Does diet in Celtic Sea fishes reflect prey availability?

Feeding preferences of Celtic Sea fishes were investigated using a database of stomach content records, collected between 1977 and 1994. The diet of cod Gadus morhua , hake Merluccius merluccius , megrim Lepidorhombus whiffiagonis , whiting Merlangius merlangus and saithe Pollachius virens changed markedly as the animals grew larger, and although large predators generally chose larger bodied prey, the variability of prey sizes consumed also increased. Large predators continued to select small, low value, benthic prey ( e.g . Callionymus spp. and Trisopterus spp.) which were easier to catch, rather than larger, more energy lucrative pelagic prey ( e.g . mackerel Scomber scombrus ), even though these pelagic prey‐fishes were nearly always available and were often very abundant. Stock estimates of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea and U.K. groundfish survey catches were used as indices of prey abundance. Blue‐whiting Micromesistius poutassou and other small pelagic fishes ( Argentina spp. and clupeoids) were identified as being particularly important, and were consumed by some predators more often than would be expected given the abundance of these prey in the environment. There was no evidence for density‐dependent feeding by predators on mackerel and only hake exhibited density‐dependent feeding on horse‐mackerel. Hake, cod and megrim consumed more blue‐whiting when this prey was at higher abundance in the environment. In choosing what prey to consume, predators must balance costs and benefits, considering the quality of prey and the energy expended during search, capture and handling.     

Selective Feeding of age-0 Arctic Grayling in Lake-Outlet Streams of the Northwest Territories, Canada

A paucity of information exists on the diet of Arctic grayling, Thymallus arcticus, particularly for young-of-the-year (YOY). We examined the diet of YOY Arctic grayling in relation to food availability, in the Barrenlands region of the Northwest Territories, Canada, where lake-outlet streams serve as nursery habitat for these fish. Given the small size of YOY grayling and the abundance of lake-derived microcrustacea in the drift of these lake-outlet streams, we anticipated that these prey would make up a major component of the YOY's diet. Food selectivity by YOY grayling, however, was strongly sized-biased; although microcrustacea dominated the drift, YOY primarily consumed larger taxa, especially Chironomidae and Simuliidae. Even among these taxa, grayling tended to select the larger individuals. As they grew, YOY grayling took larger numbers of both large and small prey, particularly the larger invertebrates, although prey size range did not change after mid-July. Selection of pupae and avoidance of Ephemeroptera suggest that prey characteristics other than size also contribute to selectivity by YOY grayling. The relatively limited consumption of terrestrial invertebrates and other large prey may reflect the small sizes of fish in this arctic study, as well as differences in prey availability. Despite the abundance of lake-derived prey, instream production of invertebrates should largely determine the productive capacity of Barrenlands streams as fish habitat.     

The Biology of Tiger Sharks, Galeocerdo Cuvier, in Shark Bay, Western Australia: Sex Ratio, Size Distribution, Diet, and Seasonal Changes in Catch Rates

Tiger sharks, Galeocerdo cuvier, are apex predators in a variety of nearshore ecosystems throughout the world. This study investigates the biology of tiger sharks in the shallow seagrass ecosystem of Shark Bay, Western Australia. Tiger sharks (n = 252) were the most commonly caught species (94%) compared to other large sharks. Tiger sharks ranged from 148–407cm TL. The overall sex ratio was biased towards females (1.8:1), but the sex ratio of mature animals (> 300cm TL) did not differ from 1:1. Contrary to previous accounts, tiger sharks were caught more often in all habitats during daylight hours than at night. Tiger shark catch rates were highly correlated with water temperature and were highest when water temperatures were above 19°C. The seasonal abundance of tiger sharks is correlated to both water temperature and the occurrence of their main prey: sea snakes and dugongs, Dugong dugon. Stomach contents analysis indicated that sea turtles and smaller elasmobranchs were also common prey. The importance of major seagrass grazers (dugongs and green sea turtles, Chelonia mydas) in the diet of tiger sharks suggests the possibility that these sharks are keystone predators in this ecosystem.     

Archaeal Diversity and Spatial Distribution in the Surface Sediment of the South China Sea

Archaea represent a significant portion of biomass in the marine sediments and may play an important role in global carbon cycle. However, the identity and composition of deep sea sediment Archaea are unclear. Here, we used the archaeal 16S rRNA gene primers to determine the diversity and community structure of Archaea from shallow water (<100 m) and deep water (>1500 m) sediments in the South China Sea. Phylogenetically the archaeal community is separated between the shallow- and deep sea sediments, with the former being dominated by the Thaumarchaeota and the latter by the Marine Benthic Group B, E and the South African GoldMine Euryarchaeotal Group as well as Thaumarchaeota. Sand content showed significant correlation with Thaumarchaeota, suggesting that the porous media may create an oxic environment that allowed these aerobic organisms to thrive in the surface sediments. The carbon isotope composition of total organic carbon was significantly correlated to the distribution of archaeal groups, suggesting that Archaea overall may be constrained by the availability or sources of organic carbon in the sediments of the South China Sea.     

