Growth-Related Changes in Diet and Foraging Behavior of the Yellow Wrasse Thalassoma lutescens at Kuchierabu Island.

DOI

Bibliographic Information

Other Title
  • 口永良部島におけるヤマブキベラ<I>Thalassoma lutescens</I>の成長に伴う食性と採餌行動の変化

Description

Ontogenetic changes in diet and foraging behavior of Thalassoma lutescens were examined in shallow reef habitats around Kuchierabu Island, southern Japan. This species mainly took small benthic invertebrates, including gammarids, polychaetes, sipunculids, chitons, crabs, gastropods, pelecypods and urchins from algal mats. Larger fish consumed correspondingly larger prey, although most of the latter were armored with hard exoskeletons, shells or body plates (e.g., crabs, gastropods, pelecypods and urchins). Such hard parts were crushed with the molar-like, pharyngeal teeth which develop with fish growth, allowing exploitation of such larger, hard-bodied prey. Because the densities of larger prey species were relatively low in the initial habitats foraged, larger fish shifted their foraging attention to rock and coral crevices, where the prey species dwelt in greater numbers, as well as foraging over larger areas. Such behavioral changes maintained high foraging efficiency in larger fish

Journal

Details 詳細情報について

  • CRID
    1390282679739536128
  • NII Article ID
    130004019108
  • DOI
    10.11369/jji1950.38.307
  • ISSN
    18847374
    00215090
  • Text Lang
    en
  • Data Source
    • JaLC
    • CiNii Articles
  • Abstract License Flag
    Disallowed

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