Prey selection by larvae of Prochilodus lineatus (Pisces: Curimatidae): indigenous zooplankton versus veligers of the introduced bivalve Limnoperna fortunei (Bivalvia: Mitilidae)

We studied experimentally the feeding selectivity of larvae of Prochilodus lineatus (Pisces), with particular emphasis on the role of veligers of the exotic bivalve Limnoperna fortunei. Three concentrations of veligers were offered to three developmental stages of P. lineatus. Veliger concentrations were: (1) higher than in the field (“enriched”, 0.09 ind. ml⁻¹), (2) unmodified from field conditions (“normal”, 0.06 ind. ml⁻¹), and (3) lower than in the field (“low”, 0.02 ind. ml⁻¹). Fish developmental stages were protolarvae (approx. 10 days old), mesolarvae (17 days), and metalarvae (25 days). Proportions (in terms of numbers and biomass) and selectivity values were calculated for each prey item evaluated: veligers, small cladocerans + nauplii, medium-sized cladocerans, copepodits, and large cladocerans + copepods. Protolarvae and mesolarvae consumed veligers almost exclusively (88–90%, both in numbers and in biomass) when offered prey enriched in veligers, whereas for metalarvae veligers represented only 16.0% of the food consumed. At lower veliger concentrations, only protolarvae preferred Limnoperna veligers, whereas older fishes switched gradually to crustacean plankton. We conclude that veligers are preferred by the early fish developmental stages, and we speculate that this may be because their slower swimming makes them easier to capture than planktonic crustaceans. However, as fish larvae grow larger, veligers become too small a prey for their energetic needs, and they switch to larger items like cladocerans and copepods. We anticipate that this new and abundant food resource has an important impact on the survival and growth of P. lineatus.