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Diet shift of larval and juvenile landlocked Ryukyu-ayu Plecoglossus altivelis ryukyuensis in the Fukuji Reservoir, Okinawa Island, Japan

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Abstract

The diet shift of larval and juvenile Ryukyu-ayu Plecoglossus altivelis ryukyuensis was investigated for the landlocked population stocked in the Fukuji Reservoir, Okinawa Island. Gut contents of 274 specimens (5.1–31.4 mm in body length) including 31 yolk-sac larvae (5.7–8.0 mm) were examined. The diet of larval and juvenile landlocked P. a. ryukyuensis was mainly composed of zooplankton such as dinoflagellates, rotifers, copepods, and cladocerans. Feeding incidence was 48% in total and it gradually increased with growth. Diet analysis clearly demonstrated a diet shift during the larval and juvenile periods. For yolk-sac larvae and 5.0–19.9 mm fish, the diet was dominated by dinoflagellates Gymnodinium sp., and Peridinium sp., both numerically and by frequency, followed by rotifers that mainly consisted of Polyarthra spp. Diet breadth (Levin’s standardized index BA) diversified with growth, and feeding on copepods and cladocerans gradually increased in 10.0–14.9 mm fish. Diet overlap (Morisita’s index: C) showed that diet drastically changed in 20.0–24.9 mm fish with a specialization on cladocerans Bosminopsis deitersi and Diaphanosoma brachyurum. This diet shift probably corresponded with an increase of feeding ability resulting from an enlargement of the mouth, increased swimming ability, and the development of sense organs.

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Author notes

  1. Tatsuya Kawakami

    Present address: Ocean Research Institute, The University of Tokyo, 164-8639, Nakano, Tokyo, Japan

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Fisheries Biology & Coral Reef Studies, Faculty of Science, The University of the Ryukyus, 903-0129, Nishihara, Okinawa, Japan

    Tatsuya Kawakami & Katsunori Tachihara

Authors
  1. Tatsuya Kawakami
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  2. Katsunori Tachihara
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Correspondence to Katsunori Tachihara.

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Kawakami, T., Tachihara, K. Diet shift of larval and juvenile landlocked Ryukyu-ayu Plecoglossus altivelis ryukyuensis in the Fukuji Reservoir, Okinawa Island, Japan. Fish Sci 71, 1003–1009 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1444-2906.2005.01057.x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1444-2906.2005.01057.x

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