Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the feeding habits of Parapenaeus longirostris 1 in the Greek and Italian Ionian Sea. The individuals were caught from September 1999 to July 2000 on a seasonal basis (except winter) in the Greek Ionian Sea, and in August 2000 in the Italian Ionian Sea. A total of 324 males and 309 females of P. longirostris were analysed. A comparative analysis of the diet and feeding activity was made, taking into account sex, season, size classes and study area as factors influencing the feeding habits of the species. Dietary diversity was also estimated. P. longirostris displayed a high feeding preference on a large variety of bathypelagic, benthic and endobenthic preys, mainly polychaetes, crustaceans and molluscs. No clear differentiation in the feeding behaviour between sexes, including diet composition and feeding activity, was observed. The increased feeding activity during spring for males and spring-summer for females could possibly be attributed to metabolic processes. This species undergoes changes in its feeding habits with ontogeny. Larger specimens were more efficient predators than smaller ones, possibly because of their greater swimming ability. The increased feeding activity in the Italian Ionian Sea is possibly related to the different environmental conditions.
Highlights
100 and 400 m (Ribeiro Cascalho, 1988; Sobrino, 1988; Sobrino and Fernandez, 1991; Crosnier et al, 1970; Crosnier and Forest, 1973). This epibenthic short-lived species is the main target species of a large fishing fleet working in the eastern Atlantic Ocean and is characterised by high rates of growth and mortality (Abelló et al, 2002)
The principal fishing grounds are located in the south of Spain and Portugal (Pestana, 1991; Sobrino et al, 1994, 2000), as well as areas off Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal, Guinea Bissau, Gabon and Angola (Cervantes and Goñi, 1986; Cervantes et al, 1991; Sobrino and García, 1991, 1992a,b)
The present study showed that P. longirostris can be considered as an active carnivorous predator on bathypelagic, benthic and endobenthic preys, mostly polychaetes
Summary
The rose shrimp Parapenaeus longirostris (Lucas, 1846) shows a wide geographic distribution, being found in the eastern Atlantic from northernSpain (Olaso, 1990) to the southern waters of Angola (Sobrino and Cardenas, 1996; Crosnier and Forest, 1973; Holthuis, 1980) and the whole basin of the Mediterranean and its adjacent seas (the Thyrrenian, Adriatic, Aegean and the Sea of Marmara) (Maurin, DIET OF PARAPENAEUS LONGIROSTRIS 2471960; Massuti, 1963; Audouin, 1965; Koukouras and Kattulas, 1974; Holthuis, 1980).In the Mediterranean Sea, the species inhabits sand-mud$ bottoms and its bathymetric distribution ranges between 20 and 750 m (Tom et al 1988).its main distribution stratum is between100 and 400 m (Ribeiro Cascalho, 1988; Sobrino, 1988; Sobrino and Fernandez, 1991; Crosnier et al., 1970; Crosnier and Forest, 1973).This epibenthic short-lived species is the main target species of a large fishing fleet working in the eastern Atlantic Ocean and is characterised by high rates of growth and mortality (Abelló et al, 2002).The principal fishing grounds are located in the south of Spain and Portugal (Pestana, 1991; Sobrino et al, 1994, 2000), as well as areas off Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal, Guinea Bissau, Gabon and Angola (Cervantes and Goñi, 1986; Cervantes et al., 1991; Sobrino and García, 1991, 1992a,b). Spain (Olaso, 1990) to the southern waters of Angola (Sobrino and Cardenas, 1996; Crosnier and Forest, 1973; Holthuis, 1980) and the whole basin of the Mediterranean and its adjacent seas (the Thyrrenian, Adriatic, Aegean and the Sea of Marmara) 100 and 400 m (Ribeiro Cascalho, 1988; Sobrino, 1988; Sobrino and Fernandez, 1991; Crosnier et al., 1970; Crosnier and Forest, 1973). This epibenthic short-lived species is the main target species of a large fishing fleet working in the eastern Atlantic Ocean and is characterised by high rates of growth and mortality (Abelló et al, 2002). The species has a high commercial value in France, Italy, Algeria, Tunisia, Greece and Turkey, on a lesser scale (Stamatopoulos, 1993)
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