Diet of the Australian sharpnose shark, Rhizoprionodon taylori, from northern Queensland

Abstract

Stomachs from 433 specimens of Rhizoprionodon taylori caught by gill-nets and otter trawls in Cleveland Bay, north Queensland, were examined. At least 5.3% of specimens examined had regurgitated. Of the remaining 410 specimens 59.0% had empty stomachs and only 19.3% contained food items identifiable to the family level. The diet comprised mostly small teleosts from the families Leiognathidae, Clupeidae, Teraponidae and Engraulidae. Penaeid prawns and loliginid squid were also important in the diet. Average weight of individual recently ingested food items was 28.5 g, which represented 2.3% of body weight. The high diversity of potential prey groups, high rate of regurgitation, and high proportion of empty stomachs meant that although a large number of specimens were examined the sample size was probably insufficient to provide a thorough analysis of the diet of R. taylori in Cleveland Bay.