Food Habits and Feeding Electivity of the Turquoise Darter, Etheostoma inscriptum, in a Georgia Piedmont Stream

Abstract

ABSTRACT The food habits and feeding electivity of the turquoise darter, were studied in Bear Creek, a tributary of the Alcovy River in Newton County, Georgia. Twenty darters were collected in late spring and fall, and their stomach contents were examined. Chironomid larvae were the most important food item and were present in stomachs from all darters examined. Highest feeding electivity was noted for this food item; most other feeding was opportunistic. Other food items of lesser or seasonal importance included blackfly larvae and mayfly and caddisfly nymphs. Larger darters utilized larger prey such as mayfly nymphs to some degree, but no clear trends were evident.