The stomach contents of Lumpenella longirostris, Malacocottus gibber and Bothrocara hollandi from the East Sea were examined to determine their feeding ecology. Specimens were caught seasonally from 2004 to 2006. The primary prey items of each species included crustaceans and mollusks. L. longirostris is a benthophage that primarily consumes bottom crustaceans and bivalves. M. gibber and B. hollandi are meso-pelagicphages that primarily consume amphipods and cephalopods. However, the species are opportunistic feeders that exploit the available prey in their habitat. The empty stomach ratio of the species is larger than that of offshore species (e.g. hairtail fish and yellow goose fish), and the prey diversity of the species evaluated in this study was much smaller than that of offshore species.
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