The predator-prey relationship of perch,Perca fluviatilis,larvae and zooplankton in two Scottish lochs

Synopsis Food consumption of perch larvae and the impact of this on zooplankton were examined in two adjacent shallow Scottish lochs. Maximum annual abundance of zooplankton occurred in mid-May at L. Kinord with minimum values in mid-June. Copepods were prominent in spring but were followed by a multi-species community of cladocerans and rotifers in summer. At L. Davan zooplankton biomass remained high through summer with cladocerans dominating andDaphnia longispina the most frequent species. Availability of food items was a principal factor governing feeding behaviour of larvae. Copepodite stages were initially the most common item in the diet in L. Kinord in 1976 and 1977 and rotifers the principal food in June 1977, reflecting the dominance of these items in the zooplankton. Cladocerans were dominant in the plankton community in L. Davan and constituted the greater part of food intake. Overlying this general pattern there was an increase in the size of food items taken by larvae with time and also a definite pattern of food selection for copepods, with initially selection for smaller copepodite stages and later for larger stages and adults. On most occasions larvae selected forCyclops strenuus abyssorum andPolphemus pediculus and selected againstDaphnia longispina. The reduction in the total zooplankton biomass attributed to perch larvae was minimal, with the exception of mid-June at L. Kinord in 1976. However, predation on particular species and copepodite stages was occasionally intense and may have impacted the zooplankton populations.