scholarly journals Geographical, and seasonal variation in the diet of harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) in Icelandic coastal waters

2003 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 243 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gísli A Víkingsson ◽  
Droplaug Ólafsdóttir ◽  
Jóhann Sigurjónsson
Keyword(s):  
Seasonal Variation ◽  
Coastal Waters ◽  
Diet Composition ◽  
Stomach Contents ◽  
Late Winter ◽  
Phocoena Phocoena ◽  
Fish Prey ◽  
Northern Areas ◽  
Capelin Mallotus Villosus ◽  
Sexually Mature

The stomach contents of 1,047 harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) bycaught in gillnets off Iceland were analysed. Most of the samples were obtained southwest (SW) and southeast (SE) of Iceland and the majority were taken in March and April. The sex ratio was biased towards males (63% males), particularly in the SE area (76%). The proportion of sexually mature porpoises was 35% and was higher in the northern part of the study area. Most examined stomachs contained identifiable food remains (97%). More than 40 fish and invertebrate prey taxa were identified.Overall capelin (Mallotus villosus) comprised the predominant prey, followed by sandeel (Ammodytidae sp.), then gadids, cephalopods and redfish (Sebastes marinus), while other taxa were of less importance. Differences were detected in diet composition among 5 areas around Iceland with redfish and gadids more prominent in the northern areas. Off SW Iceland there was considerable seasonal variation in the porpoise diet, where capelin appeared to be dominant in late winter and spring and sandeel in the summer through early winter. Predominance of capelin in the diet coincided with the spawning migration of capelin from northern waters along the east, south and west coasts of Iceland. Mature females appeared to have a more diverse diet than other reproductive classes. The length distributions of fish consumed by the porpoises ranged from 1 to 51 cm although most fish prey were less than 30 cm.

Summer Diet of the Harbour Porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) in the Estuary and the Northern Gulf of St. Lawrence

1994 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 172-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre-Michel Fontaine ◽  
Mike O. Hammill ◽  
Cyrille Barrette ◽  
Michael C. Kingsley
Keyword(s):  
Stomach Contents ◽  
Harbour Porpoise ◽  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Frequency Of Occurrence ◽  
Atlantic Herring ◽  
Phocoena Phocoena ◽  
Mallotus Villosus ◽  
Important Species ◽  
Caloric Value ◽  
Capelin Mallotus Villosus

Stomach contents (n = 138) were examined in harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) caught incidently by commercial fishermen in the estuary and the Gulf of St. Lawrence; 111 stomachs contained food. A total of 4423 otoliths and 11 upper beaks were collected belonging to nine species of fishes and one species of squid. Capelin (Mallotus villosus), Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus), and redfish (Sebastes marinus) were the three most important species in the diet by frequency of occurrence (83, 8, and 4.5%, respectively) and percent occurrence in the stomachs (52, 49, and 8.5%). Capelin and herring also made the greatest mass and caloric contribution to the diet of porpoise (>80%). The estimated mean mass and caloric value of the stomach contents of a nonlactating adults were 958 g and 7007 kJ, respectively.

Diet of longnose stingray Hypanus guttatus (Myliobatiformes: Dasyatidae) in tropical coastal waters of Brazil

2019 ◽  
Vol 99 (8) ◽  
pp. 1869-1877
Author(s):  
Michel Donato Gianeti ◽  
Leandro Yokota ◽  
Rosangela Paula Teixeira Lessa ◽  
June Ferraz Dias
Keyword(s):  
Coastal Waters ◽  
Diet Composition ◽  
Stomach Contents ◽  
Dietary Shift ◽  
Eastern Brazil ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
Opportunistic Predator ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Stomach Contents Analysis

AbstractThis study investigated the diet of longnose stingray Hypanus guttatus in the tropical waters of north-eastern Brazil. Samples were obtained from monthly sampling of artisanal fisheries from August 2007 to July 2008. A total of 258 specimens were examined, 127 females and 131 males, and stomach contents analysis suggested H. guttatus to be a generalist and opportunistic predator feeding on the most available prey in the environment. There was no significant difference in the diet composition of males and females, or between seasons. However, an ontogenetic dietary shift was observed with larger individuals having an increased proportion of molluscs in the diet, whilst smaller individuals predated primarily on small crustaceans.

The diet of harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena (L.)) in coastal waters of Eastern Canada, with special reference to the Bay of Fundy

1974 ◽  
Vol 52 (6) ◽  
pp. 777-782 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. J. D. Smith ◽  
D. E. Gaskin
Keyword(s):  
Coastal Waters ◽  
Gadus Morhua ◽  
Stomach Contents ◽  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Osmerus Mordax ◽  
Phocoena Phocoena ◽  
Eastern Canada ◽  
Silver Hake ◽  
Merluccius Bilinearis ◽  
Harbor Porpoises

Stomach contents of 81 harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena (L.)) collected from eastern Canadian coastal waters during 1969–1972 were examined. A total of 454 free otoliths and 54 undigested specimens representing a minimum of 281 fish, consisting of nine species in seven families, were recovered from the copious semidigested fish remains found in 52 of the stomachs. Clupea harengus (herring), Gadus morhua (cod), and Scomber scombrus (mackerel) otoliths accounted for more than 78% of the total. Osmerus mordax (smelt), Pollachius virens (pollock), Merluccius bilinearis (silver hake), Sebastes marinus (redfish), and Macrozoarces americanus (ocean pout) otoliths were also identified. Squid (Illex sp.), hagfish (Myxine glutinosa), and polychaetes (Nereis sp.) were identified in a few stomachs. Fifteen of the stomachs examined were empty or contained only fluid. Examination of the stomachs of the 16 smallest animals indicated that weaning occurred at body lengths of 100–104 cm.