Prey classification by an araneophagic ant-like jumping spider (Araneae: Salticidae)

What to attack is one of the most basic decisions predators must make, and these decisions are reliant upon the predator's sensory and cognitive capacity. Active choice of spiders as preferred prey, or araneophagy, has evolved in several distantly related spider families, including jumping spiders (Salticidae), but has never been demonstrated in ant-like jumping spiders. We used prey-choice tests with motionless lures to investigate prey-choice behaviour in Myrmarachne melanotarsa , an East African ant-like salticid that normally lives in aggregations and often associates with other spider species. We show that M . melanotarsa chooses spiders as prey in preference to insects and, furthermore, discriminates between different types of spiders. Myrmarachne melanotarsa 's preferred prey were juvenile hersiliids and its second most preferred were other salticids. To date, all documented examples of araneophagic salticids have been from the basal subfamily Spartaeinae. Myrmarachne melanotarsa is the first non-spartaeine and also the first ant-like salticid for which araneophagy has been demonstrated.     

不同猎物及密度对巴氏新小绥螨和拉戈钝绥螨同类相残和集团内捕食作用的影响

明确不同猎物及密度下巴氏新小绥螨Neoseiulus barkeri与拉戈钝绥螨Amblyseius largoensis(Muma)的同类相残和集团内捕食作用,为其协同应用控制橡胶树害螨提供依据.在室温27±1℃、湿度75％±5％、光周期12 L∶12D 条件下,以六点始叶螨 Eotetranvchus sexmac...     

南海主要珊瑚礁水域的鱼类物种多样性研究

根据2004年5–7月和2005年3–4月采用深水三重刺网在南海的羚羊礁、华光礁、银砾滩、东岛、滨湄滩、排洪滩、本固暗沙、比微暗沙、武勇暗沙、海鸠暗沙、双子群礁、中业群礁、鲎藤礁、美济礁、仁爱礁、仙宾礁、南方浅滩、棕滩、大渊滩、永署礁、南薰礁、牛轭礁、道明群礁等23座主要珊瑚礁过渡性水域进行的2个航次专业调查资料, 分析了南海主要珊瑚礁水域的鱼类种类组成和群落特征。结果表明, 在珊瑚礁水域软骨鱼类以真鲨目和鲼目的种类数占优势, 硬骨鱼类以鲈形目和鲀形目的种类数占优势。相对重要指数(IRI)大于500的鱼类定为优势种, 西沙群岛有5种, 分别为迈氏条尾魟(Taeniura meyeni)、长吻裸颊鲷(Lethrinus miniatus)、胡椒鲷(Plectorhinchus pictus)、黄斑胡椒鲷(P. flavomaculatus)和灰六鳃鲨(Hexanchus griseus); 中沙群岛有6种, 分别为黄斑胡椒鲷、迈氏条尾魟、圆燕鱼(Platax orbicularis)、密斑刺鲀(Dioson hystrix)、红裸颊鲷(Lethrinus rubrioperculatus)和胡椒鲷; 南沙群岛有3种, 分别为黑梢真鲨(Carcharhinus limbatus)、灰三齿鲨(Triaenodon obesus)和星点鲹(Caranx stellatus)。针对南海珊瑚礁水域鱼类个体大小悬殊的特点, 本文分别以个体数和生物量为基础计算该水域的Margalef丰富度指数、Shannon-Wiener多样性指数、Simpson多样性指数和Pielou均匀度指数。物种组成的区域差异分析结果表明, 各珊瑚礁水域的鱼类物种无论与南海北部陆架海域还是与南沙西南陆架区相比都有明显的差异, 而属于相同生境类型水域的鱼类物种相似性较高。     

Body Size, Diet and Growth of Landlocked Brown Trout, Salmo trutta, in the Subarctic River Laxá, North-East Iceland

Studies on diet preferences of stream-dwelling salmonids have mostly been limited to a relatively small range in body size. This study examined the influence of salmonid body size on prey size and diet composition, and its consequences for growth, in landlocked stream-resident brown trout, Salmo trutta (2.5–61.3cm) in the Laxá River, N-E Iceland. The most common prey of the 1622 trout sampled, were blackflies, Simulium vittatum, chironomid midges and the freshwater snail, Lymnaea peregra, which represented 56.3%, 21.8%, 10.8% of the stomach content volume, respectively. In general, the Laxá trout showed a consistent, but moderate, shift towards larger prey with increased body size. The relatively stable growth and the large body size attained were probably due to the high production of small benthic invertebrates and only secondarily to the ontogenetic shift towards larger prey.