Abstract
ABSTRACT The eyespot skate, Atlantoraja cyclophora, is an endemic species from the southwestern Atlantic, occurring from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to northern Patagonia, Argentina. The feeding habits of this species, from off Uruguay and north Argentina, were evaluated using a multiple hypothesis modelling approach. In general, the diet was composed mainly of decapod crustaceans, followed by teleost fishes. Molluscs, mysidaceans, amphipods, isopods, lancelets and elasmobranchs were consumed in lower proportion. The consumption of shrimps drecreased with increasing body size of A. cyclophora. On the other hand, the consumption of teleosts increased with body size. Mature individuals preyed more heavily on crabs than immature individuals. Teleosts were consumed more in the south region (34º - 38ºS) and crabs in the north region (38º - 41ºS). Shrimps were eaten more in the warm season than in the cold season. Prey size increased with increasing body size of A. cyclophora , but large individuals also consumed small teleosts and crabs. Atlantoraja cyclophora has demersal-benthic feeding habits, shifts its diet with increasing body size and in response to seasonal and regional changes in prey availability and distribution.
Highlights
The eyespot skate, Atlantoraja cyclophora (Regan, 1903), is a member of the family Arhynchobatidae and it is an endemic species from the southwestern Atlantic, occurring from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (22o S) to northern Patagonia, Argentina (42o S) (Menni & Stehmann, 2000; Bovcon et al, 2011)
The diet of Atlantoraja cyclophora consists mainly of decapod crustaceans, benthic teleosts and other benthic invertebrates, which implies that this species has demersal-benthic feeding habits
The diet composition of A. cyclophora off Uruguay and northern Argentina is consistent with the results obtained in Brazil (Ubatuba Bay, Soares et al, 1992; southern coast of Rio de Janeiro, Viana & Vianna, 2014), where decapods and teleosts are the most consumed prey
Summary
The eyespot skate, Atlantoraja cyclophora (Regan, 1903), is a member of the family Arhynchobatidae and it is an endemic species from the southwestern Atlantic, occurring from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (22o S) to northern Patagonia, Argentina (42o S) (Menni & Stehmann, 2000; Bovcon et al, 2011). This species inhabits depths ranging from the shoreline to 150 m and it reaches a maximun total length of 695 mm (Cousseau et al, 2007). Catches of skates off Argentina increased markedly in recent years (Hozbor & Massa, 2012), fishery statistics and ecological traits of these species are scarcely known, specially for A. cyclophora
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