The diet and consumption of dominant fish species in the upper Scheldt estuary, Belgium

De Brabandere, L.; Ollevier, F.P.; Mees, J.

The diet and consumption of dominant fish species in the upper Scheldt estuary, Belgium

2003

De Brabandere, L. | Ollevier, F.P. | Mees, J.

Seasonal changes in the diet composition and trophic niche overlap were examined for the dominant members of the fish assemblage of the turbid low-salinity zone of the Scheldt estuary (Belgium). Samples of fish were taken in the cooling water of a power plant. Juveniles of eight species dominated the fish assemblage: two goby species, herring, sprat, bass, flounder, eel and pikeperch. Together, they had preyed upon 31 different prey taxa. Calanoid copepods and hyperbenthic mysids were the most important prey items with macrobenthic invertebrates being largely ignored. Pair-wise comparisons of trophic niche overlap showed that, in general, niche overlap between individuals of the same species was significantly higher than overlap between individuals from different species, suggesting that the available food resources were partitioned. The total annual prey consumption by the dominant fish species was estimated at 610 mg ash-free dry weight m<sup>â'3</sup>.

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