Feeding habits of four sympatric fish species in the Iberian Peninsula: keys to understanding coexistence using prey traits

Abstract

Trophic interactions are important factors structuring animal communities. We assessed the trophic relations of four fish species that live in sympatry in the River Ladra (NW Spain), and cluster analysis differentiated two feeding strategies: (1) species with omnivorous feeding habits, feeding mainly on detritus and plant material but with aquatic macroinvertebrates as an important complement (Achondrostoma arcasii and Pseudochondrostoma duriense) and (2) species feeding mainly (Salmo trutta) or exclusively (Gasterosteus gymnurus) on aquatic macroinvertebrates. Concerning ingested macroinvertebrates, the trophic overlap was quantified using Schoener’s index and the results obtained revealed a high diet overlap among the species (from 81.3 up to 99.2%). In order to get a deeper insight into mechanisms of fish species coexistence, we used ten biological and ecological traits of macroinvertebrate prey to discriminate feeding preferences. As a result, despite the high similarity among the diets, our analyses suggest that differences in diel activity patterns and drift behaviour of preys, as well as differences in the prey size, are important adaptive features that may reduce the inter-specific competition in the fish community and permit the partitioning of food that allows coexistence.