Seasonal Variation in the Diet of Harp Seals (Phoca groenlandica) from the Gulf of St. Lawrence and Western Hudson Strait

1993 ◽  
Vol 50 (7) ◽  
pp. 1363-1371 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregor Gilpin Beck ◽  
Michael O. Hammill ◽  
Thomas G. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Gadus Morhua ◽  
Atlantic Cod ◽  
Stomach Contents ◽  
Fish Prey ◽  
Lawrence Estuary ◽  
Phoca Groenlandica ◽  
Capelin Mallotus Villosus ◽  
Gross Energy ◽  
St Lawrence Estuary ◽  
Magdalen Islands

Of 247 harp seal (Phoca groenlandica) stomachs collected between December 1988 and October 1990 from western Hudson Strait (autumn), the northern Gulf of St. Lawrence (December), the St. Lawrence estuary (winter and April), and the Magdalen Islands (March), 140 (57%) contained food. The Magdalen Islands sample contained significantly more empty stomachs (62%, n = 164) than those from all other locations. Both the unreconstructed mass of stomach contents and the proportion of fish and invertebrate prey within individual stomachs varied significantly with location and season. Harp seals obtained from the northern Gulf of St. Lawrence during their southward migration fed less intensively, and on a wider variety of both invertebrate and fish prey, notably Parathemisto libellula, Pandalus sp., sand lance (Ammodytes sp.), and Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua). Feeding was more intensive and specialized in Hudson Strait and the St. Lawrence estuary where capelin (Mallotus villosus) dominated in the diet. Capelin contributed 89 and 98% of gross energy in samples from Hudson Strait (1990) and the estuary (April). The number of capelin per stomach consumed by seals from the St. Lawrence estuary in April was high (169.4 ± 58.9, mean ± SD, n = 9). The mean estimated lengths of capelin and cod consumed were 132 and 140 mm.

scholarly journals Phthalate metabolites in harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) from Norwegian coastal waters

2020 ◽  
Vol 137 ◽  
pp. 105525 ◽  
Author(s):  
May Britt Rian ◽  
Kristine Vike-Jonas ◽  
Susana Villa Gonzalez ◽  
Tomasz Maciej Ciesielski ◽  
Vishwesh Venkatraman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Coastal Waters ◽  
Phocoena Phocoena ◽  
Phthalate Metabolites ◽  
Harbor Porpoises

The summer diet of demersal fish at the South Shetland Islands

1997 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 407-413 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masanori Takahashi ◽  
Tetsuo Iwami
Keyword(s):  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Stomach Contents ◽  
Demersal Fish ◽  
South Shetland Islands ◽  
Fish Prey ◽  
Shetland Islands ◽  
Antarctic Marine ◽  
Dietary Component ◽  
Gobionotothen Gibberifrons ◽  
The Antarctic

The stomach contents of demersal fish in late January 1982 were analysed. Samples were taken at 100, 300 and 500 m depth south of Elephant Island, Bransfield Strait and north of Livingston Island, and at 800 m to the east of Smith Island. Fifty four taxa of fish belonging to 11 families were collected. The diets of 2101 fish representing 38 taxa were examined. These were classified into three categories, fish feeders, krill feeders and benthos feeders. Fish prey species fed on krill and/or benthos. Krill was a major dietary component for 32 (84.2%) out of 38 taxa. Gobionotothen gibberifrons was distributed at all 10 stations (100–800 m in depth) and its diet comprised krill and benthos. The present findings verify the importance of krill in the Antarctic marine ecosystem and indicate that krill is consumed by benthic fish at greater depths than previously reported.

Population biology and diet of the puffer fish Lagocephalus laevigatus (Tetraodontiformes: Tetraodontidae) in Caraguatatuba Bay, south-eastern Brazil

2011 ◽  
Vol 92 (2) ◽  
pp. 407-412 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.R. Denadai ◽  
F.B. Santos ◽  
E. Bessa ◽  
L.P. Bernardes ◽  
A. Turra
Keyword(s):  
Population Biology ◽  
Temporal Distribution ◽  
Late Winter ◽  
Entire Study Period ◽  
Entire Study ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Eastern Brazil ◽  
Puffer Fish ◽  
Spatio Temporal ◽  
Sexually Mature

This study describes the spatio-temporal distribution, population biology, and diet of the puffer fish Lagocephalus laevigatus in Caraguatatuba Bay, south-eastern Brazil. Monthly samples were taken between August 2003 and October 2004 by trawls in two areas, south and north, at depths of 1 to 4 m. The fish were measured and their sex and reproductive stage determined. The abundance of this species was compared between areas and among months, and the items in the diet were identified and quantified. Lagocephalus laevigatus was rare in Caraguatatuba Bay, where only 199 small individuals (4.8 to 15.4 cm) were obtained in the entire study period, suggesting that this species uses the estuary as a nursery. None of the specimens of L. laevigatus captured in Caraguatatuba Bay were sexually mature. Higher densities of L. laevigatus in the bay were recorded in the south area and between October and December 2003, i.e. in the spring, suggesting that spawning may occur from late winter to spring (August through to November). The diet items consumed by L. laevigatus in Caraguatatuba Bay were, as expected from the current literature, crustaceans, mainly amphipods, and fish. However, the most-consumed item was the sea whip Leptogorgia setacea (Cnidaria). This feeding habit may be related to the presence of toxins (tetrodotoxin and saxitoxin) that are frequently found in the skin and viscera of L. laevigatus, which may be sequestered from the sea whip, which possibility still needs to be specifically evaluated.

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