Abstract
Feeding preference experiments were conducted to determine the feeding habits of Abedus herberti (Heteroptera, Belostomatidae) and Thermonectus marmoratus (Coleoptera, Dytiscidae), two large insects in Sycamore Creek, an intermittent Sonoran desert stream, Arizona, U.S.A. Numbers of live versus dead prey consumed were tested between and across three prey sizes. Five prey species were offered simultaneously (5 live and 5 dead specimens) in each size class. We found that A. herberti preferred live prey of small and medium size, but it chose mainly dead prey in the large size class. These results fitted the model of size-selective predation (Zaret, 1980). Size dependent predators selected prey of increased size, according to their visibility, but only up to where difficulty in handling and probability of escape affect successful consumption. Snails were the most preferred prey of A. herberti. By contrast, T. marmoratus consumed only dead prey of all sizes, but it preferred soft organisms with thin cuticle, such as immature larvae of some mayflies, beetles, dragonflies or fishes.
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