prey abundance and size on the distribution of demersal fishes

2012 ◽  
Vol 69 (1) ◽  
pp. 191-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew F. Johnson ◽  
Maria Valls ◽  
Joan Moranta ◽  
Stuart R. Jenkins ◽  
Jan G. Hiddink ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fish Species ◽  
Stomach Content ◽  
Prey Size ◽  
Prey Availability ◽  
Demersal Fish ◽  
Stomach Content Analysis ◽  
Prey Abundance ◽  
Food Sources ◽  
Gape Size ◽  
Feeding Potential

Many demersal fish species rely on benthic prey as food sources for part of, or in some cases, all of their life history. We investigated the relationships between prey and predator abundance and prey size and predator mouth gape size for nine demersal fish species. Of the species analysed, four showed a significant positive increase in abundance with increasing prey abundance. Prey size is thought to be an important parameter for demersal fish that are limited in their feeding potential by their mouth gape size, as it influences consumption rate and energy expenditure while foraging. The relationship between prey size and mouth gape was investigated using both stomach content data and prey availability data. Stomach content analysis revealed positive relationships between maximum prey size and predator mouth gape size for six of the species. Indications of prey size selectivity were only seen in the environment for European hake ( Merluccius merluccius ), highlighting the potential importance of prey size over prey abundance for this species. The results demonstrate that prey abundance and size are of significance for some demersal fish species feeding primarily on benthos and will help in defining habitat requirements of demersal fish species.

Feeding ecology and basal food sources that sustain the Paradoxal frog Pseudis minuta: a multiple approach combining stomach content, prey availability, and stable isotopes

Hydrobiologia ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 740 (1) ◽  
pp. 253-264 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonia Huckembeck ◽  
Daniel Loebmann ◽  
Edelti F. Albertoni ◽  
Sonia M. Hefler ◽  
Mauro C. L. M. Oliveira ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stable Isotopes ◽  
Stomach Content ◽  
Feeding Ecology ◽  
Prey Availability ◽  
Food Sources ◽  
Multiple Approach ◽  
Pseudis Minuta

Do macrophytes act as restaurants for fishes in tropical beaches? An approach using stomach content and prey availability analyses

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonas de Andrade Santos ◽  
Rafael Lima Oliveira ◽  
Ana Paula Penha Guedes ◽  
Alexandre Clistenes de Alcântara Santos ◽  
Leonardo Evangelista Moraes
Keyword(s):  
Stomach Content ◽  
Optimal Foraging ◽  
Prey Availability ◽  
Influence Factors ◽  
Optimal Foraging Theory ◽  
Sandy Beaches ◽  
Food Sources ◽  
Brazilian Coast ◽  
Trophic Guild

Tropical sandy beaches have low primary productivity, thus depend on external food sources. Generally, allochthonous macrophytes, form the basis of these food webs, and also may influence factors such as fish’s abundance, richness, species composition, and biomass. However, the role of macrophytes to the feeding ecology of fishes in tropical sandy beaches is uncertain. We aim to explain if this microhabitat acts as restaurants for fishes by performing stomach content and prey availability analyses using Ophioscion punctatissimus as a model because it has an association with detached macrophytes mainly on sandy beaches along the northeastern Brazilian coast. The most consumed prey was crustaceans, mainly amphipods, which were eaten in a specialist way, especially by the smaller fishes. The prey availability along with electivity index suggested that this species choose amphipods. Seasonal variations may indicate that the fishes did not locate their preferential prey as an effect of the availability, this can be also explained by factors such as palatability, and optimal foraging theory. Here, we redefined the O. punctatissimus trophic guild as zooplanktivorous, highlighting macrophytes as restaurants for fishes in tropical sandy beaches as they are the main source of food, adding another function to this microhabitat in this environment.

scholarly journals Gape size influences seasonal patterns of piscivore diets in three Neotropical rivers

2011 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 647-655 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen G. Montaña ◽  
Craig A. Layman ◽  
Kirk O. Winemiller
Keyword(s):  
Fish Species ◽  
Seasonal Cycle ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Prey Abundance ◽  
Seasonal Patterns ◽  
Large Prey ◽  
Diverse Group ◽  
Migratory Fish ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Gape Size

We examined diets of four piscivores, two in the order Perciformes (Cichla temensis and C. orinocensis) and two in the order Characiformes (Boulengerella cuvieri and B. lucius), from the Cinaruco, La Guardia, and Ventuari rivers in Venezuela throughout the wet-dry seasonal cycle. The four piscivores consumed a phylogenetically and morphologically diverse group of fishes, reflecting the overall diversity of fish species in these rivers. At the start of the falling-water period, Cichla consumed large prey, especially the abundant, migratory, fish of the genus Semaprochilodus. As these relatively large prey became depleted during the dry season, Cichla tended to consume smaller prey. For Boulengerella, gape limitation precluded consumption of larger, seasonally abundant, fishes, and so prey sizes were more consistent throughout the seasonal cycle. Our findings show how prey abundance and gape limitations interact to influence seasonal patterns of predator-prey interactions.

