Life-stage dependent, in situ dietary patterns of the lobate ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi Agassiz 1865

Analysis of in situ gut contents of the ctenophore Mnemiopsisleidyi collected during summer months of 1998 at Woods Hole,MA, USA indicates that dietary changes accompanied developmentof this zooplankter. The transition from cydippid to lobatemorphologies involved a shift from a microplanktonic diet dominatedby protists to a metazoan-based diet. Dietary diversity increasedrapidly during the transition from cydippid to lobate stagebut remained essentially similar through most (>3.0 cm totallength) of the lobate stage. These stage-dependent dietary differencesmay have important implications for understanding populationdynamics of M. leidyi.