Comparative analysis of stomach contents of cultured and wild cod, Gadus morhua L.

Abstract

In a cod enhancement project in a small fjord in western Norway, two groups of reared cod, Gadus morhua L., were released with 6 months’difference in time. After the last release a 3-week fishing survey was conducted. Stomachs from wild and recaptured reared cod of similar size were sampled and analysed. The last released cod had learned to catch the same prey types and in the same relative proportions as the wild cod the second week after release, but mean weight of stomach contents and mean numbers of prey items per stomach were smaller, and a larger proportion of the newly released fish had empty stomachs. Three weeks after release the proportion of empty stomachs was similar to that of wild cod and the first released reared cod, but the food intake was still smaller. The first released group of reared cod, which had spent 6 months in the fjord, seemed to feed as efficiently on wild prey as did wild cod.