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

2014 ◽  
Vol 95 (3) ◽  
pp. 579-591 ◽  
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.

scholarly journals Corrigendum to: Carbon sources supporting Australia's most widely distributed freshwater fish, Nematalosa erebi (Günther) (Clupeidae: Dorosomatinae)

2021 ◽  
Vol 72 (2) ◽  
pp. 299
Author(s):  
Bradley J. Pusey ◽  
Timothy D. Jardine ◽  
Leah S. Beesley ◽  
Mark J. Kennard ◽  
Tsz Wai Ho ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Food Webs ◽  
Freshwater Fish ◽  
Stomach Content ◽  
Benthic Algae ◽  
Stomach Content Analysis ◽  
Food Sources ◽  
Small Fish ◽  
Northern Australia ◽  
Green Algal

Both brown (detrital-based) and green (algal-based) food pathways support freshwater food webs, although the importance of either source may vary within species, regions and different phases of the flow regime. The bony bream (Nematalosa erebi Clupeidae: Dorosomatinae) is one of Australia's most widely distributed freshwater fish species and is a key component of freshwater food webs, especially in northern Australia. We sought to better define the feeding habits of this species, previously classified as a detritivore, algivore or zooplanktivore (or combinations thereof), by undertaking meta-analyses of published accounts based on stomach content analysis and 13C and 15N stable isotope analysis. Stomach content analysis clearly indicated that detritus was the dominant food item, although benthic algae could be an important dietary component in some habitats (inland river flood plains) and during the wet season. Zooplankton were important for small fish (i.e. juveniles 13C enriched, indicating the latter source was not the dominant contributor to the biomass of this species. However, using site-specific data and a regression approach, a significant relationship was revealed between algal carbon and that of large fish, suggesting that carbon derived from benthic algae contributed ~20% of the carbon of adult bony bream. Zooplankton contributed a similar amount. Zooplankton provided the majority of carbon for small fish. We contend that detritus derived from terrestrial vegetation is the likely remaining carbon source for large bony bream, and this interpretation was supported by the outcomes of multiple regression analyses. Although previous studies of aquatic food webs in northern Australia have emphasised the importance of high-quality algal basal resources, this study indicates that terrestrial sources may be important for some species and demonstrates the need to better consider the circumstances that cause biota to switch between different food sources.

scholarly journals Diet of Leptobotia elongata revealed by stomach content analysis and inferred from stable isotope signatures

2015 ◽  
Vol 98 (8) ◽  
pp. 1965-1978 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Li ◽  
Q. Wei Wei ◽  
J. Ming Wu ◽  
H. Zhang ◽  
Y. Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Stable Isotope ◽  
Stomach Content ◽  
Stomach Content Analysis ◽  
Stable Isotope Signatures

scholarly journals Prey Size Decline as a Unifying Ecological Selecting Agent in Pleistocene Human Evolution

Quaternary ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 7
Author(s):  
Miki Ben-Dor ◽  
Ran Barkai
Keyword(s):  
Prey Size ◽  
Prey Availability ◽  
Stone Tool ◽  
Foraging Efficiency ◽  
Energetic Cost ◽  
Large Prey ◽  
Biomass Density ◽  
Cultural Changes ◽  
Progressive Decline ◽  
Brain Expansion

We hypothesize that megafauna extinctions throughout the Pleistocene, that led to a progressive decline in large prey availability, were a primary selecting agent in key evolutionary and cultural changes in human prehistory. The Pleistocene human past is characterized by a series of transformations that include the evolution of new physiological traits and the adoption, assimilation, and replacement of cultural and behavioral patterns. Some changes, such as brain expansion, use of fire, developments in stone-tool technologies, or the scale of resource intensification, were uncharacteristically progressive. We previously hypothesized that humans specialized in acquiring large prey because of their higher foraging efficiency, high biomass density, higher fat content, and the use of less complex tools for their acquisition. Here, we argue that the need to mitigate the additional energetic cost of acquiring progressively smaller prey may have been an ecological selecting agent in fundamental adaptive modes demonstrated in the Paleolithic archaeological record. We describe several potential associations between prey size decline and specific evolutionary and cultural changes that might have been driven by the need to adapt to increased energetic demands while hunting and processing smaller and smaller game.

Does prey abundance affect prey size selection by the Eagle Owl (Bubo bubo)?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorge Tobajas ◽  
Carlos Rouco ◽  
Javier Fernandez-de-Simon ◽  
Francisco Díaz-Ruiz ◽  
Francisca Castro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prey Size ◽  
Prey Abundance ◽  
Bubo Bubo ◽  
Size Selection ◽  
Eagle Owl
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