Diet shifts and delayed piscivory specialisation during the ontogenesis of the largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides (Lacepede, 1802) in the Nakdong River and Upo Wetlands, South Korea

Abstract

In this study, we examined the ontogenetic changes in prey selection pattern of largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides (Lacepede, 1802) in accordance with habitat type. The stomach contents of largemouth bass were analysed with respect to predator size classes for two different habitats (Nakdong River main channel and the Upo Wetlands tributary) in South Korea, that differed in the diversity of potential prey items. The diversity (H′) of invertebrate diet items in stomach of largemouth bass was found significantly different between the study sites. Small large mouth bass (<100 mm) preferred to consume decapods and mayflies in the river and wet land systems respectively. Fishes >100 mm in the river and >200 mm in the wet land system preferred fish as their prey. Results demonstrated variations in composition of prey items as influenced by habitat characteristics as well as habitat use type, contributed to the delayed ontogenetic diet shift in the largemouth bass population.

Ecological Niche Space of Fish Communities in Impounded Sections of Large Rivers: Its Application to Assessment of the Impact of Weirs on River Ecosystems

“…Omnivore species may benefit from impoundment upstream, probably due to increase in organic particles, including planktonic food sources [38]. However, decrease in the ENS of predators upstream suggests that this habitat condition may negatively affect the feeding of predators, since river predators such as largemouth bass prefer benthic prey, such as crustaceans [39]. Therefore, their available food sources may be limited at upstream locations and their niches may overlap with those of omnivores.…”

Diets of Largemouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides) in the Sacramento San Joaquin Delta

“…For example, Largemouth Bass diets often comprise Lepomis spp. or red swamp crayfish or both in countries as widespread as Kenya (Hickley et al 1994), Korea (Jo et al 2016), Spain (Nicola et al 1996;García-Berthou 2002), Italy (Lorenzoni et al 2002), and Japan (Azuma and Motomura 1998;Maezono and Miyashita 2003;Yasuno et al 2016), highlighting the broad distribution of these nonnative species around the world and the consistency of their trophic interactions.…”

“…Within their native range, Largemouth Bass frequently consume aquatic invertebrates, sunfish species (in the genus Lepomis), and crayfish (Keast 1985;Olson 1996;Miranda and Pugh 1997). Notably -because Largemouth Bass, Lepomis species, and red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) are introduced species in many countries worldwide -Largemouth Bass in their introduced ranges often consume these same prey items (Hickley et al 1994;Nicola et al 1996;Azuma and Motomura 1998;García-Berthou 2002;Lorenzoni et al 2002;Maezono and Miyashita 2003;Jo et al 2016;Yasuno et al 2016). Because Delta food webs are now highly altered and dominated by introduced species , we may expect Largemouth Bass diets to consist largely of other non-native species.…”

Habitat selection behaviour of Pungitius kaibarae (Gasterosteidae) in the presence of the visual predator Anguilla japonica (Anguillidae)

“…Habitat patch selection (HPS) has drawn research focus for cognition and behaviour studies in fish (Brown et al, 2008;DeBoom and Wahl, 2013;Sowersby et al, 2016). HPS can affect foraging, predator-prey interactions, and fish growth rate (Webster and Hart, 2006;Brehmer et al, 2013;Jo et al, 2016;2019). HPS is a major factor in modifying fish behaviour in response to predatory attacks (Huntingford and Wright, 1989).…”